When asked about flaws in the legal framework for Carris's transportation systems to ensure adequate oversight and supervision to protect user safety, Carlos Moedas said he was unaware of the information contained in the preliminary report by the Aircraft and Railway Accident Prevention and Investigation Office (GPIAAF), released on Monday, regarding the Glória elevator accident.

"I'm not aware of it. What I know about the report is related to elevators and lifts. We're not talking about everyday trams here," the Social Democratic mayor stated on the sidelines of the conference, "Gebalis 30 Years - Challenges of Municipal Housing Management."

"Lisbon residents know that Carris has been a company that has safely transported millions of people over the years. Therefore, for us to be raising questions about the company's safety regarding buses and trams is, I think, untrue, and never has been. People can be safe when they ride trams or buses. What we were talking about here is elevators, and the elevators are out of service," he stated.

According to the GPIAAF's preliminary report on the Glória elevator accident on September 3, which caused 16 deaths and approximately two dozen injuries, including Portuguese and foreign nationals, elevators, such as the Glória and Lavra elevators in Lisbon, as well as Carris trams, are not under the supervision of the Institute of Mobility and Transport (IMT), and are instead subject to the supervision of the operating company itself.

The GPIAAF "found that Carris trams are in the same situation [without independent supervision], as there is no legal framework for the technical and safety regulation of tram systems operating on non-reserved tracks."

"Therefore, the safety conditions of trams, whether historic, modernized, or modern, which operate on public roads alongside road vehicles, whether upon commissioning or throughout their service life," are not, in Portugal, subject "to compliance with any rules other than those defined by the company itself, nor, most importantly, to any type of independent oversight," he concluded.

Oversight

On Tuesday, the Minister of Infrastructure stated that the Government detected, after the Glória elevator accident in Lisbon, a gap in the oversight of these types of transport and immediately mandated the IMT to address it.

Today, the Mayor of Lisbon reinforced that the GPIAAF preliminary report points to "technical failures, failures that stem from the past and that were also present in the present, and therefore, there is a technical responsibility."

"Therefore, I immediately accepted the resignation of the president of Carris," said Carlos Moedas, who was re-elected as mayor of Lisbon in the October 12th municipal elections, adding that the current administration of this municipal public transportation company, under the leadership of Pedro de Brito Bogas, will remain in office until the new team is chosen, which is expected to take place after the inauguration of the new municipal executive and "several meetings" regarding the installation of the municipal bodies.

Regarding the request from opposition councillors, including the Socialist Party (PS), for political responsibility for the accident involving the Glória elevator, the PSD mayor said that "it is sad that attempts are still being made to politicize a tragedy" and emphasized that the GPIAAF report cites "technical failures, not any political responsibility."

Regarding the failures in the maintenance of Carris elevators, Carlos Moedas said that, at this moment, and since the accident on September 3, this equipment is stopped and the municipality has "a technical committee, with the best specialists", to ensure that they can return to operation, which will only happen when there is "absolute certainty" regarding safety.