The Barcelona Metropolitan Area (AMB) has formally granted a second initial approval to its definitive urban roadmap, the Metropolitan Urban Master Plan (PDUM). This ambitious strategy, which has been more than a decade in the making, outlines the development of the region through to 2050, including provisions for approximately 220,000 new homes.
The move to approve the plan a second time—originally passed in March 2023 under the leadership of Ada Colau—is described as an exceptional measure. Therefore, the administration was compelled to revisit the framework following a deluge of 5,184 objections lodged by the Generalitat of Catalonia, local councils, various entities, and private individuals.
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Addressing a housing shortage
At the heart of the Barcelona urban master plan 2050 is a response to demographic shifts and a pressing need for housing. The AMB forecasts that the metropolitan area’s population will swell to 3.5 million by 2050. While the raw population increase is estimated at 184,000 new inhabitants, the demand for housing is driven significantly by a reduction in the average household size.
To meet this demand, the PDUM envisages the creation of roughly 220,000 primary residences within the metropolitan perimeter. Depending on the final balance between residential ceilings and economic activity zones, the total could fluctuate between 167,800 and 262,000 units. Meanwhile, the initiative currently reserves 10% of the land specifically for affordable housing.
“The housing supply will be sufficient to meet the projected population growth in the metropolitan area until the year 2050,” AMB sources confirmed. They noted that demographic trends suggest a requirement for over 131,000 additional units purely to accommodate shrinking family units.
Strategic shifts and legal security
The decision to re-approve the plan is a strategic manoeuvre to bolster its legal standing before it faces final scrutiny from the Generalitat’s Urban Planning commissions. Damià Calvet, the AMB’s Vice President of Urbanism and Natural Spaces, explained that municipalities requested broader strategic guidelines rather than rigid limitations at the planning level.
“With an eye on the year 2050, the councils have asked us to set more strategic lines,” Calvet stated during a press conference. This flexibility is intended to ensure the plan can survive the rigorous approval process required to replace the outdated General Metropolitan Plan (PGM) of 1976.
Green infrastructure and mobility
Beyond bricks and mortar, the Barcelona urban master plan 2050 proposes a radical overhaul of metropolitan mobility. A key headline target is the reduction of car usage by 50% before 2050. To facilitate this, the plan prioritises a coherent connection between demographic growth and public transport networks.
The proposal identifies a ‘green infrastructure’ network comprising 870 km of green axes, intended to serve as the structural backbone of future urban development. Additionally, the plan outlines ten new metropolitan avenues totalling approximately 240 km. This includes a proposed ‘Gran Via Metropolitana’ stretching between Castelldefels and Montgat, designed to integrate disparate neighbourhoods.
Next steps towards 2027
Following this second initial approval, the PDUM will undergo another period of public consultation, albeit shorter than the previous one. This window allows citizens and councils to lodge further objections. Consequently, the AMB is working towards a timeline where the plan receives definitive approval in the second half of 2027, coinciding with the next municipal election year.
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