Barcelona: sustainable strategies and the attitudes of decision makers
The examination question will almost certainly be based on people or groups
who are against the sustainable management schemes. The notes below cover only
the common objections.
The key decision makers have been the members of the socialist Barcelona
Council who have been immensely energized since the end of the Franco
dictatorship and the restoration of democracy in 1977. The same Council has
governed the city continuously since then, providing strong leadership and
stability, enabling the development of a vision which has dramatically improved
the standard of living in Catalonia.
Council attitudes:
to create an urban environment that provides the best quality of life
possible for present and future citizens
pride in the city and its people
a competitive resolve to outshine Madrid
Sustainable
Strategies
Problems/Objections
Traffic management and
Pedestrianisation schemes
Create loading and unloading problems for businesses
Loss of trade particularly for businesses selling heavy goods that
require car parking nearby
Pedestrianisation schemes outside of the central area involve too much
walking and discourage shoppers e.g. Raval Rambla
Ronda de Dalt and Ronda Littoral
outer ring road motorways provide a bypass for through-traffic and reduce
cross-city journies
Traffic congestion increased in the
suburbs close to the motorway junctions
Modern public transport system
Lack of inter-connections between
the different forms of public transport
Inaccessible to the handicapped
Timetabling deficiencies
Cycle lanes and cycle parking
The take-up of cycling has been slow (less than 1% of all
trips). This is largely because of:
the hilly terrain, north of the city centre;
the Mediterranean climate which, whilst favourable for
walking, is often perceived as being too hot for cycling;
a perception amongst Barcelonans that cycling is
inconvenient and unsafe in heavy traffic, far more so than other European
countries such as Denmark or the Netherlands; and
a lack of investment, until the 1990s, in cycle lanes and
cycle parking by the municipal authorities.
The covering of the Ronda de Mig
Ring road.
This opened to protestors
complaining about the construction of a market on the new-found street surface
and new council houses in the zone for young people and the elderly instead of
leisure parks.
Bus lanes
Increase congestion for other road
users
Solar panels
Increase the price of housing
Reuse of brownfield sites
The cost of removing toxic substances from the sub-soil can
add significantly to development costs.
Redevelopment of brownfield sites has some negative effects:
it leads to property speculation, where properties
are bought cheaply, then left empty while the speculator waits for prices to
increase before selling and making a large profit
house prices increase beyond the reach of local
people
Redevelopment can change the social mix of the area
and destroy existing communities
22@ High-Tech development
Will provide jobs mainly for highly skilled workers and not
for local people
Diagonal Mar
People object to the 'americanisation' of Barcelona, with
the high-rise buildings and the new shopping mall
