Urban Green Corridor

Creation of new green areas, Maintenance and management of urban nature, Improved governance of green or blue areas

The new remodelling proposal sets two basic objectives: to give priority to the pedestrian use of the boulevard and turn it into a new urban green zone extending right up to Ciutadella park (Ref. 1). The reduction of the traffic rails, the living zones under the woodland and the segregation of the bicycle rail are key aspects of an urban remodelling that prioritizes the pedestrian use without resigning to functionality. (Ref. 2) The project explicitly states the creation of a green corridor in the urban area of Barcelona as the primary goal (also a major tourist hub and source of economic income for the city) (Ref 1, 2 and 3). - The incorporation of local shrubs to this tree-lined zone will contribute to enriching subsoil biodiversity. (Ref 1)

The project was divided into two major phases: one focusing on the development of a larger pedestrian path and one focused on the planting of new rows of trees and the preservation of some local ones that are around 100 years old (Ref 1, 2 and 3). The project explicitly states the creation of a green corridor in the urban area of Barcelona as a primary goal (Ref 1, 2 and 3). It is a fundamental premise of the project to improve Paseo de St Joan as new green urban and sustainable corridor as far as Parque de la Ciutadella. For this reason, two new alignments of trees join on both sides of the existing woodland, shaping on this way an area of natural shadow that will take in the lounges, infantile games and bars. (Ref 2). In order to achieve these objectives the project has adopted three fundamental urban planning criteria: 1. to guarantee the continuity of the section along the length of the boulevard. Despite the fact that this part of the boulevard currently consists of 3 differentiated sections the remodelling intends to create a new longitudinal section making it uniform along its entire length. The new section is symmetrical and extends the width of the current pavements from 12.5m to 17m, maintaining the century-old trees and accompanying them with two new rows of trees. The layout’s continuity is absolutely essential in order to ensure functional clarity along the entire length of the boulevard. 2. to adapt the urban space to different uses. The new section must cater to the different uses of this urban space whilst enabling them to coexist harmoniously. The 17m of pavement have been organised in such a way that 6m are allocated to a pedestrian pavement whilst the remaining 11m under the rows of trees are for recreational uses (benches, children’s play areas and bar terraces). Previous road traffic surveys showed that the original road was too large. So it was possible to reduce the space allocated to traffic and turn it into a pacified transit zone. As part of the new layout, the two-way 4m bicycle lane is physically segregated, protected and signposted, located in the middle of the road. The key tenets of the new proposal are to reduce the number of traffic lanes, create leisure zones under the trees and segregate the bicycle lane. 3. to promote the passeig de St Joan as a new and sustainable urban green zone. Passeig de Sant Joan, which, with its prolongation via the Passeig de Lluís Companys reaches right up to Ciutadella park has been projected as the city’s new green zone. In order to achieve this, two new rows of trees will be planted on both sides of the existing century old trees to create an area of natural shade that will accommodate the new recreational zones, children’s playgrounds and bar terraces. In order to guarantee the sustainability of this new layout we need to ensure proper drainage of the subsoil and take on the challenge of incorporating a mixed pavement system in the tree-lined zone. The treatment of the soil with mixed pavements and the automatic watering system that uses phreatic water are key to ensuring substrata drainage that will guarantee the survival of the vegetation. The incorporation of local shrubs to this tree lined zone will contribute to enriching subsoil biodiversity. The treatment of the pavements is closely linked to the uses of the new street: on the pedestrian section the pavement is made of “panot” paving slabs (typical ensanche paving) whereas in the recreational zones a new prefabricated pavement with draining joints to prevent flooding will be laid down (Ref 1).

• Local government/Municipality
• Private sector/Corporate/Company
• Citizens or community groups
• Young people and children