Barcelona, ​​the first city with a plane full of its subsoil

Barcelona has become the first city to map its entire subsoil. The project was developed by Rosina Vinyes, from the Department of Urban Planning and Spatial Planning at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia. In her doctoral thesis, ” Hidden Barcelona: The Relevance of the Subsoil in a Contemporary City ,” she designed a detailed map of what lies hidden in the underground of the city.

Numerous unknown corners  such as  sewers,  communication networks, and even Civil War shelters  have been discovered in this project. The presented maps also show the metro, sewers, fiber optics, storage and parking areas, public and private tunnels, among many other elements.

“The Barcelona hidden underground doesn’t seem as important as the city we see above ground. However, without the invisible Barcelona, ​​the life and functioning of the city would not be possible, nor would many of the increasingly common uses located beneath our streets and buildings,” the authors emphasize.

The architect’s work,  developed at the Barcelona School of Architecture (ETSAB),  offers a rich and complex image of Barcelona, ​​unavailable in other large cities, and it raises many questions and concerns for the future of the urban agglomeration. Having this documentation will be very  useful for the city’s future development.