F1 changes mobility in Las Cárcavas: three access points and accredited cars

The affected area is bounded by Maruja Mallo Avenue, Margarita Xirgú, Camino de Montoro, Emma Penella and Francisco Umbral, one of the streets located beside the new Madring circuit. Each home may request a maximum of three permits.

There will be three designated entrances: Carmen Rico Godoy with Fuerzas Armadas, Gregorio Sánchez Herráez with San Virgilia, and the Antonio López Torres tunnel with Tomás Redondo. The sticker must be placed in a visible spot on the car so that it can be identified at checks.

Residents can collect the permits until Friday 4 September at the headquarters of Asociación Vecinal Las Cárcavas-San Antonio, at 26 Maruja Mallo Avenue, from 10:00 to 14:00 and from 16:00 to 20:00. There will be a second opportunity on 7, 8 and 9 at the Palacio de Congresos de Madrid, at 7 Capital de España Avenue, from 16:00 to 20:00.

To obtain them, it is necessary to prove identity and the connection to a home located within the perimeter, as well as provide a contact telephone number and the registration plate of each vehicle. The system also affects an area where businesses and the Escuela Infantil Municipal Doña Francisquita are located, so some access arrangements for workers, customers and families who do not live there remain to be clarified.

The full arrangements are not yet known. The Ayuntamiento plans to present the Gran Premio mobility plan this Thursday 3 September. The Mobility delegate, Borja Carabante, has also indicated that the broader restrictions around Ifema will begin on the 10th and has recommended remote working, where possible, to those with offices in the area in order to reduce travel.

The disruptions are not limited to the three days of competition. Several sections of Ribera del Sena and Vía de Dublín remain closed until 9 September to complete the assembly work and will be closed again between the 15th and 20th during the dismantling of the temporary installations.

The neighbourhood reaches the Gran Premio after months of works and with noise as another source of conflict. During recent technical tests involving five Formula 3 single-seaters, the Stop F1 Madrid platform published a measurement taken from a home on Francisco Umbral that reached an average of 102.7 decibels. This is not an official measurement by the Administration, but it has reinforced complaints from groups opposed to the circuit.

Madring is 5.4 kilometres long and has 22 bends, and will host Formula 1 from 11 to 13 September, under contract at least until 2035. For the closest residents, the next key detail will come first: this Thursday the Ayuntamiento must specify the full traffic, public transport and access arrangements that will operate during the Gran Premio weekend.

UPDATE: Madrid City Council has now published the full mobility arrangements that were missing when this information was written. Between 11 and 13 September, Las Cárcavas will be within a specific protection zone with Policía Municipal checkpoints: in addition to accredited residents' cars, regular public transport, emergency and home-care services, indispensable authorised suppliers, and taxis or VTCs when carrying a person who can demonstrate they live in the neighbourhood will be allowed in. The plan also establishes an inner ring of restricted traffic around Madring, wider closures from 10 to 14 September, and five free EMT shuttle services, together with reinforcements to Metro and Cercanías to reduce arrivals by private vehicle.