Lisbon funicular crash initial report reveals litany of failings
A preliminary report into last month’s funicular accident in Lisbon, which killed 16 people, including three British citizens, details a series of failures.
Portugal’s Air and Rail Accident Investigation Bureau said the underground cable that served as a counterweight between two carriages and broke, causing the accident, was faulty and had never been approved for passenger transport.
It was stated that the cable was not technically suitable and was purchased by the Carris company, which operates Lisbon’s public transportation in 2022.
The 140-year-old Glória funicular, popular with tourists, derailed and crashed into a building on September 3.
Among the dead were 11 foreigners, 3 of whom were British nationals, while 20 people were injured.
The preliminary report, released Monday, said there was no oversight by engineers at Carris and the cable was not pre-tested before being installed.
The inspection and maintenance of the funiculars by a company outsourced to Carris also did not work properly, and apparently everything went well on the morning of the disaster to the Glória funicular – although it is not certain whether the inspection was actually carried out that day.
Additionally, the report states that the government agency that deals with all Lisbon’s funiculars does not cover Glória, as it should.
It is stated that the emergency braking system, which the driver tried to apply correctly when the cable broke, did not work properly and was not tested beforehand.
Lisbon mayor Carlos Moedas, who was re-elected on October 12 despite accusations from the opposition that he had failed in his duty to inspect the city’s funiculars, told SIC television that the report “once again confirms that the unfortunate tragedy was due to technical and not political reasons.”
Citing a passage in the report stating that the same cables had previously been used on the Glória funicular for 601 days without incident, Carris issued a statement emphasizing that “it is not possible at this time to state whether improprieties in the use of the cable were related to the accident.”
“At this time, it cannot be said whether or how the use of non-compliant cables of this type interfered with the rupture… and it is clear to the investigation that there were other factors that needed to be addressed,” the statement said.
The company emphasized that although the cables were commissioned within the current board of directors, which took office in May 2022, the purchasing process took place within the previous board of directors.
The entire report will take approximately 11 months to complete.
Meanwhile, all Lisbon cable cars have been ordered to be taken out of service until the necessary safety checks have been carried out.
