The management and improvement of the Rodalies service is one of the great challenges that the Generalitat faces this 2026. And the first step has not been long in coming: this week, the creation of the mixed company Rodalies de Catalunya SME, participated by the Generalitat and Renfe, which will progressively assume the management of the railway service, is definitively materialized. After years of political negotiations and citizen demands —in the face of a service marked by constant infrastructure works, delays, and recurrent incidents—, the president of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, and the Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, staged the constitution of this new governing body this Monday.
Although it had initially been planned that the company would be constituted before the end of 2025, the calendar ended up being extended until twelve days after the beginning of 2026. Finally, it will be this week when the formal constitution of the company becomes effective before a notary —beyond the political act led by Illa and Puente this Monday—, and it will be then when the statutes that will govern it will also be made public.
In addition, the first Board of Directors will also be held, with five members appointed by the Generalitat and four by Renfe, chaired by the Minister of Territory, Housing and Ecological Transition, Sílvia Paneque. The new mixed company will have the until now director of the TMB metro network, Òscar Playà, as CEO, who is also one of the five names chosen by the Generalitat for this new Board of Directors.
These, however, are only the first steps for the new mixed company to manage the entire Rodalies service, from the drivers to the vehicles. As sources from the Government have recalled, it is not an immediate transfer, but a gradual process, since, for now, this new company must obtain the necessary license and safety certificates to operate, a process that could take a year. Thus, it is estimated that it will not be until 2027 when the new body effectively begins to manage the different Rodalies lines.
Nevertheless, the president of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, has insisted that these first steps are already strategic to advance towards a more effective management of the railway service. "It is not a change of name, it is a change of paradigm," he assured during the act of constitution of the new mixed company, recalling that "public services are more effective when managed from proximity." In fact, the objective of this new company, after years of political negotiations for the transfer of powers between the State and the Generalitat, is precisely this: to offer a more efficient service and better attention to citizens, with more agile decisions managed from proximity.
Illa has also claimed "collaboration between administrations as an effective policy to solve structural problems," as is the case with the management of Rodalies. The Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente, expressed himself along the same lines, assuring that "both administrations share the same concern and need: to improve the Rodalies service, which is part of the daily life of citizens, of daily commutes to work or studies."
However, both have recalled that, beyond the constitution of this new mixed company —which must guarantee better governance of the service—, other measures that are already being implemented are also essential, such as the renewal of the train fleet or the improvement of the infrastructures of the entire network.
A Board of Directors with technical and political profiles
The new company, Rodalies de Catalunya SME, will begin to operate administratively this month, with an initial share capital of two million euros. Likewise, the initial shareholding structure establishes a 50.1% participation by Renfe and 49.9% by the Generalitat. In contrast, in the Board of Directors the Generalitat will have greater weight, as it will appoint five of the nine members that will make up this body. Strategic decisions, however, must be adopted by a qualified majority, a fact that requires consensus between both parties.
The board will be chaired by the Minister of Territory, Housing and Ecological Transition, Sílvia Paneque. Paneque is one of the five names on the list of members proposed by the Generalitat, as is Òscar Playà, who will act as CEO of the company. With more than 20 years of experience in the management of various complex organizations, since 2021 Playà has held the position of director of the Barcelona Metropolitan Transport (TMB) metro network.
The Generalitat's representation is completed by Pere Macias, doctor in Civil Engineering and commissioner for the Integral Transfer of Rodalies; Marc Sanglas, secretary of Mobility and Infrastructures of the Generalitat; and Teresa Torres, an economist with a long career in the financial sector, also within Renfe, where she worked as financial general director.
On behalf of Renfe, the Board will include Marta Torralvo, current executive in the group's financial area; Miguel Ángel Vicente, general director of Renfe Viajeros; Luis Manuel Suárez, general director of Renfe's Engineering and Maintenance area; and Raquel González, federal secretary of the railway sector of FeSMC-UGT, since the agreement reached with the company's workers included that the Board would have union representation.
A historic milestone, fruit of citizen and political demand
The creation of the mixed company is the result of a long political debate on the competencies of the service. The starting point dates back more than a decade: in 2010, when the Zapatero government transferred ownership of the Rodalies service to the Generalitat. A transfer, however, that never became effective, since the planning and management of the service remained in the hands of Renfe and, therefore, of the Ministry of Transport; as well as the ownership of the railway infrastructures remained in the hands of the State.
And now what?
Although the company will be constituted this week, the launch of the service will be gradual and will require time. Before starting to operate, Rodalies de Catalunya SME must obtain the railway company license, the safety certificate, and the railway contingency plan. Government sources indicate that, therefore, it will not be until 2027 when the new company can fully assume management.
In parallel, Renfe must deliver the inventory of facilities, goods, and assets to be transferred, with the corresponding economic valuation. Likewise, once constituted, the company will also draw up a strategic and business plan that will define railway operation, the management of stations and technical facilities, as well as citizen attention and information.
The transfer of the infrastructure will begin with the Maresme line (R1), which will be the first to be managed by the new company. Subsequently, and gradually, the rest of the lines will be incorporated, such as the R2 (Estación de Francia–Sant Vicenç de Calders; Aeropuerto–Maçanet-Massanes; and Granollers Centre–Castelldefels) and the R3 (L'Hospitalet de Llobregat–Puigcerdà).
All of this, while the Rodalies 2026-2030 Plan is being executed, which includes actions such as the duplication of the R3 line or the remodeling of various stations in the railway network. In fact, the Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, has recalled that, in addition to more efficient governance executed from the territory —through this new mixed company—, the Government is deploying a series of investments in different points of the railway network to improve both infrastructure and trains.
In this regard, Puente has indicated that the Government is working on the renewal of the train fleet, with up to 200 new vehicles —like those manufactured by Alstom in Santa Perpètua de Mogoda— which are already in the testing phase, with the aim of being incorporated into service this year. With a capacity of 905 people, these new vehicles have wider doors and carriages than the current ones, which will allow for an increase of up to 20% in capacity. In total, Renfe has ordered 101 new trains for Catalonia, which will be progressively incorporated into a current fleet of 270 units.