Urban Planning, Ecological Transition, Urban Services and Housing

A new cycle lane built at the head of the Els Passadors bridge in Sant Adrià de Besòs, a strategic stretch of path aimed at encouraging bicycle mobility in Barcelona’s metropolitan area.

This new stretch of cycle lane, co-financed by ERDF funds, is part of the Bicivia metropolitan cycle network – axis 3 to be precise – and will become one of the main links providing fast, safe cycle links between Barcelonès Nord, Barcelona and Hospitalet de Llobregat, and in the future when the axis is complete, with the Baix Llobregat area as well.

The project, which involved the creation of one kilometre of cycle lane (500 metres in each direction) leading to the head of the bridge that connects Barcelona with Sant Adrià de Besòs, was allocated a budget of €2,064,516.88, inclusive of VAT. Work began in September last year, and was completed this July.

This new stretch of Bicivia, which is a continuation of Barcelona’s La Rambla Guipúscoa, runs along Carrer del Tibidabo (the old N-II road) in the municipality of Sant Adrià de Besòs, between Carrer d’Extremadura and the Arc roundabout. The latter is one of the first roundabouts in the Barcelona metropolis to adopt the “Dutch style”, giving priority to bicycles.

The Bicivia 3 axis, which is 73% complete, will connect Montgat with El Prat de Llobregat
This new stretch being opened today is part of the Bicivia 3 axis, metropolitan Barcelona’s network of cycle lanes designed by the AMB. With nine main axes and more than 500 km of pathways, Bicivia makes it possible to cross the whole area, from north to south and west to east.

Once completed, the Bicivia 3 axis will link El Prat de Llobregat and Montgat, crossing metropolitan Barcelona and covering a distance of around 25 km, running along the city’s most important streets, such as Gran Via, La Rambla Guipúscoa and its continuation across the Els Passadors bridge, and down Avinguda Alfonso XIII, on the left bank of the river Besòs. At present, the Bicivia 3 axis is 73% complete.

The AMB will shortly be tackling the next two phases of this project (on the Passadors bridge and in Sant Adrià town centre) to give continuity to the network and extend it as far as Badalona. Furthermore, this area of Sant Adrià by the river Besòs will also be linked to the Bicivia 8 axis.

Infrastructures and the increase in the daily use of bicycles

The improvement in the provision of infrastructures for bicycles and other forms of transport such as personal mobility vehicles has made it possible to increase their daily use, as is demonstrated by the most recent data. The AMB points out that between 2019 and 2021, there was an overall increase of 49% in the use of the Bicivia network (the figure was 34% for bicycles and 123% for personal mobility vehicles).

The use of the Bicivia 3 axis grew by 37% outside the city of Barcelona, and increases of 78% have been reported in the area connecting the two banks of the Besòs river

This new cycle link is part of the ERDF Agreement on the management of metropolitan projects signed by the Government of Catalonia and the AMB in 2017, as part of the Catalonia ERDF 2014-2020 Operational Programme for Investment in Growth and Employment in areas such as smart cities, sustainable mobility, energy efficiency and the recovery and promotion of natural, industrial and cultural heritage.

This agreement will enable the AMB to invest a total of 72 million euros, 30 million of which will be co-financed by the ERDF. The AMB has made an information portal available to the public, with details of all the projects involving ERDF funds.