The Community of Madrid is studying putting the new concept of streets closed to traffic known as ‘Supermanzanas’, a project that is not new, and that is even already being tested in other cities such as Vitoria and Barcelona.
Madrid City Council is shuffling to limit traffic in the central almond of the city with the creation of ‘Superblocks’ to reduce the weight of traffic in different areas to give more space to pedestrians and ultimately make the streets of the capital safer for the elderly and children, since there will be fewer vehicles.
The idea that the local government has is to start a pilot project at the end of the year in the Salamanca district and then put it into action in other neighborhoods if the initial experience has been satisfactory, something that will require some time. One of those responsible for starting the project is the urban planner José María Ezquiaga, one of the experts who has recovered this proposal after it was already approved a decade ago in the framework of the Strategic Project for Madrid Centro that was designed in the time of Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón.
During a traffic control, the Civil Guard stops a certain number of vehicles. Sometimes it depends on chance, but sometimes not. These are the cars most likely to be stopped at a traffic control.
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The initial plan would be to articulate the urban space in cells of about 12 blocks each so that they are independent from each other, but including their own commercial fabric and services. The idea is that all these ‘Superblocks’ include essential services and daily activities so that the residents of each one of them have everything at their fingertips in a space with very few vehicles. This would give more freedom to the neighbors so that they can go outside and walk more regularly in their areas, also favoring a more sustainable life.
It’s about a cheap and reversible model, and due to this flexibility, its investment in establishing itself would not be a serious blow to the coffers of the Community of Madrid. In any case, it is a project that must have consensus with the neighbors that make up each of the ‘Superblocks’.
In any case, the creation of the ‘Superblocks’ in the different districts of Madrid, just like what happens in Barcelona, does not mean that cars cannot go inside these cells, given that if those vehicles of residents, merchants and also vehicles of loading, unloading and those of public transport would have entry.
In addition to facilitating the mobility and sustainable life of residents in each of the ‘Superblocks’, this project is beneficial to improve the quality of life and air in each of the areas of the Madrid neighborhoods, thus favoring the reduction of CO2 emissions in one of the most polluting cities in Spain.
