Stopping all elevators in the CFR Palace: Why the administrator of the 9-story building says he does not know how many people are affected
The director of the public company that manages the CFR Palace, one of the busiest state buildings in the country, talks about “a significant number of employees and visitors” but says there is “no accurate record of the total number of people affected daily” by the shutdown of all elevators in the 9-story building two weeks ago.
“Several economic entities, institutions and organizations operate in the Palat CFR building, as well as a significant number of employees and visitors. For this reason, the impact of stopping the elevators is an important one, but we currently do not have an exact record of the total number of people affected daily”, Vlad Săcăreanu, the general director of the Palat CFR Operation and Maintenance Group, the state company that manages the building where the Ministry of Transport is also headquartered, told HotNews on Wednesday.
The clarifications came after HotNews reported a day ago that hundreds of employees from the Ministry of Transport and other state and private companies based in the 9-storey building of the CFR Palace are forced to climb the stairs two weeks after all elevators were shut down following the incident where an elevator carrying seven people collapsed into the void.
It is not known when the situation will be fixed
HotNews had requested a day ago from the company GEI Palat CFR to specify how many people work in Palatul CFR, what measures it has taken for employees with medical problems and locomotives who have problems climbing the stairs and when the situation will be rectified.
Vlad Săcăreanu, the general director of GEI Palat CFR, sent details on Wednesday, but without answering how many people work in the 9-story building, nor what measures he has taken for employees with medical problems and locomotives who have problems climbing the stairs.
“Regarding the deadline for remedying the situation, the company is taking all the necessary steps to fulfill the measures and conditions established by the competent authorities. The establishment of an exact deadline for resuming the operation of the elevators does not depend exclusively on GEI PALAT CFR, as it is necessary to go through the technical and administrative stages provided by the legislation in force.
Our objective is to put the elevators back into operation as soon as possible, in compliance with all the safety conditions imposed,” Vlad Săcăreanu told HotNews.
The building has 14 elevators. How many will be changed this year
The Palat CFR building has 14 elevators, which are currently stopped, and the director of the company says that he wants to change some of these elevators this year:
“GEI PALAT CFR is considering a phased program to replace the existing elevators. After the approval of the Revenue and Expenditure Budget (BVC) for the year 2026 and the completion of the legal procurement procedures, the company will start this year the complete replacement of 4 of the 14 elevators. The replacement of the other elevators will be carried out in stages, depending on the available financial resources and the investment programs approved for the years following”, Vlad Săcăreanu also affirmed.
The company also published a separate press release on Wednesday in which it presents part of the explanations sent to the questions asked by HotNews.
In addition to the Ministry of Transport, the CFR Palace in Bucharest works with employees from the State Inspectorate for Road Transport Control (ISCTR), GEI Palat CFR, CFR Infrastructure, CFR Travelers, CFR Cargo, Carpatica Feroviar, CNAIR, ARR, Metrorex and CFR Telecommunications.
