If you're in Barcelona, whether you're a tourist or you live here, the city's metro is one of the most convenient and most popular ways to get around. This summer, however, improvement works are planned for a number of lines meaning travellers will have to find alternative routes.
TMB, the metro's operator, has announced renovation works for line 1 (red) to modernise more than 9 kilometres (5.5 miles) of track and installations between the stations of Clot and Baró de Viver. To enable the work, the line will be closed between Clot and Fondo, the last station northbound, from 29th June to 30th August inclusive. The rest of the line will be open as normal.
The Catalan territory and sustainability ministry, meanwhile, will carry out works of its own on the network which will lead to partial service running on two other lines: line 2 (purple) between Paral·lel and Sagrada Família, from 27th July to 30th August, and line 5 (blue) between Can Vidalet and Collblanc, from 29th July to 1st September. The former works are to improve the conditions of the track, the latter are associated with the future Ernest Lluch station.
Alternative routes
During the works on L1, the operators recommend using the new line L9 Nord (orange) which runs from La Sagrera on L1 to Fondo and beyond to Can Zam as well as Rodalies trains through stations like Sant Andreu Comtal (R2 - green / R2 Nord - light green), Sant Andreu Arenal (R3 - red / R4 - orange), La Sagrera-Meridana (R3 / R4) and El Clot-Aragó (R2 / R2 Nord). There will also be two special, regular bus services, one running between Clot and Fabra i Puig and another between Onze de Setembre on L9 Nord (orange) and Fondo. These are all based on the alternatives which have the capacity to absorb the metro traffic.
TMB have also released a document with specific suggestions for the different affected stations on L1:
- Clot: Also on metro L2 (purple) or Rodalies trains R2/R2 Nord (green)
- Navas: Take the replacement bus
- La Sagrera: Also on metro L5 (blue), L9 Nord (orange) and L10 Nord (light blue) as well as Rodalies trains R3 (red) and R4 (orange)
- Fabra i Puig: Take the replacement bus, or normal bus H6 to metro station Virrei Amat on metro L5 (blue)
- Sant Andreu: Also on Rodalies trains R2/R2 Nord (green)
- Torras i Bages: Take the replacement bus, or normal bus H4 to Sant Andreu
- Trinitat Vella: Take normal bus V31 to Sant Andreu
- Baró de Viver: Take the replacement bus
- Santa Coloma: Take the replacement bus
- Fondo: Also on L9 Nord (orange)
Note that a lot of the stations are within a short walk of other, still open stations on different lines. TMB has full details (in English) on their website of the replacement buses and alternative routes.
The affected section of L2 connects well with other lines of the metro network. So, for example, tourists looking to visit Sagrada Familia can go by L5 (blue) instead with possible changes including L3 (green) at Diagonal, L4 (yellow) at Verdaguer and L1 (red) at Clot, before the section closed.
As for L5, the affected section is only three stations long and outside Barcelona, in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat. Collblanc is less than ten minutes on foot from Badal, the previous station on the line. Pubilla Cases and Can Vidalet are similarly short walks from L1 (red line) stations Florida and Can Serra. The bus network also gives alternative options.