The End of the Car City in Spain

Abstract

In Spain, the debates on the new mobility policies are concentrated in the main cities. Madrid and Barcelona, plagued by high levels of pollution, have been forced to implement measures to reduce travel by private car and to prohibit the most polluting vehicles from circulating. In Madrid, the rate of change is the subject of a bitter political debate, while the Barcelona City Council is committed to reducing car traffic in the centre of the consolidated city, with various interventions, among which the idea has become popular of the superblocks. Other cities, such as Bilbao, Seville, Zaragoza or Alicante have openly opted for the introduction of the tram and the consequent exclusion of the car from certain streets and avenues. In Valencia, the concept of new mobility acquires a much more comprehensive meaning, with the combination of various transport systems and the reinforcement of the routes reserved for the citizen who walks or goes by bicycle. Traditional urban centres that benefit from different level of comprehensive pedestrianization measures have become widespread. Even in some cases, such as Pontevedra, 70% of the urban area has been freed from cars, which, if they have to go through it, respect the priority of pedestrians. In short, the chapter narrates the different speeds that the new paradigm of mobility without a private car presents in Spain.