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Long walks and traffic jams reopen Mad Cool's mobility crisis
Leaving Mad Cool again caused discontent in Villaverde and Getafe after a night of long walks, traffic queues and problems getting home. The start of the festival at Iberdrola Music confirmed many residents' fears: when thousands of attendees leave the venue at once, mobility in the area reaches its limit.
The chaos was especially noticeable after the headline concerts, with large crowds walking through residential areas, traffic held up and difficulties accessing some homes. For attendees, it was a slow, confusing return; for residents, another night of saturated streets and the feeling that their neighbourhood had been invaded.
Getafe has taken a firmer tone after what happened. The Town Council denounces that the mobility operation was insufficient and that a traffic change on the M-45 ended up diverting vehicles towards Getafe Norte, causing a collapse that directly affected the neighbourhood.
According to municipal sources, around 16,000 people crossed the neighbourhood during the festival exit, many of them disoriented by the lack of clear signage. The Policía Local also recorded around a hundred penalties for uncivil behaviour and improper parking in the area.
The situation forced Getafe to take new measures for the following days, such as restricting access to the Coliseum car park to non-residents. The aim is to prevent the neighbourhood from once again becoming an improvised car park and a zone of mass transit for an event held outside its municipal boundary.
In Villaverde, criticism points to the same underlying problem: the venue is too close to residential areas to absorb events of this scale without disrupting daily life. Neighbourhood associations have spent months warning about noise, traffic, closures, lack of parking and difficulties accessing homes.
Madrid City Council maintains that there were no especially serious incidents, although it admits that there will be adjustments to the operation. That response does not convince those who live near the venue, who are demanding solutions before every large festival repeats the same pattern.
The night leaves a difficult question for southern Madrid: how much pressure can a neighbourhood bear for the city to maintain its calendar of large-scale events? Mad Cool moves music, audiences and economic activity, but it also forces thousands of residents of Villaverde and Getafe to reorganise their rest, journeys and even the way they get home.