Anyone planning an autumn trip from Alicante or Elche on Ouigo may want to check the calendar before booking.
Train drivers are planning six days of strike action between late October and early December. The dates include several busy autumn and winter holiday periods in Spain.
The action includes two full 24-hour strikes and four days of partial stoppages. Passengers travelling to and from Alicante and Elche could also face disruption.
When are the Ouigo strikes?
The Sindicato Español de Maquinistas Ferroviarios (SEMAF) has called full 24-hour strikes for the following dates:
- Friday 30 October
- Monday 2 November
Drivers have also announced partial strikes on four other dates:
- Friday 6 November
- Monday 9 November
- Friday 4 December
- Tuesday 8 December
On these four days, drivers plan to stop work from 06:00 to 12:00 and again from 18:00 to 23:59.
The first two strikes fall around Spain’s All Saints holiday period. The December stoppages coincide with the long weekend surrounding Constitution Day and the Immaculate Conception.
The strikes on 6 and 9 November also coincide with Madrid’s Almudena holiday period.
Alicante and Elche services could be affected
The disruption could extend well beyond Madrid and Barcelona.
Ouigo operates high-speed trains to Alicante and Elche, and Semaf says the dispute could affect passengers across the company’s Spanish network.
Other destinations include Madrid, Valencia, Murcia, Albacete, Cuenca, Barcelona, Tarragona, Zaragoza, Valladolid, Segovia, Seville, Málaga and Córdoba.
Around 100 Ouigo train drivers are involved in the dispute.
For Costa Blanca passengers, the main concern will be journeys between Alicante or Elche and Madrid, along with connections to other destinations on Ouigo’s network.
However, passengers should not assume that Ouigo will cancel every train on the affected dates. The company has not yet confirmed which individual services will run.
Why are the drivers striking?
SEMAF accuses Ouigo of repeatedly breaching its collective agreement.
The union says drivers face excessive working hours, problems with rest periods and holidays, and too many on-call shifts. It also criticises the company for a lack of transparency when allocating shifts.
The dispute also covers overnight stays away from home and disagreements over whether certain duties before and after train journeys count as working time.
These allegations reflect the union’s position. Ouigo disputes its interpretation of the situation.
The company says it complies with the collective agreement signed in 2024. It also says management and workers’ representatives continue to discuss areas where they interpret the agreement differently.
Could the strikes still be called off?
Yes. Ouigo says it remains willing to negotiate with workers’ representatives in an effort to reach an agreement.
Passengers should therefore treat the six dates as planned strike action rather than assume that widespread cancellations are inevitable.
Ouigo has also promised to inform customers through its usual channels if the strikes affect train services.
Anyone travelling from Alicante or Elche on one of the affected dates should check their specific train before departure. For now, passengers do not need to cancel their plans simply because the union has announced strike action.
Bridging the Gap’s recap
- Ouigo train drivers have announced six days of strike action.
- Full 24-hour strikes are planned for 30 October and 2 November.
- Partial strikes are planned for 6 and 9 November and 4 and 8 December.
- Partial stoppages will run from 06:00 to 12:00 and 18:00 to 23:59.
- Alicante and Elche are among the destinations that could face disruption.
- Ouigo has not announced that every service on those dates will be cancelled.
- SEMAF says the dispute centres on working hours, shifts, rest periods and other employment conditions.
- Ouigo says it complies with its collective agreement and remains open to negotiations.
- Passengers with travel booked on the affected dates should check their specific service closer to departure.
