Severe rains on 29 October washed out embankments south of Sevilla, cutting the region’s main north-south rail artery at Lebrija and forcing Renfe to bus thousands of passengers over the holiday period. By the morning of 1 November the operator had restored power and reopened the double track, allowing Media Distancia services between Cádiz and Sevilla and Cercanías line C-1 to roll again.
Engineers installed temporary speed restrictions of 60–80 km/h on several kilometres of track while ballast is stabilised, meaning travellers should still expect scattered delays. Long-distance Alvia trains running from the Costa de la Luz to Madrid have reverted to their normal rail paths after two days of mixed rail-and-road substitutions.
![Rail traffic in Andalucía back on track after storm damage—Renfe warns of residual delays]()
For mobility managers the quick reopening is significant: Cádiz province hosts major ship-building, aeronautics and renewable-energy clusters that rely on same-day rail access to Sevilla-Santa Justa and the AVE network. Had the closure persisted into the work week, companies faced re-routing trips via Jerez airport or six-hour road journeys.
The incident is also an early test of Adif’s new climate-resilience protocol, launched in July, which prioritises the rapid deployment of georadar and prefabricated drainage to reopen strategic corridors within 72 hours. Business-travel associations welcomed the performance but urged Renfe to integrate real-time disruption feeds into corporate booking tools, something the operator says will happen when its New Distribution Capability (NDC) platform goes live in Q1 2026.
Engineers installed temporary speed restrictions of 60–80 km/h on several kilometres of track while ballast is stabilised, meaning travellers should still expect scattered delays. Long-distance Alvia trains running from the Costa de la Luz to Madrid have reverted to their normal rail paths after two days of mixed rail-and-road substitutions.
For mobility managers the quick reopening is significant: Cádiz province hosts major ship-building, aeronautics and renewable-energy clusters that rely on same-day rail access to Sevilla-Santa Justa and the AVE network. Had the closure persisted into the work week, companies faced re-routing trips via Jerez airport or six-hour road journeys.
The incident is also an early test of Adif’s new climate-resilience protocol, launched in July, which prioritises the rapid deployment of georadar and prefabricated drainage to reopen strategic corridors within 72 hours. Business-travel associations welcomed the performance but urged Renfe to integrate real-time disruption feeds into corporate booking tools, something the operator says will happen when its New Distribution Capability (NDC) platform goes live in Q1 2026.
