'Closing the subway is an unnecessary setback for users,' Randazzo

The national government made clear its stance over the city government’s decision to close the A line service of the subway for up to sixty days -for the carrying out of construction works- labelling the measure an “unnecessary setback for users.”

The statements were made today by Interior and Transport minister Florencio Randazzo to C5N television station.

“There’s little seriousness in closing the service to install 45 formations that the national government gave to the City government with just one set of tracks, signaling, electricity and stations that were already restored by the national government.”

Randazzo added that he considered Macri’s decision to be “a political move” and also that he was “trying to make it look as though the city government were renewing the service, when really the modernization was done by the national government, without closing for a single day.”

Meanwhile, almost immediately, a response to the statements came from the Buenos Aires city government, who firmly defended the measure, stating that the national government had “no authority to talk about public transport.”

City Cabinet Chief Horacio Rodríguez Larreta was the one to speak for Mauricio Macri over the decision in an interview with a local radio station this morning.

“I am not going to get into the controversy over the subway, as this is not a political move. It’s worthwhile looking at Randazzo and the national government by thinking back to what happened at Once,” Larreta said.

“The technicians say that we should close line, so that is what we are going to do. If the national government had changed the carriages, then this would have been avoided.”