Special deployment for National Day
Madrid will host next Monday, the 12th, the celebration of National Day with a military parade that will begin at 11:00 AM in the Glorieta del Emperador Carlos V and will continue along Paseo del Prado, Plaza de Cibeles, Paseo de Recoletos, and Plaza de Colón. The operation, which anticipates the attendance of some 80,000 people, will require significant traffic cuts and changes in the routes of 48 lines of the Municipal Transport Company (EMT), as reported by the Madrid City Council in a statement.
The military parade will pass through streets in the districts of Chamberí, Salamanca, Centro, Retiro, and Arganzuela, and the City Council has recommended the use of public transport to reach the event, for which it has planned a special deployment of Municipal Police and Mobility Agents.
Pedestrian access and reserved areas
The main pedestrian access routes to the parade will be Calle Hermosilla, Goya, Serrano, Génova, Alcalá, and Atocha, while the roads from which the parade can be witnessed will remain closed to vehicular traffic, with guaranteed universal accessibility. In addition, two areas will be reserved for people with reduced mobility, in order to facilitate good visibility of the event.
The City Council has indicated that it will try to keep pedestrian crossings on the route open until 08:00 AM, except for the crosswalks located north and south of Plaza de Cibeles, which will remain open until 10:45 AM for the public to cross the roadway.
Planned traffic cuts
Between 7:00 AM and 3:00 PM, the Plaza del Emperador Carlos V, Paseo del Prado, Plaza de Cánovas del Castillo, Plaza de Cibeles, Paseo de Recoletos, Plaza de Colón, Plaza de la Lealtad, Antonio Maura —from Plaza de la Lealtad to Alfonso XI—, Ruiz de Alarcón —from Montalbán to Academia—, Felipe IV —from Paseo del Prado to Moreto—, Alfonso XII —from Paseo de la Infanta Isabel to Montalbán— and San Germán —from Paseo de la Castellana to Poeta Joan Maragall— will be completely closed to traffic.
Also closed, during the same time slot, will be Plaza de Murillo, Espalter, Academia —from Ruiz de Alarcón to Moreto—, Santa María de la Cabeza —from Glorieta del Emperador Carlos V to Batalla del Salado—, Paseo de Reina Cristina —from Plaza de Mariano de Cavia to the intersection with Alfonso XII—, Avenida de Ciudad de Barcelona —from Doctor Esquerdo to Paseo de Reina Cristina—, Avenida de Menéndez Pelayo and Paseo de la Infanta Isabel —from Glorieta de Carlos V to Alfonso XII—.
Between 9:00 AM and 3:00 PM, the cut will be total in Serrano —from the intersection with Armada Española to Marqués de Villamagna—, Génova —towards Plaza de Colón, from said plaza to the intersection with Zurbano—, the side of Paseo de la Castellana between Goya and Ayala, Armada Española —between Plaza de Colón and Serrano—, Goya —between Paseo de la Castellana and Serrano—, Hermosilla —between Paseo de la Castellana and Serrano—, Ayala —between Paseo de la Castellana and Serrano—, Serrano —from Armada Española to Ayala—, the lanes of Paseo de la Castellana that allow the turn towards Alcalá Galiano, this last street and Monte Esquinza, as well as Paseo de la Castellana from Plaza de Colón to Plaza de Emilio Castelar.
Assembly, rehearsal and disassembly
There will also be cuts in the days leading up to the event for assembly and disassembly tasks. This Friday, between 9:30 PM and 2:30 AM, traffic will be interrupted on Paseo del Prado, between Plaza de la Lealtad and Glorieta del Emperador Carlos V, for horizontal signaling work. On Saturday, during the same hours, the cuts will affect Paseo del Prado, Plaza de Cánovas del Castillo, Plaza de las Cortes, Plaza de la Lealtad, Calle Felipe IV and the surrounding roads, due to the rehearsal.
In addition, until 1:00 PM on the 14th, cuts are expected in the bus lane and several traffic lanes of Plaza de Cánovas del Castillo due to the assembly of stands and structures. The City Council has specified that schedules may be extended or modified depending on needs and that it will try to maintain motorized traffic in the access to Atocha station via Méndez Álvaro, in the roundabout of the monument to the victims of 11M, in Alfonso XII and in Avenida Ciudad de Barcelona, in the transversal passage from General Martínez Campos towards Serrano, on the side of Paseo de Castellana —leaving the roundabout and that of Doctor Marañón free, and allowing the transversal passage and access to the ascending side—, as well as in the tunnel from Ciudad de Barcelona to Ronda de Atocha and vice versa.
Up to 48 EMT lines, off route
The parade will cause alterations in up to 48 EMT lines, especially those circulating along the axis between Plaza del Emperador Carlos V and Plaza de Colón, between 7:00 AM and 3:00 PM. The affected lines are: 001, 002, 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 14, 15, 16, 19, 20, 21, 24, 26, 27, 32, 34, 36, 37, 40, 41, 45, 46, 51, 52, 53, 54, 57, 59, 61, C1, C2, 74, 85, 86, 119, 141, 146, 147, 150, 152, C03, E1 and Exprés Aeropuerto.
Impact on bicimad
The mobility plan will also affect the public bicycle rental service bicimad, with eleven stations out of service on Sunday and Monday: Ronda de Atocha, corner with Plaza del Emperador Carlos V (station 51), Calle de Almadén, 38 (station 67), Avenida de Alfonso XII, 54 (station 69), Avenida Ciudad de Barcelona, corner with Plaza del Emperador Carlos V (stations 80A and 80B), Calle de Claudio Moyano, 5 (station 81), Paseo del Prado, 1b (station 86), Calle de Villanueva, 2 (station 94), Paseo de la Castellana, 4 (station 104), Paseo de la Reina Cristina, 6 (station 281) and Calle de Felipe IV, 5 (station 283).
