European rail agency head says warnings had been issued since 2014

The European Railway Agency (ERA) has been warning successive governments in Greece, as well as the European Commission, since at least 2014 about safety gaps in the Greek railway system, according to ERA head Josef Doppelbauer, speaking to Kathimerini in the wake of last week's deadly collision at Tempe.

Asked to specify the period of time within which it has issued warnings to the Greek and European authorities, he said this was done "since 2014, at least. And we repeat these reports every two years."

Since the crash, Greece's worst, reports have proliferated highlighting the shortcomings of the Greek system compared to the rest of Europe.

"Over the years we have reported on various aspects of the issue. We have a legal obligation to produce a report every two years at European level, based on the information we receive from member-states. We have published...