Lisbon, Sept. 1, 2026 (Lusa) - The vice-mayor of Lisbon has stated that the city council and the municipal transport company Carris «have done everything, everything, everything» to support the victims and their families following the accident involving the Gloria funicular.
«The suffering of the victims and their families is an extremely profound matter, and it is something we must acknowledge, respect and honour. Therefore, Carris and Lisbon city council have done everything, everything, everything to support the victims and their families, providing medical, psychological and social support», Gonçalo Reis told journalists on Monday evening after the presentation of the future Glória funicular.
The Glória funicular derailment took place on 3 September 2025, resulting in 16 fatalities and 24 injuries among people of 15 different nationalities.
Asked about plans for a memorial on Calçada da Glória in honour of the victims of the funicular derailment – given that this Thursday marks one year since the tragedy – the deputy mayor replied: «The memorial will be dealt with in due course, that is to say, when, let's say, one year has passed since the accident.» Regarding the delay in determining the causes of the accident, Gonçalo Reis claimed that Carris's internal and external audits and the work of the Independent Technical Commission «also depend on the provision of technical data» by the Office for the Prevention and Investigation of Aircraft and Railway Accidents (GPIAAF).
Around 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 investigations; it is now expected to be published by the «end of the first quarter of 2027».
When asked whether city council (CML), as Carris' sole shareholder, felt ashamed that it was still not known exactly what had happened, the vice-mayor said: «We must honour the tragedy that occurred; we must address it, we must take care of it and we must make amends. The GPIAAF has already stated that it cannot complete the technical work within 12 months and has set a timeframe of 18 months.» «We are doing everything we possibly can. The technical teams on the ground, the medical teams, the psychological support teams, the social support teams. We are therefore doing everything possible with the utmost commitment,» he emphasised.
As for compensation for the victims, Gonçalo Reis indicated that Carris's insurer, Fidelidade, «has already made offers to everyone; four have already accepted, and I hope these matters will be resolved as quickly as possible, without any financial constraints».
Meanwhile, the chairman of Carris, Rui Lopo, who has been in post since January – following the resignation of the previous managing director, Pedro de Brito Bogas, in the wake of the derailment – expressed the company's «total solidarity» with the victims of the accident and their families.
Regarding the investigation, Lopo remarked that «there is no lack of response, there is a lack of conclusions», noting that, «fortunately», several reports produced by an independent body – referring to the GPIAAF – are already available.
«We must all have the utmost confidence in that independence and that technical expertise and, therefore, a number of issues are already known, which we have already worked on and continue to work on at Carris to improve», he stated, arguing that, rather than the delay in the investigation, what matters is that, «when it is concluded, we know exactly what happened».
Last week, Fidelidade revealed that it has so far incurred costs totalling €2.3 million, including expenses related to the accident, four compensation settlements with the families of fatalities, funeral services, repatriation, medical consultations, treatment, hospitalisation, surgical procedures, rehabilitation, transport and lost wages, amongst others.
Highlighting the «particular complexity» of some of the cases, Fidelidade stated that the conclusion of the cases «depends, essentially, on the clinical stabilisation of the victims, on obtaining the necessary information to assess the damages and, in compensation cases, on an agreement between the parties».
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