A cow bust on a former dairy in Sants, a familiar landmark, now stands obscured by a chaotic tangle of fibre optic cables and boxes, symbolising a widespread issue disfiguring Barcelona’s historic facades. Residents and experts are demanding urgent action from the Ajuntament and telecommunications companies to address this growing visual blight.
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Historian Agus Giralt first highlighted the problem in 2021, sharing images of cable clutter on social media. He notes that little real change has occurred since then. “Perhaps there is more awareness, but there has been no real change,” Giralt observes, still pained by the same issues he photographed nearly five years ago. “It remains the same, some cases show very little respect.” Mikel Uriondo, president of the Gòtic Neighbourhood Network, also raised concerns in 2021. He states, “You walk through the city and find cables everywhere.” Uriondo believes the proliferation of wiring disfigures the historic Gòtic district, a central part of Ciutat Vella, renowned for its narrow streets and architectural heritage.
Calls for Stricter Controls and Accountability
The Ajuntament de Barcelona recently published a guide of good practices to manage cabling, though it is not mandatory. This guide serves as a preliminary step towards a new, legally binding ordinance that the council has promised. Experts consulted by El Periódico Barcelona emphasise the need for greater administrative control. They also call for telecommunications companies to assume obligations to reverse the chaotic expansion of services. Additionally, they suggest providing subsidies, particularly for buildings, to adapt their infrastructure for network coverage.
Carlos Fernández, a lawyer at Roca Junyent, explains that Spanish law “establishes a general interest for these types of installations.” This legal framework legitimises companies to lay cables wherever they can or wish. Fernández adds, “Property owner communities have very little power over what is already installed.” He notes a legal vacuum concerning unprotected facades, which means “nothing can be done, no matter how many inspections occur, unless the community has an agreement to refuse cable installations.”
Impact on Residents and Historic Areas
Josep Maria Boronat, president of the Association of Architects for the Defence and Intervention in Architectural Heritage, linked to the College of Architects of Catalonia, questions the cost of digital access. “We have grown accustomed to the tangled wiring and the city has suffered,” he assesses. Boronat argues that Spanish telecommunications law “prioritises fibre everywhere over how it is installed,” which “limits municipal control capacity and directly impacts the urban landscape.” To mitigate this, he advocates declaring entire areas, such as Ciutat Vella, as protected zones to shield them from connection chaos.
Elisabet Carbonell, vice-president of the College of Property Administrators of Barcelona-Lleida, confirms that communities are increasingly reluctant to accept cabling. Administrators frequently request operators to tidy up boxes and filaments. “But we hit a wall, they give us no response,” Carbonell states. “It is very difficult for companies to come, channel wiring, and remove obsolete cables. Furthermore, the council does not intervene or penalise.” Guillermo Canal, managing director of the Catalan Federation of Telecommunications Companies, explains that rapid and extensive fibre optic deployment was prioritised over an orderly approach. This has overcrowded facades already brimming with old telephone wiring. “That is another problem. Who removes all the copper infrastructure that is no longer in use? It costs a fortune,” Canal warns.
Proposed Solutions and Industry Responses
Juan Antonio Jordán, secretary of the Metropolitan Guild of Installers of Barcelona, corroborates that old installations are never removed. He supports tightening legislation, imposing sanctions, and entrusting maintenance to a single control entity. “Electrical installations are much more regulated and supervised before service is provided, which does not happen in telecommunications,” Jordán explains. “There are different companies, each has laid fibre independently, and installers work for subcontractors at very tight prices. They focus on the job and do not consider whether it looks better or worse.” Boronat stresses that the administration must “stand firm against large companies.” He argues it is a contradiction that efforts by individuals or communities to preserve facades are disregarded when they are perforated or damaged with impunity. Boronat advocates for a “city pact” between the council and distributors to “prioritise urban landscape protection.” This pact would involve removing disused cabling and using company profits to fund the undergrounding of installations. “There must be a commitment from all companies; otherwise, it will be impossible,” he warns.
Canal suggests that only the state administration can force a campaign to fix this, but it must provide non-repayable funds. He proposes subsidising buildings without common telecommunications infrastructure to install it. Simultaneously, he recommends subsidising operators to remove unused infrastructure or tidy up existing installations. Fernández proposes extending the rule that prohibits visible cabling on listed facades to all other properties. “For new installations, the administration should exercise prior control to treat facades as protected elements,” he states. “If a community wants cables removed, the administration should establish communication with the telecommunications company to ensure it happens.” Carbonell postulates that technical building inspections should review cabling, and companies should commit to relocating it. The College of Property Administrators requests regulation for embedded fibre networks and mandatory maintenance. They also want operators to pay a licence fee for installations, allowing the council to review them. “With regulation and sanctions, companies would not take risks, and even operatives would be better trained to perform installations correctly,” Carbonell believes.
Two distributors have responded to El Periódico Barcelona. Digi states that the Ajuntament’s recommendations align with its own fibre deployment protocol, which includes direct employment of installers. “This facilitates control and correct execution,” the company says, asserting that its entire network is operational and identified. Digi adds that it prioritises existing channels. If it must use facades, it “adopts measures to minimise visual impact, such as using reduced-size cabling and terminal boxes, following architectural lines like cornices or mouldings, and employing rectilinear and grouped layouts.” Vodafone comments that it “actively collaborates” with other operators on “reusing existing infrastructure and cabling as a preferred technical criterion.” It also prioritises routing cabling inside buildings. “This solution is not always viable due to structural limitations of properties, absence of common telecommunications infrastructure, or access impediments due to lack of permission from property owner communities,” Vodafone clarifies.
The future of Barcelona’s urban landscape depends on a concerted effort. A new mandatory ordinance, coupled with strong administrative oversight and genuine commitment from telecommunications companies, will be essential to preserve the city’s architectural beauty for residents and visitors alike.
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Originally published by El Periódico Barcelona. Read original article.
