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Vallecas transforms Gran Vía del Sureste with 875 trees and cycle lanes
Gran Vía del Sureste will undergo one of its biggest transformations from this month. Madrid City Council plans to begin works in September to turn the section between Avenida de las Suertes and the roundabout next to the A-3 into an avenue with a pedestrian central boulevard of more than 21,000 square metres, new cycle lanes and 875 trees.
The works involve an investment of €13.1 million and, according to the municipal timetable, will continue until spring 2028. The area is in the Ensanche de Vallecas and its central element is a large strip of land that currently remains undeveloped.
That space will become a boulevard about 560 metres long and 37.6 metres wide. It will have areas for walking and resting, children's areas, biohealthy and calisthenics spaces, and an ornamental fountain of around 180 square metres with water features and lighting.
The refurbishment will not mean the complete pedestrianisation of Gran Vía del Sureste. Cars will continue to travel along the avenue, but its entire cross-section will be reorganised. There will be two general traffic lanes in each direction, local circulation roads, on-street parking and new tree-lined central reservations.
Segregated cycle lanes will also be built on both sides. The project will renew the pavements, add drinking-water fountains, new street furniture and LED lighting, and install sustainable drainage systems to manage rainwater better.
The avenue will also reserve two lanes, one in each direction, for the future Bus Rapid Transit. This high-capacity bus system is intended to connect the new developments in the south-east and to have a route independent of general traffic.
The transformation of this stretch will be only the first part of a larger-scale project. In the future, the City Council plans to create a green axis of around 16 kilometres linking Valdecarros, Ensanche de Vallecas, Los Berrocales, Los Ahijones, El Cañaveral and Los Cerros.
For residents of the Ensanche, the most immediate change will be the start of works lasting around a year and a half. The City Council has not yet publicly specified the exact start date in September or a detailed schedule of closures and diversions by phase, so those impacts will have to become known as the effective start of the work approaches.