High-speed trains between Madrid and Andalusia are suspended after the Urda crash

There are no high-speed trains between Madrid and Andalusia, and there may not be for weeks. Adif, the state company that runs the track, suspended all traffic on the line after two trains collided near Urda, in the province of Toledo, on the morning of Wednesday 28 October, and it has not said when the line will reopen. This page covers what still runs, how to change or refund a ticket and how else to make the trip. We checked it against the operators' own notices early on Thursday 29 October.

What is closed, and for how long

Every high-speed service between Madrid and Córdoba, Seville, Málaga and the rest of Andalusia is suspended. Through trains from Barcelona and Valencia to Seville and Málaga, which use the same line, are suspended too, LaSexta reported. High-speed trains still run normally between Madrid and Toledo and between Málaga and Seville, Adif says.

Renfe has stopped selling tickets on the route until 13 December. That is not a reopening date: Renfe says it will run trains again as soon as Adif reopens the line, El País and La Voz del Sur reported. Adif has given no estimate. After a crash on the same line near Adamuz, in the province of Córdoba, earlier this year, that stretch stayed closed for 30 days, LaSexta noted.

Renfe's replacement services

Renfe is running extra trains on the older conventional line between Madrid, Ciudad Real and Puertollano, which take about an hour and a half longer than the high-speed service. Its statement of 28 October lists departures from Madrid Puerta de Atocha at 8am, 10:30am, noon, 2pm, 4:30pm, 6pm, 8pm and 10:30pm, with eight departures a day in the other direction from Ciudad Real and from Puertollano. These trains do not reach Andalusia.

From Friday 30 October Renfe promises an alternative plan for travel between Madrid and Andalusia while the line is closed. On Wednesday evening it said it was still finalising the timetables, routes and services and would publish them on its own channels, El Correo de Andalucía reported. Renfe's drivers are also on strike on Thursday 29 October, and the company advises travelling by train that day only if you must; our strike calendar has the details.

Ouigo and Iryo

Ouigo has cancelled all its trains between Madrid and Andalusia until at least Monday 2 November, its website says. It has emailed passengers and guarantees a full refund, El País reported.

Iryo, whose train was hit, has cancelled all its services from Madrid Puerta de Atocha to the south and says it has no forecast for restoring them. Its website was not selling tickets on the route for departures before 9 November, RTVE reported. For cancellations, changes and refunds, Iryo's customer service is on 900 926 851 or atencion.cliente@iryo.eu.

Refunds and changes

Renfe offers changes and cancellations at no cost to anyone whose journey is affected by the closure. Ouigo refunds in full. Iryo handles changes and refunds through its customer service. The free phone lines that Renfe (900 10 10 20) and Iryo (900 001 403) have opened are for victims and their families only, and Renfe asks other passengers not to call its number.

Flights, coaches and cars

Iberia has capped the price of all its flights between Madrid and Andalusia at €99 one way in economy and €149 in business until Sunday 8 November. On 28 October it put larger aircraft on some of its Madrid–Málaga and Madrid–Seville flights, added two evening flights to and from Málaga and said it was working to add capacity in the coming days. Passengers whose plans changed because of the crash can change Iberia tickets on 900 111 500. Air Europa has added a flight from Madrid to Málaga and one to Seville, and some days may have two extra flights to Seville, the airline told RTVE.

Coach companies have added seats. Members of Confebus, the coach operators' association, have increased the seats on sale fivefold in some cases, but tickets sell out fast, RTVE reported. Socibus is adding coaches between Madrid and Andújar, Córdoba, Seville, Huelva and Cádiz as demand grows, Demócrata reported. The Socibus and InterBus coaches it lists leave from Madrid's Estación Sur bus station at Méndez Álvaro, not from Atocha. On Wednesday most of the hire cars at Atocha had gone by midday, RTVE reported.

The crash

At 8:53am on Wednesday 28 October a Renfe AVE from Madrid to Seville ran into an Iryo train that had stopped on the same track near Urda, and several carriages fell down an embankment, RTVE reported. At least 68 people died, the president of Castilla-La Mancha, Emiliano García-Page, said, and more than 180 were injured, RTVE reported; early on Thursday more than ten of the injured were in a very serious condition. A court in Orgaz and Spain's rail accident investigation commission, the CIAF, are investigating the cause. Spain has declared three days of official mourning, from 29 to 31 October. The UK's travel advice for Spain, updated on 28 October, warns of significant disruption to rail services.