» From Cuba

Cuban Citizens Force Way onto Commuter Train
By Yoel Espinosa Medrano

Lack of tickets provokes desperation

SANTA CLARA, Cuba – January 8 Santa Clara passengers forcibly boarded the No. 24 train bound for the city of Havana on December 30, an act apparently caused by a lack of transportation in the region.

According to Orelvis Pérez Ballesteros, a resident of the area who was escorting his mother-in-law to the station to board the train commonly referred to as “the Espirituano”, the announcement that there were no more tickets available through a waiting list was enough to release the irritation of travelers who had planned to spend the New Year’s holiday with family in the capital.

Around 400 people forced open doors, knocked over porters and entered the passenger cars. National Revolutionary Police units responded at the scene and cordoned off the train station.

A lieutenant colonel of the Ministry of the Interior spoke to the frustrated travelers in an attempt to persuade them to disembark and listened to their complaints about the transportation system.

However, according to the source of this information, when police authorities realized they would have to resort to violence to clear the scene, they instead decided to let the train depart at 3:30 am, in the dark and overloaded with passengers.  

Published on  www.cubanet.org

Send by E-mail | Printable Version

Directorio Democrático Cubano
P.O. Box 110235
Hialeah, Florida 33011
Tel. 305-220-2713
info@directorio.org

© Copyright 2006 Directorio Democrático Cubano. All rights reserved.