Plaça de les Glòries is that eternal “work in progress” that, when it seems to be finished, surprises us again with a new fence. However, what has begun this week is not a simple patch, but the definitive movement for the tramway to stop being a drawing on the map and become a connected reality. The works to split the tracks and join all the lines of the Diagonal have already started, and the first victim (or beneficiary, depending on how you look at it) is Ciutat de Granada street.
Since Thursday, the section of Ciutat de Granada between Gran Via and Diagonal has been permanently closed to traffic. It is not a temporary warning due to works: once the works are finished, only the streetcar will pass through here. The City Council thus seeks to shield the area for sustainable mobility, although the entrance to the Westfield Glòries shopping center parking lot will continue to operate so as not to overly complicate the logistics of those who still depend on cars.
A new puzzle for traffic in Poblenou
This definitive cut-off forces those who usually circulate through the neighborhood to change the chip. To compensate for the closure of Ciutat de Granada, the direction of traffic between Diagonal and Bolívia street has been modified. From now on, the recommended itinerary to cross the area will be to follow the route of Badajoz, Bolívia and rejoin Ciutat de Granada towards Diagonal.
But the changes do not stop there. The calendar of affectations has marked in red the date of Friday, January 16. On that day, Avinguda Diagonal will lose two lanes of traffic on the sea side, just between Ciutat de Granada and Badajoz, leaving a single lane free for the passage of vehicles. This is the price to pay for the creation of a 50-meter wide promenade that promises to transform the face of Gran Via, eliminating the asphalt previously occupied by eight lanes of cars to gain 70,000 square meters of green and pedestrian space.
What’s next: the great Trambesòs stoppage
Although the visual transformation will be spectacular, public transport logistics will suffer the occasional blip in the coming months. According to the plans of the Autoritat del Transport Metropolità (ATM), the intention is for the streetcar to connect Glòries with Verdaguer in a direct route that will significantly reduce travel times along the Diagonal. However, to reach this scenario of rail happiness, it will first be necessary to face total cuts in the three current lines of the Trambesòs in more advanced phases of the work.
The project, which has an investment of more than 32 million euros, will take about a year and a half. During this time, a new bi-directional bike lane will also be installed on the mountain side of the Diagonal to replace the affected sections. At the end of the road, Barcelona hopes to have finally solved the Gordian knot of Glòries, turning what was once a drum of cars into an interchange where pedestrians and public transport are the real protagonists.