PSOE wants to bury parts of the Ma-20: More than tunnels?

PSOE wants to bury parts of the Ma-20: More than tunnels?

Ring motorway, green roofs and neighbourhood bridges – the island council has launched a feasibility study

Key question: Can tunnelling entire sections of the Vía de Cintura (Ma-20) actually connect neighbourhoods without exacerbating traffic problems elsewhere?

Yesterday the island council voted by a large majority in favour of a feasibility study on a proposal from the PSOE: longer sections of the ring road around Palma are to be put underground. On the planned tunnel sections, planted areas, parks, pedestrian and cycle paths are to be created to better connect the districts of Son Gotleu, Nou Llevant and La Soledat. Those are the basic facts, nothing more – the rest now lies in the analysis.

Critical analysis: The idea is appealing. Moving roads into tunnels and creating green space above sounds like an immediate cure for noise, exhaust and urban division. But the downside has so far been insufficiently discussed: Where will the diversion routes be during construction? How long would major traffic axes have to be restricted, and who will pay the additional costs for tunnel infrastructure, ventilation and safety systems (see Gènova Tunnel redevelopment plans)? A feasibility study can clarify these questions, but public debate has so far focused mainly on the visual ideas – more park, less road.

What is missing from the discourse: three points. First: concrete scenarios for the construction phases. Multi-year tunnel construction in a living city like Palma will noticeably change daily mobility. Second: a cost–benefit analysis that does not measure only aesthetic gains but also effects on commuting times, emissions during the construction phase and the local economy. Third: a clear participation process for residents of Son Gotleu, Nou Llevant and La Soledat. Planning without genuine neighbourhood involvement often ends in compromises that improve neither traffic nor social cohesion.

Everyday scene from Palma: On a Tuesday morning at the edge of the Ma-20 I first hear the familiar drone of lorries, then the beep of a bus stopping at a stop. At a kiosk next to the road vendors call "bona dia", coffee steams and cyclists try to make their way between parked cars and the motorway. For many people on site the ring road is not an abstract plan: it is noise at the windows, dust on the balconies and an obstacle on the children's route to school.

Concrete approaches the study should consider:

1) Phased construction strategy with clear diversion routes: Stagger construction sections in time so that multiple junctions do not suffer at once. Temporary detours must be linked with traffic management and additional bus lanes so that car traffic does not divert into inner-city streets.

2) Traffic compensation: Parallel investments in public transport (increased frequency, new bus lines, stop optimisation) and safe cycle routes to encourage people to avoid using cars – especially during the construction period (including discussions about the metro to Son Espases).

3) Noise protection, air monitoring and health safeguards: Install long-term monitoring programmes around the Ma-20 already during the construction phase to detect impacts on residents early and finance countermeasures.

4) Social measures: Support for businesses along the route, access arrangements for residents, transparent compensation mechanisms when access is restricted.

5) Financing mix: Possible funds should be examined at regional, national and European levels; public-private partnerships are also conceivable but must be tied to clear requirements for social compatibility.

6) Value-adding spaces instead of mere green areas: The planned rooftop spaces should not be only lawns. Multifunctional areas with playgrounds, urban vegetable gardens and small seating oases can create real connections between neighbourhoods instead of just placing a symbolic band over a motorway.

Why this matters: The Ma-20 has cut through city neighbourhoods for decades. Mere aesthetic upgrades are not enough if traffic flows create new burdens elsewhere. Good planning must bring together traffic engineering, social policy and urban design visions.

What the study must deliver to make the project credible:

- Timetables with realistic construction periods and burden forecasts for residents. - Scenarios for traffic relief and displacement. - Concrete forms of participation for residents and local businesses. - A catalogue of measures for environmental and health protection during and after construction.

Concise conclusion: The decision to commission a feasibility study is a necessary first step, not a yes to completely burying the Ma-20. Those in Palma hoping for better connections between Son Gotleu, Nou Llevant and La Soledat should insist that the study does not only produce architects' renderings but delivers robust answers on construction consequences, mobility shifts and social impacts. And a final, banal wish to the planners: before sowing grass on a large scale, ensure that buses and bikes can run safely – otherwise the strip above the tunnel will only be a pretty band under which traffic continues to back up.