A LONG-AWAITED report on the investigation into Greece’s deadliest train crash was released today, blaming human error, outdated infrastructure and major systemic failures for the head-on collision that killed 57 people two years ago.

The 178-page report was issued on the eve of a general strike and mass protests planned for the second anniversary of the February 28 2023 crash, fuelled by public anger over the slow pace of a separate judicial inquiry.

The independent investigative committee found that a routing mistake by a station master sent a passenger train onto the same track as an oncoming freight train. 

The collision, which killed 46 passengers and 11 staff including both train drivers, occurred near Tempe, 235 miles north of Athens.

Investigators also highlighted poor training, staff shortages and a deteriorating railway system that lacked automated safety controls, noting a chronic lack of public investment during the 2010-18 financial crisis.

Authority director Christos Papadimitriou said the Greek railway system still doesn’t have “the safety systems needed” to cope with human error. 

The government said that it would respond to the “very serious shortcomings and understaffing and underfunding,” but added that claims made by opposition parties that it had hindered the investigation had been shown to be false.