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Barcelona shifts its focus against anti-social behaviour and issues more fines for littering
Barcelona has reduced reports of anti-social behaviour by 32.7% between mid-February and the end of June 2026. During that period, 17,461 cases were opened, compared with around 26,000 recorded on the same dates the previous year.
The decline does not mean there is less surveillance; rather, the Guardia Urbana has changed its priorities. The new strategy concentrates checks on behaviour that more directly affects rest, cleanliness and the shared use of streets and squares.
The largest fall has occurred in reports for drinking alcohol in public places. They have gone from 18,015 to 6,830, 62% fewer, after reviewing punishable cases and creating categories more tailored to each situation.
In the opposite direction, fines for littering the street have soared by 310%. Cases have increased from 414 to 1,698, a rise that reflects greater pressure on behaviour that damages pavements, squares and thoroughfares.
Reports for urinating or relieving oneself in public have also increased by 15%. Penalties are more severe when the behaviour occurs near busy venues, children’s areas or available public toilets.
Unauthorised street vending continues to generate high levels of activity. Reports without abandonment of goods have increased by 13%, while interventions involving products left in the street exceed 13,000.
Ciutat Vella accounts for more than 7,000 reports and remains the district with the greatest enforcement pressure. It is followed by Sant Martí and Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, although the type of offence varies greatly between tourist areas, leisure areas and residential neighbourhoods.
The Oficina de Convivencia has imposed more than 11,500 fines and processed 259 measures as alternatives to penalties, almost three times as many as a year earlier. The change leaves fewer cases overall, but more intensive monitoring of dirtiness and other behaviour noticed daily in public space.