Barcelona's experiment against the bad reputation of the Passeig de Gràcia transfer
The City Council is promoting a musical and visual intervention to prevent citizens from avoiding this metro link.
BarcelonaThere are truths accepted by all Barcelonans. Shared knowledge. A civic tradition. One of these assumptions is that the interminable metro transfer at Passeig de Gràcia, that endless corridor connecting lines 3 with lines 2 and 4, should be avoided whenever possible. "Until now, we all tried to avoid having to make this transfer," admitted Barcelona's mayor, Jaume Collboni, on Tuesday. The City Council presented its proposal on Tuesday to make traversing this 237-meter tunnel no longer an ordeal. To this end, the council unveiled the results of the urban challenge it launched months ago through Bit Habitat. This intervention aims to make people "look forward to making that metro connection." How? With a musical and visual experience that accompanies the user and makes the arduous journey more bearable. For a few hours each day, the installation will feature live music by around fifty artists from the Barcelona Street and Metro Musicians Association (Amuc). The rest of the time, it will provide music and visuals powered by artificial intelligence, adjusting to the number of people present and their energy levels. Regarding the live music, the Ars Gràcia installation involves each of the fifty accredited artists having a card that, when held near a reader, will activate the large screen behind them. This will display the graphic image chosen by each artist and a QR code that the public can use to contact them. bizumas and learn more about them. The pilot program has been installed on a 35-meter stretch, will operate during regular subway hours, and will last three months.
Surprise Sidonie concert
To launch the pilot program, the Barcelona-based band Sidonie gave a surprise concert in the middle of the Passeig de Gràcia transfer corridor. For a short while, commuters resignedly making the quarter-kilometer journey between the different metro lines were treated to a brief performance—three songs—by the band, which has just released its latest album. Catalan Graffiti.
