Emergency plan to combat breakdowns in elevators and escalators in Barcelona

BarcelonaThe sight of residents grumbling as they climb the steep streets of the city's hillside neighborhoods because escalators or elevators are broken is unfortunately common in Barcelona. To reduce this frequency, the City Council presented a plan this Wednesday to improve the condition of these essential infrastructures for many of the city's residents. As part of the comprehensive maintenance plan included in the Endreça Plan, the council explained that 24 escalators will be replaced and 13 elevators modernized in the districts of Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, Horta-Guinardó, and Nou Barris during 2026. At a press conference, Mayor Jaume Collboni admitted that the condition of some of these elements "was unacceptable" and argued that this is a key step in improving accessibility to the city's hillside neighborhoods, where the steep inclines complicate the daily lives of many residents. As an example of the importance of this service, Collboni explained that when the escalators in Carmel leading to the Juan Marsé Library and the neighborhood's primary care center (CAP) were out of service, the number of users of the center dropped by 40%. According to City Hall data, 6.8 million trips were made on the city's various elevators in 2025, while 20.9 million people used the hundred or so escalators in their daily commutes. A total of €15.8 million will be invested in this area this year, according to the City Hall, the largest investment ever made in a single year. The goal, Collboni explained, is that by 2027 no escalator in the city will be older than 20 years and that all elevators older than 15 years will have been replaced. All of this is aimed at minimizing the breakdowns that frequently affect this heavily used infrastructure.

In this regard, the City Council's plan also includes a contingency plan being developed with the company awarded the service contract to minimize the downtime of escalators and elevators when they break down. According to the municipal government, in preparation for the next tender for the maintenance contract for these infrastructures—scheduled for 2027—obligations regarding maintaining a sufficient stock of spare parts will be increased to expedite repairs. Predictive maintenance will also be strengthened, prioritizing the replacement of components with a longer lifespan and the early detection of potential breakdowns.

Among the elements to be replaced in 2026 are the elevator at the intersection of Ballot Street and Roquetes Square, and the escalators on Mina Street in the City of Barcelona (in Nou Barris). The staircases on Feijóo, Mancha, and Agudells streets (in Horta-Guinardó), and two staircases on Roma street, in Sarrià-Sant Gervasi. Work was carried out on nine elevators in 2025, and another nine will be carried out in 2027. In total, €18.4 million will have been invested in this area between 2025 and 2027.

1,300 maintenance actions

The upgrade of elevators and escalators is the highlight of the maintenance, renovation, and transformation projects planned for the city in 2026 as part of the Endreça Plan. In total, more than 1,300 projects are planned, including, among others, the renovation of road structures such as bridges; improvements to the street lighting network; and the renovation and improvement of up to 10 kilometers of sewer system. All of this will represent an investment of 200 million euros. Collboni asserted that 435 million euros will have been invested in maintenance throughout his term, "more than in the three previous terms combined."