Lisbon, Sept. 2, 2026 (Lusa) - One year after the derailment of the Glória funicular in Lisbon, investigators continue their work, and support remains available to the families of the 16 fatalities and the 24 injured, representing 15 different nationalities; four compensation claims have now been settled.
The historic funicular derailed on 3 September 2025 at 6.00 p.m., in a tragedy that claimed 16 lives, mainly foreign tourists, as well as five Portuguese nationals: brake operator André Marques, who was operating one of the cabins of this funicular managed by the municipal company Carris, and four employees of the Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa who were using this public transport service.
The accident also left 24 people injured, nine of whom suffered serious injuries. All «remain in a condition where their clinical status is still being established», Carris's insurer, Fidelidade, reported on 27 August.
«In such cases, a definitive assessment of compensation can only be carried out after they are clinically stable, allowing the extent of any long-term effects and the injuries sustained to be properly determined», it added.
Carris, whose sole shareholder is Lisbon City Council (CML), said that it «maintains contact with victims and their families and provides support in matters where it can be of assistance», offering «social, humanitarian and logistical» support, whilst emphasising that Fidelidade manages compensation claims once the insurance has been activated, with cover of up to €50 million.
This information appears on a website recently set up by the transport operator (https://equipamentos-historicos.carris.pt/) dedicated to the Glória funicular and four other historic pieces of rolling stock that the operator took out of service following the derailment so that they could undergo inspection: the Bica and Lavra funiculars and the Santa Junta lift, which remain out of service while inspections continue, and the Graça funicular, which reopened in April.
On Monday, Lisbon City Council (CML) and Carris presented the solution for the future Glória funicular, featuring a «new system» that will ensure «complete safety»; an international design competition is planned by the end of March 2027, with the facility due to open in 2029.
When asked about the creation of a memorial on Calçada da Glória in honour of the victims, as Thursday marks one year since the tragedy, the council's vice-president, Gonçalo Reis (PSD), replied: «The memorial will be dealt with in due course, that is, when, let's say, a year has passed since the accident.» Over the past 12 months, survivors and relatives of those who died have expressed a desire for more frequent contact from Lisbon City Council, while the council has stated that it has already contacted everyone involved.
Recently, in an interview with Expresso, a German family who survived the crash reported: «No one from Portugal has shown any interest in us to this day. No one has got in touch with us, apart from the German embassy in Lisbon. And there has been no payment or support whatsoever from the Portuguese insurance company Fidelidade either.» This family has decided to take the matter to court to establish who was at fault and to prevent it from happening again. «We nearly died, but we are still alive. We also want to take action on behalf of those who died or who cannot do so themselves because they lack the financial means. In our case, we do not need the money. We could even donate it to a charity,» they said.
To date, Fidelidade has stated that it «has directly covered, or assumed responsibility for the reimbursement of, approximately €2.3 million in expenses related to the accident», including compensation, funeral services, repatriation, medical consultations, treatment, hospitalisation, surgical procedures, rehabilitation, transport and lost wages, amongst other costs.
With regard to the fatalities, the insurer said that «compensation agreements have been reached with the families of four victims» and seven cases are currently under negotiation, whilst «one case is following the relevant legal proceedings, as the parties are still working to reach an agreement».
«There is another fatality whose case is being dealt with exclusively under the provisions for workplace accidents, for which provisional pensions are being paid and will continue until the proceedings before the labour court are concluded,» it stated.
In the remaining three cases, the company is still awaiting essential documentation and the specific legal requirements of the countries involved before it can present a final compensation offer.
The accident at Glória occurred one month before the local elections, with Carlos Moedas standing for re-election as Mayor of Lisbon for the PSD/CDS-PP/IL coalition. The parties demanded swift accountability from those responsible, with voters also set to judge Moedas's political responsibility. The Social Democrat consolidated his results and now governs with an absolute majority, after bringing on board a councillor who had left the Chega party.
Moedas has been selective in his public comments about the tragedy. He spoke publicly on the day of the accident, at the scene, stating that Lisbon was in mourning, and the following day he attended a meeting of the cabinet at São Bento, where, alongside the prime minister, Luís Montenegro (PSD), he made it known that he had demanded that Carris carry out «an independent external investigation», in addition to an internal inquiry.
The issue dominated the October local election campaign, with Moedas accusing his opponents, in particular Alexandra Leitão (PS), of exploiting the situation for political gain. Since then, the mayor has rarely spoken on the matter, including at public meetings of municipal bodies, where he has often referred it to the vice-president of Lisbon City Council, who is responsible for Carris.
Regarding this first year, the Lusa news agency requested an interview with the mayor or deputy mayor of Lisbon and continues to await a response.
The city council awarded the external audit to CATIM, the Centre for Technological Support to the Metalworking Industry, for €12,600, to carry out a technical inspection of the operation of all the historic rolling stock, whilst Carris's internal inquiry is being conducted by the Serious Accident Investigation Commission (CIAG).
According to information on the Carris website, «the CIAG has a limited scope of action, as it is subject to the directives of the Public Prosecutor's Office (judicial confidentiality applying to the vehicle involved in the accident) and the GPIAAF [Office for the Prevention and Investigation of Aircraft and Railway Accidents]», bodies which are also investigating the case.
The municipal company emphasised that the CIAG is still gathering information, and Carris can already act on the data available in the GPIAAF's interim reports and «respond with measures to strengthen safety and rectify the situation in line with the four recommendations made by that body».
The preliminary report, published in October, revealed that the connecting cable between the two cabins of the Glória funicular, which failed, did not comply with specifications and was not certified for passenger transport.
The Carris board, then chaired by Pedro de Brito Bogas, resigned, and Moedas appointed Rui Lopo as chair, a post which the former director at Transportes Metropolitanos de Lisboa took up in January.
According to Carris's timeline of events surrounding the accident, in October the company dismissed the director of Electric Mode Maintenance and appointed a new person to the post, and in November the company revoked, by mutual agreement, the maintenance services contract for the equipment at Bica, Lavra, Glória and Santa Justa with the company MNTC - Serviços Técnicos de Engenharia, as well as the contract relating to electric mode vehicles, meaning that Carris and MNTC no longer have any contractual relationship.
«We have not yet taken any legal action against any entity, as we await the results of the investigations,» the transport operator emphasised, adding that disciplinary proceedings remain on hold while the investigations continue.
Two weeks ago, the GPIAAF reported that the final report on the accident would not be completed in September, as planned, due to the complexity of the technical assessments, estimating publication by «the end of the first quarter of 2027».
Regarding the Public Prosecutor's Office case, the Attorney General's Office (PGR) reiterated, in a response to Lusa in August, that the inquiry, which is subject to judicial secrecy, is ongoing, «with all necessary steps, particularly expert assessments, being taken to establish responsibility for the incident».
Lusa also asked the PGR whether any suspects had been identified yet, but they did not respond.
Persisting in its criticism of the outsourcing of lift maintenance, the Portuguese Road and Urban Transport Workers' Union states that it is still awaiting responses from Lisbon City Council (CML) and Carris regarding the accident.
On the day of the derailment, union leader Manuel Leal reported «repeated complaints» about the maintenance of the funiculars, including the one at Glória, attributing the problems to the outsourcing of the service to MNTC.
SSM/ADB // ADB.
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