Recoletos 360 hub
Thanks to its ideal location near the statue of Cibeles in the heart of Madrid, the Recoletos Parking Area is an infrastructure that offers multiple possibilities. For this reason, EMT Madrid plans to convert it into a sustainable multi-modal car park.
The full renovation and conversion of this parking area located in the Paseo de Recoletos includes civil engineering work and enhanced infrastructure to install electrical recharging points and other technological facilities. The double objective is to reduce traffic volumes and pollution, and to promote the advantages of the city centre as a place for leisure and commercial activities. This infrastructure will also ensure the required levels of safety and accessibility to be able to offer a larger number of parking places to the shops and commercial centres in the surrounding area.
It is hoped that this transformation will convert the car park into an area of sustainable multi-mobility with a wide-ranging offer of electrical mobility options, which will involve an improvement of the electric vehicle recharging network, while at the same time promoting the dynamisation of the neighbourhood. The use of vehicle pooling will also be promoted from this site, and this always involves a high turnover and low emission levels -zero emissions in most cases- thus contributing to a significant extent to consolidating the objectives of improving air quality and decarbonisation. Through these changes we hope both to boost the commercial and leisure activities taking place in this area of the city that is extremely popular with tourists. The car park will have places available on a rotating basis and also for residents, together with recharging points for electrical vehicles.
This initiative is supported by a maximum European investment (NextGenerationEU funds) of €2,848,856.11, which falls under the 2021 line of aid for "Strengthening Commercial Activity" provided by the Ministry of Industry and Tourism.
Electrical recharging points in EMT parking areas
EMT Madrid has decided to install electrical recharging points in some of its car parks due to their attractive location in the heart of Madrid. The aim is to bring about a considerable reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and to reduce the impact of private vehicles in these areas of the city.
Promoting the electrification of mobility for trajectories depending on commercial activity (shopkeepers, workers and consumers) through the installation of recharging points that will encourage and facilitate the use of electric vehicles will contribute to improving air quality and to reducing noise levels in large cities, while also ultimately improving environmental scenarios and conditions for city-dwellers’ health and economic activity.
Due to its strategic location in the heart of Madrid, the installation or expansion of electric recharging points will be undertaken in the following EMT parking areas: Almagro, Orense, San Epifanio, Villa de París, Benavente, Plaza España, Fuencarral, Mayor, Montalbán, Olavide, Pedro Zerolo, Recoletos, Salamanca and Portugal.
Through the installation of this extensive network of recharging points throughout the city it is hoped to encourage sustainable mobility by promoting and facilitating the use of electric vehicles.
The investment received from the NextGenerationEU funds amounts to a maximum of €562,200 and is channelled through the Recovery, Transformation, and Resilience Plan, specifically through the Ministry of Industry and Tourism's Grants to Support Markets, Commercial Urban Areas, Non-Sedentary Trade, and Short Distribution Channels (MINCOTUR - PIAC 2021). Plaza de España 360 Hub The Plaza de España hub has transformed a former car park into a landmark urban facility that has been designed with the changing travel patterns of residents and visitors in mind. Setting the standard for sustainability, energy efficiency, and low-carbon mobility, the new hub has significantly improved intermodal connectivity and travel quality in the area. The work involved in transitioning the facility to a sustainable, energy-efficient infrastructure focused on low-emission mobility has included installing fast and semi-fast charging points for electric vehicles, as well as screens that enhance the visitor experience and improve traffic management and connectivity in the area. These two initiatives are crucial for adapting to new travel patterns, characterised by an increasing demand for sustainable, efficient mobility solutions that align with climate-neutrality goals. They also reduce the emissions associated with urban and tourist transport, improve service quality, and strengthen the Plaza de España 360 hub’s position as a pivotal mobility infrastructure in Madrid. The digitalisation of the hub and the roll-out of infrastructure for the electrification of transport have received €1,598,379.59 in European funding from the NextGenerationEU funds, as part of the Ministry of Industry and Tourism’s Plans for Sustainable Destination Tourism.