Catalonia is once again one of the regions that benefit the most from budgets. Only in railway investments, the autonomy will receive 1,665 million euros, an amount that will be conditioned by the 1,012 million that the state will allocate to the Cercanías network of Catalonia, Rodalez. An item that grows by 20% compared to the 2022 accounts. In addition to this item, which ADIV will manage by 95%, the state will transfer 312 million to the Generalitat to compensate for the Cercanías y Media Distancia public service commitments made available in Catalonia last year. Almost 70 million more than the previous year. The increase in these endowments is not accidental. It is Catalonia’s claim to temper its aspirations with the Rodalies. The Generalitat demanded from the state the integrated management of the service, which in practice meant the abandonment of sections of railway and railway materials to the community, as well as the separation of Adif and Renfe. The executive refused a full assignment, but was also open to agreeing to transfer certain powers. Last year, the central government had been negotiating for months about the future of this service with the regional executive in the bilateral commission set up between the two. But the meetings were closed without the parties being able to reach an agreement. Agreement now seems far fetched, because in recent months the governor has raised the tone after the Rodalies series of several crashes and delays. It is a stance that has prompted Transportation Minister Raquel Sanchez to offer a public apology to service users, as well as criticizing that “bad vision of Rodalis is encouraged for partisan reasons” and making sure the breakdowns happen “from all sides”. The government requires, before any agreement is reached to transfer the Rodalies, that the Generalitat sign the program contract with Renfe to improve the service. Because the general operator asserts that it cannot allocate new trains if this agreement has not been signed in advance, leaving in the air the arrival of the 101 trains envisaged in the Rodalies plan to Catalonia. The general operator is also skeptical about signing the contract because it believes that Generalitat would prefer to sign a full transfer of powers in the coming years to complete the partial transfer that took place in 2010. If this finally happens, Catalonia trains will be paid by the state run by an operator other than the state operator. Yesterday, the Minister of Transport, Raquel Sanchez, insisted on dialogue between all parties to resolve the situation. Above all, between both executives. “We hope that the Generalitat will return to the working table to determine a final figure for the transfer of economic resources from Rodalies,” the minister said. The government recognizes that the support of the Equity and Reconciliation Commission will be key to the implementation of budgets and infrastructure will be at the heart of the demands of the sovereigns. Real investment In Catalonia, the announcement of increased investments is received with great caution because it is stated, for example, that in 2021, real investment was barely 35.7% of what was initially budgeted in contrast to the implementation of 184% in Madrid, according to a report ‘ Regional distribution of state public sector investments in 2021’ prepared by the Treasury. The numbers add to the systemic problems of Barcelona’s passenger network, fueling the rhetoric of grievance and abuse. More information News No Government extends free Renfe subscriptions until 2023 and turns 700 million expenditures into ‘structural’ with EU news Yes, business elite split from Sanchez after financial attack and slander Historically, the so-called ‘infrastructure deficit’ – the difference between The proportion of what is invested in Catalonia and the proportion of Catalonia’s contribution to the national GDP – it has been one of the engines of the independence movement and a constant source of complaint among the business community. In addition, for the decoupling, the distance between what was budgeted and what was implemented, as happened in 2021, is part of a systemic mistreatment. On the other hand, for the present government, the distance must be attributed to the situation and, if possible, to the previous executive. This is what the Minister of Transport, Raquel Sanchez, did yesterday, who from Barcelona attributed the reduced implementation to the previous government of the People’s Party, confirming instead that in 2022, in the first semester, real investment grew by 40% year on year. .
