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"We don't want to hide behind a series of human errors," said Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
On Thursday, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis took political responsibility for the March 1 train accident on the Athens-Thessaloniki section in Larissa city, which claimed the lives of 57 people.
"We do not want to hide behind a series of human errors. If the installation work on the remote control system had been completed, this accident would not have happened," Mitsotakis said during a Council of Ministers meeting.
The Prime Minister reiterated his apologies as railway workers keep trains at a standstill across the country for the ninth day of strike action.
In this regard, Mitsotakis said that with additional safety measures, such as the assignment of two station masters on each shift, the railroads should start operating as soon as possible.
Prime Minister #KyriakosMitsotakis announced an increase in state budget to address understaffing & shortage of railway equipment. He said government would step up procedures to fill in the gaps in the signalling network and upgrade the safety system, Xinhua news agency reported.
— Siraj Noorani (@sirajnoorani) March 8, 2023
The Greek Minister promised a transparent and thorough investigation into the rail tragedy to identify the wrongdoings and hold those responsible to account.
Mitsotakis also pledged direct initiatives to improve the situation on the railroads. He said that modernization work on Greek railroads will be completed by the end of this summer.
The stationmaster of Larisa, where the accident occurred, has admitted to the Prosecutor's Office that he put the passenger train on the same track as an oncoming freight convoy.
The media report that up to 60 000 people demonstrated in the center of Athens yesterday to protest against the government. Railway workers have said tomorrow they will continue the strike.
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