They are neither Doric, nor Ionic, nor Corinthian, but the columns that drivers have been able to see for nearly a decade on both sides of the C-245 road in Sant Boi de Llobregat have their own history. Although they do not date back centuries, the pillars have become the symbol of a work that was projected before the Olympic Games, but did not begin until 2009. Cobi was already a distant memory, the time was marked by the economic crisis and investment cuts forced to stop work soon after. After a few years, it was reactivated and idled until the construction company went bankrupt.
Everything was bogged down, half done, with lanes painted permanently yellow and New Jersey barriers on all sides. And the pillars were still there, on the side of the road, surrounded by rubbish, as a reminder of the lack of investment in one of the areas with the most economic dynamism in Catalonia, with thousands of trucks going up and down, from the A-2 to C-32 and vice versa.
The demolition of the five columns on each side, which was carried out a few days ago in the early hours of the morning, without having to have the presence of archaeologists, puts an end to the sense of provisionality installed in this place and shows that the machines are back to work.
The resumption of the works has become a reality with the investment already sealed by the central government (65.83 million euros) and with a new project that the Roads officials of the Ministry of Transport have been working on. The passing of the years had left the previous documentation out of date and it did not comply with the current road safety regulations set by the European Union. In addition, the conception of the project was very typical of the eighties of the last century, with a large elevated viaduct. It is the reason why the columns have fallen.
They are no longer necessary because the layout will be much more integrated into the environment, with a philosophy much more in line with the 21st century, and the visual impact on the urban edge of the city will be reduced and with the addition of a bike lane 750 meters long and three meters wide that will allow the Llobregat River to be crossed quickly and safely between Cornellà and Sant Boi, so that they will fulfill the state strategy for the bicycle that incorporates the vehicle into the design of until recently reserved roads for motor vehicles only.
It will be an addition to part of the new 2.26-kilometer road, which will be named B-25, will have two lanes in each direction and will directly connect the routes of the A-2 motorway at the height of Cornellà with the C-32 past El Prat. In this way, the Llobregat interchange will be completed – first cousin of the Trinitat junction at the other end of the metropolitan area – to allow cars and trucks to pass from the Baix Llobregat motorway to the Garraf without having to approach the rounds or having to endure the traumatic Parellada roundabout, a real nightmare for drivers.
Conceived as temporary until the construction of the junction that will now become a reality, the roundabout, including the passage inside, has had to absorb as much as possible a volume of traffic for which it was never intended. In fact, for a long time it topped the list of black spots in all of Spain. The last serious accident was two years ago, when three people died one night in a multiple crash involving two cars and a truck.
If there have not been more accidents on a recurring basis, it is because the stretch has lived in almost permanent congestion, both early in the morning and mid-afternoon. With the new motorway, it will be freed from the passage of 35,000 vehicles per day, 40% of the total, and will have the role of a local road and access to the city, as it should have been from the start.
Those responsible for the project recognize that it is not a simple work. They have two years ahead of them to make it a reality, if the planned schedule is met. The large number of roads with which it shares space – and the effects that the works will bring – are added to the railway line, the Llobregat river itself, the paths of the Agricultural Park, irrigation canals, large high-voltage power lines and readers, among other obstacles.
The changes to the wording of the project have also been used to make a broader approach to mobility in the area, from Sant Vicenç dels Horts to El Prat. A few kilometers before the new B-25, at both ends, more links will be created to speed up the entrances and exits of the expressways, so that branches will be duplicated and local movements will be differentiated from passing ones.