Greece’s Minister of Transport, Giorgos Gerapetritis mentioned that February’s tragic educate crash should not have took place if there were a whole rail telecommunications machine within the nation at a press convention on Wednesday.
His feedback got here amid a statement on new rail protection measures which is able to improve the community’s safety machine and era.
The recently-appointed Gerapetritis additionally expressed his sorrow for the “unprecedented national tragedy that has left its mark on us all”.
The minister praised the efforts of the railway staff, who’re prepared to do the entirety of their energy to improve protection measures. He additionally mentioned {that a} stricter framework will probably be presented for vandalism and thefts involving the railway community.
On February 28, 57 other folks, a lot of them of their teenagers and 20s, had been killed when a northbound passenger educate and a southbound freight educate collided north of the town of Larissa.
Greece’s railways have lengthy suffered from persistent mismanagement, together with lavish spending on initiatives that had been sooner or later deserted or considerably not on time.
State railway corporate Hellenic Railways reportedly get rid of repairs paintings for years and had been billions of euros in debt.
The crash sparked global outrage and hundreds of demonstrators have since marched in protests around the nation decrying the rustic’s battered railway grid.
The former minister, Kostas Karamanlis resigned whilst the federal government promised a complete investigation into the crash.
The 59-year-old stationmaster who used to be on accountability allegedly directed the 2 trains travelling in reverse instructions onto the similar observe, whilst the signalling machine within the house malfunctioned six years in the past and used to be by no means repaired.
He used to be charged with negligent murder and jailed pending a tribulation on Sunday.
Meanwhile, dozens of masked, black-clad protesters hurled Molotov cocktails and stones at rebel police as greater than 40,000 took to the streets of the capital on Wednesday.
Clashes broke out between police and protesters in central Athens, as police fired tear fuel at firebomb-throwing protesters outdoor parliament constructions.