The Minister for Transport, Mobility and the Urban Agenda, Raquel Sánchez, has announced, during her visit to the Nuevos Ministerios station, that Renfe will begin to return the deposits of 10 and 20 euros paid by Cercanías and Media Distancia users for the use of the free subscriptions, which have been enjoyed by more than 2.5 million people in recent months. In addition, the minister has reviewed the procedures to reapply for the new free season tickets until April.
Thus, as of January 9, all users who paid the deposit by card will automatically receive their refund, while those who paid in cash will be able to request the refund in person as of January 15. However, those travelers who have misused the passes, by reserving several seats in one day and not traveling in any, will not receive a refund.
Until December 23, only 70 travelers were already informed by Renfe that their subscription would be withdrawn and their deposit would be seized. Of the more than 2.5 million passes issued, 30% belong to the Cercanías network and 30% to the Media Distancia network, distributed throughout Spain, as reported by the minister.
Raquel Sánchez has also transferred the estimated savings for a family of four members that will use the subscription throughout the year 2023: in Madrid it increased to 1,800 euros, in Barcelona to 2,200 euros and in Valencia to more than 3,000 euros. Likewise, for users of, for example, a Media Distance route between Mérida and Badajoz, the savings will be 1,800 euros.
The minister has defended that the Government has implemented all possible human and material devices so that this subscription renewal is “easy and effective”, at the same time that it has highlighted that it is a “historic and unprecedented” measure underway so that more citizens bet on public transport and fight against climate change.
