Start the removal of the stands of La Rambla dels Estudis

As planned, the stalls on La Rambla dels Estudis that, until 2009, had hosted the traditional bird stalls will finally be removed

The removal tasks will last about two weeks and will be completed by February 26

The Barcelona City Council is starting the removal of the 11 stalls on La Rambla dels Estudis that housed the former bird sellers of La Rambla until 2009, as part of an intervention that aims to advance the renovation of La Rambla.

The dismantling, like the rest of the redevelopment of the promenade, is coordinated by BIMSA, and is expected to last about two weeks, with the forecast indicating completion by February 26. The tasks will be carried out with manual teams and small machinery, and work will be carried out at several stalls simultaneously, according to the planned schedule, two by two, until all 11 existing stalls have been removed.

The dismantling work will begin by emptying the kiosks and removing added elements such as ornaments and shutters. Subsequently, the elements that make up the structure of the cubicles - the roof and sides - will be removed. Once the kiosks are dismantled, technicians will remove the base that supported them and repair the pavement of the promenade pending the start of the central section urbanization of La Rambla.

This marks the definitive dismantling of the old bird stalls after the City Council regained ownership with a court authorization. The closure of these stalls was done in two interventions: the first on August 21, when the ownership of six of these establishments was recovered, and the second on September 16, when personnel from the Barcelona Municipal Markets Institute (IMMB) regained the keys to the remaining five stalls. Since then, all stalls were closed, and now their removal is underway.

The former bird sellers stopped selling animals in 2009 and were then converted into stalls selling souvenirs, ice cream, sweets, tickets, stuffed animals... In the Special Plan for the Ordinance of La Rambla, definitively approved in 2016, their continuity was no longer contemplated, and on June 14, 2021, their owners were notified of the extinction of concessions granted in 1971 for a period of 50 years. The collective initiated several legal processes against this decision, but all resolutions have sided with the City Council defending the disappearance of these establishments in response to the public interest.

The renovation of La Rambla, a mandate project

The removal of all these stalls is part of the renovation of La Rambla, a mandate project set to be completed by 2027. This reurbanization aims to transform La Rambla into a more comfortable, green, friendly, and cultural promenade with more space for pedestrians. The roadway will be continuous and regular throughout the promenade, with a single circulation lane on each side, 3.5 meters wide restricted to vehicular traffic, services, goods, and parking. There will be sections with a 2.80-meter service cord, which will be mostly reversible, and security elements such as bollards at the ends, in major spaces, and at pedestrian crossings throughout the promenade.

The new La Rambla will have three major spaces strategically located along its axis, at three of the most distinctive intersections: the Betlem-Moja Space, the Boqueria Plan, and the Teatre Plan. These are three large square spaces configured differently, with a unique platform, to respond to the same space's morphology, transversal and longitudinal flows, special relationship with the main cultural facilities of the promenade, and the articulation capacity the space has had over time.

New staying areas will also be created under the trees along the route and in new areas to ensure a friendly and balanced use of public space with areas for rest and relaxation. There will be benches and chairs on the sides of the central promenade and under the shade of the trees. Additionally, all other elements along La Rambla that need organizing to ensure a coherent distribution related to the promenade's uses will be taken into account.

An estimated €41.07 million will be allocated to the execution of the four sections, and approximately €48 million will be invested in the reurbanization of La Rambla during this mandate, including the interventions in the Colom-Santa Madrona area. In total, a total investment of €55.6 million will be made in the transformation of the entire promenade - all five areas plus the drafting of projects and necessary services-.

Throughout the construction period, the City Council has opened Espai Rambla at the Palau de la Virreina, an information point open from Monday to Friday to citizens, social, economic, cultural agents, entities, associations in the area, and anyone else who wants details or answers about the progress of the works and what the future La Rambla will be like.