The idea comes from the Barcelona Urban Ecology Agency, created by Salvador Rueda, and is made up of nine city blocks with a size of 400x400m that keep car traffic on the outskirts. The inner blocks are then converted into “citizen spaces” of street life and public space.

Which are the benefits? According to an analysis (1) by Borja Castro Lancharro, now a senior consultant at the World Bank, this prioritization model generates an improvement in the mobility of pedestrians and bicyclists by giving them more space. Also, by reducing the volume of traffic in internal areas, it reduces carbon dioxide and noise emissions.

This proposal made its debut in Barcelona in 2016, when the City Council began with three superblocks in the neighborhoods of Poble Nou, Horta and Sant Antoni. In these areas, streets are pacified and restricted mostly to active transport (cycling and walking), and residential traffic is limited to 10 kilometers per hour. In Poble Nou, the green area doubled to 176 trees (2) and traffic dropped from 2,218 cars per day to 932.

Three years later, a similar project was launched in Vitoria-Gasteiz, capital of the Basque Country and home to 200,000 inhabitants. “On weekends, Calle de Postas in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain, feels like a never-ending block party. Cyclists share the magnolia-shaded street with off-leash dogs and teetering toddlers. There are bustling cafe tables and families on benches eating ice cream” (3).

Costs

Rueda says that superblocks are a cheap revolution "because you don't have to tear down a single building". And while he estimated a cost of 600,000 euros per superblock for his ambitious plan to install 503 superblocks in Barcelona (4), the specialist assures that any such transformation can begin initially with tactical urban planning (traffic signs, paint and simple furnishings, beginning with pedestrian-only areas just on weekends), and then move on to a more profound renovation with modifications to the pavement and the installation of definitive furnishings.

"At first it can be done at low cost and in a potentially reversible fashion. All you need are cones and signs," says architect José María Ezquiaga, who for some time co-directed the strategic plan for Madrid Centro (5).

Challenges

What problems could a city moving forward with a superblock project face? At first, neighbors could see it as a threat to their mobility habits. Shopkeepers may become nervous for fear of losing customers.

But the fears were misplaced. There were no traffic jams in the vicinity and there was no negative impact on the neighbourhood's commercial activity. On the contrary, the number of ground floor shops increased by more than 30%.

"The problem with superblocks is one of political tacticism. A project of these characteristics, which is strategic for the city, requires an agreement between parties. You need a city-wide agreement, because if you don't have one, you move forward very slowly," says Rueda (6).

“The first thing you need to do is talk with those who are against, and then with those who are in favor”, he explains.

Our take

This solution is ideal for medium- or large-sized cities who are seeking to improve the quality of life of its centers, to bring down emissions and promote active mobility. We already helped several cities to implement this solution. If you want to know how we can help you implement this solution, please contact us and request more information.

References

1. Castro Lancharro, B. (2017). "Supermanzanas: una distribución eficiente del transporte en las ciudades", Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (IDB). [Link]

2. Lahoz, U. (2021). "Menos coches, más paseos y más supermanzanas: cómo conseguir que las ciudades dejen de perjudicar seriamente nuestra salud", El País (España) [Link]

3. Enzina, W. (2019). "The ‘Superblock’ Revolution Is Making Cities Safer and Cleaner", Bloomberg Businessweek [link]

4. Postaria, R. (2021). "Superblock (Superilla) Barcelona—a city redefined", World Cities Forum [link]

5. Medina, M.A., Zafra, M. y Vicente López, J. (2020). "Supermanzanas, o cómo devolver al peatón la ciudad robada por los coches", El País (España) [link]

6. Monge, A. (2021). "Las grandes transformaciones de Barcelona se han decidido lejos de la ciudad", El Periódico [link]