Vos scoops La Vuelta Femenina win after chaotic finish - ‘The GOAT does it again!’ Race leader Ellen van Dijk in red lines up with the other classification leaders for stage 2 Borghesi trail in behind Vos after crash in final bend on rain-soaked finish in Sant Boi de Llobregat Ellen van Dijk (Lidl-Trek) lost contact with the leading group and slipped out of the race lead Paternoster moved into the red jersey and leads by two seconds over Femke Gerritse (SD Worx-Protime) and three seconds ahead of Anna Henderson (Lidl-Trek) I'm very happy I could finish it off," said Vos after her sixth Vuelta stage victory "It was Pauline Ferrand-Prévot and Imogen Wolff still with me and it was amazing just to follow their wheels and to be able to get to the last corner in front due to their work but being in the front is then the best position," Vos described the technical finish with several roundabouts and corners The 99-kilometre stage from Molins de Rei to Sant Boi de Llobregat took in the Catalonian hinterland west of Barcelona It started with the 10km climb of the Alt de La Creu de L'Aragall where Ane Santesteban (Laboral Kutxa-Fundación Euskadi) initiated an attack and was first over the top to take the mountain points and move into the polka-dot jersey After Santesteban was caught on the descent Elena Cecchini (SD Worx-Protime) went on the move holding a lead of up to 50 seconds before she was reeled in again 64km from the finish Since there were no successful breakaway attempts later in the race Cecchini was awarded the white combativity jersey after the stage and Anastasiya Kolesava (Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto) and Vittoria Guazzini (FDJ-Suez) went down in a descent but their crash led to a group of five riders led by Kristen Faulkner (EF Education-Oatly) getting a small gap on the rest of the race Ariana Albert (Eneicat-CM) and Lea-Lin Teutenberg (Lotto) tried unsuccessfully to get away the peloton contested the intermediate sprint in Vilafranca del Penedès where Vos was first to take six bonus seconds ahead of Femke Gerritse (SD Worx-Protime) who received two bonus seconds and Cédrine Kerbaol (EF Education-Oatly) with two bonus seconds This put Gerritse into the virtual race lead as she had started the stage three seconds down on Ellen van Dijk (Lidl-Trek) Neve Bradbury (Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto) was the most prominent victim crashing in a roundabout just before the descent towards the finish started Bradbury's teammate Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney made an attack but was soon brought back They negotiated ten roundabouts in the last six kilometres without incident and Ferrand-Prévot and Wolff dropped off Vos at the front of the peloton going into the final left-hand turn 150 metres from the finish line Vos sprinted out of the corner followed by Borghesi and Paternoster the bike Cat Ferguson (Movistar) slid out on wet paint also holding up Gerritse and Megan Jastrab (Picnic PostNL) Vos had opened up a gap of several bike lengths and could sit up to celebrate her victory Paternoster came out of Borghesi's slipstream timing her sprint perfectly to take second place and the red jersey Results powered by FirstCycling Lukas Knöfler started working in cycling communications in 2013 and has seen the inside of the scene from many angles Having worked as press officer for teams and races and written for several online and print publications he has been Cyclingnews’ Women’s WorldTour correspondent since 2018 you will then be prompted to enter your display name One of the monuments of the city’s ancient past, the Roman baths of Sant Boi de Llobregat are a reminder of the part that nature has always played in the health and wellbeing of its urban residents. Fast forward around 2,000 years, and the city’s re-emphasis on these values is being recognised, seeing as Sant Boi has been shortlisted for the EU Green Leaf Award This is an acknowledgement of the efforts the city has been making in nature conservation Part of the Barcelona Metropolitan Area sitting at the crossroads of the Llobregat and Coastal Axes the city is a gateway to the Delta of Llobregat and a model of equilibrium between greening and development Sant Boi is keenly aware of the importance of the natural world and has implemented its environmental policies accordingly “We’ve harnessed our natural assets to drive our commitment to sustainability and to ensure that these resources are preserved for future generations,” says Natalia Moreno Gámiz European Projects and International Relations Manager in Sant Boi’s local government This is seen to be reflected in the quality of the air within the city Sant Boi de Llobregat’s vision for 2024 aims to deliver greater sustainability and includes a focus on youth and innovation Its location in a delta and its dense urban setting render Sant Boi a very sensitive zone for climate change The local Climate Adaptation Plan outlines several strategies to protect locals from the predicted effects including green and blue infrastructure – that is plants and water – to increase comfort and reduce heat The city has developed 40 hectares of new urban green spaces between 2015 and 2022 selecting vegetation that requires low maintenance and minimal water Sustainable urban drainage systems have been incorporated into urbanisation projects to increase permeability and reduce water runoff into the sewage system using natural thermal regulation through water and permeable ground to offer cooling relief “Our goal is that every resident can find a climate refuge within a 10-minute walk from any public facility,” says Moreno Gámiz “all the more important in a future of increasing temperatures and extreme events.” The city is also greening schoolyards integrating them into this network of climate shelters and expanding other urban green spaces to provide heat relief Sant Boi is promoting the use of local biomass for energy This installation saves 100,000 m³ of natural gas annually cutting 200 tons of CO₂ emissions each year The city has also invested over €2 million in refurbishing 135 residential buildings to improve climate resilience a move expected to reduce carbon emissions by 732 tonnes annually Sant Boi’s total decrease in greenhouse gas emissions was 37.5% between 2005 and 2020 The Sustainable Energy and Climate Adaptation Plan in the city is more ambitious; it seeks to reduce emissions by 59.6% come 2030 and ultimately targets zero emissions by 2050 One of the central projects driving this change is ‘Sant Boi té Energia,’ aimed at expanding the use of renewable energy the city will have increased the portion of renewable sources in the energy that it consumes to 30% with this percentage reaching 100% for daytime consumption by 2025 “Our approach to decarbonisation is holistic,” notes Moreno Gámiz “We don’t concentrate solely on renewable energy but on the creation of a fair and shared local energy system that works for everyone in our community.” Sant Boi has long embraced a compact, medium-density urban model that prioritises the preservation of natural heritage and agricultural landscapes. This approach has ensured that about 60% of the city’s area remains green and blue space, including areas protected within Europe’s Natura 2000 Network and Catalonia’s Areas of Natural Interest system The city’s ‘Green Ring’ connects natural elements enhancing ecological connectivity and allowing natural spaces to penetrate the urban fabric “Our goal is to create a city that breathes linking the urban environment with its natural surroundings,” says Moreno Gámiz Despite a 10% increase in people sorting their waste over the past eight years Sant Boi acknowledges the need for a more efficient waste collection system to meet European objectives The city’s Mandate Plan will see new waste prevention initiatives The ‘Plastic-Free Sant Boi’ campaign has been particularly successful in reducing plastic waste The city has made changes such as using compostable and reusable dishes at public events and distributing reusable cotton bags to encourage residents to reduce dependence on single-use plastic “Our plastic-free initiative is about changing mindsets and habits for a more sustainable future,” Moreno Gámiz emphasises Sant Boi’s success in environmental sustainability is rooted in its community This participatory approach is reflected in initiatives such as the Environmental Citizen Council and the Agricultural Council which allow residents to lend their voice to environmental decision-making The ‘Sant Boi Respira + Verd’ project is a standout example of this approach where local people and organisations collaborate in the co-creation of a network of connected green and blue infrastructure This project enhances biodiversity while fostering behavioural change The recently opened Torre de la Vila Environmental Park also serves as a hub for environmental education hosting activities that promote biodiversity and sustainability “Our participatory approach ensures that our environmental goals are shared and supported by the entire community,” Moreno Gámiz says “It’s this collective effort and co-responsibility that drives real change.” Sant Boi’s future plans are guided by strategic frameworks such as the Local Urban Agenda and the Sustainable Energy and Climate Adaptation Plan which outline concrete actions for 2023-2027 and beyond These include building groundwater capture systems and promoting educational activities at the Torre de la Vila Environmental Park Sant Boi aspires to be a city where greenery and sustainability are fully interlinked in urban life for health and resilience “We are committed to setting an example of how urban spaces can coexist harmoniously with nature,” says Moreno Gámiz “Our work today is about engaging people now in a future that is sustainable and prosperous.” Car congestion and safety concerns near schools stem from families relying on cars for commutes endangering children and hindering environmental goals Budapest is leading efforts to address this issue Anthony Colclough is a storyteller whose writing and audio-visual work take up human themes from sport and law to the lives of cities and lives in cities We are a community of more than 200 European cities Your e-mail address is only used to send you our newsletter and information about the activities of Eurocities You can always use the unsubscribe link included in the newsletter Schneider Electric has significantly scaled the manufacturing and production capacity of its Barcelona prefabricated data center factory – increasing it from 7000m2 to 12,000m2 in response to accelerated customer demand for prefabricated high-compute workload data center solutions the factory and large-scale logistics center which is one of the primary European locations for the design and integration of Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Modular Data Center portfolio now provides an additional 5000m2 of dedicated production space – meeting accelerated customer requirements for speed to market Driven by customer demands for high-compute workloads and artificial intelligence (AI) could contribute up to $15.7 trillion to the global economy in 2030 the Sant Boi Facility is now the largest manufacturing site for Schneider Electric’s prefabricated modular data centers in Europe Analyst Omdia expects global sales of prefabricated modular data center systems to generate $8.6bn in 2027 the investment has enabled the company to double the end-to-end production testing and output capabilities for both its all-in-one modular data centers and prefabricated power modules This includes key powertrain components such as three-phase uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) low (LV) and medium-voltage (MV) equipment Schneider Electric announced a $3 billion (€2.76B) multi-year agreement with Compass Datacenters to integrate both organizations’ respective supply chains and manufacture prefabricated modular data center solutions quickly and cost-effectively In direct response to the burgeoning demand for AI this unique 5-year agreement has enabled Schneider Electric and Compass Datacenters to deliver highly scalable modular data centers that offer a simplified design and the ability to be deployed easily across a multitude of remote environments Schneider Electric’s investment in its Sant Boi factory mirrors this strategy entirely and will provide European customers with the ability to scale-up their data center operations in Tier 1 and Tier 2 data center markets and accelerate deployment times by utilizing best-in-class manufacturing and testing capabilities the Sant Boi factory provides a highly optimized production environment that enables organizations to build-out standardized or customizable high-compute workload data center clusters where solutions can be prefabricated power modules or combine power Visit to a public housing development in Sant Boi de Llobregat The head of the Executive has visited a development of 40 social housing units for affordable rentals together with the Minister for Housing and Urban Agenda the President of the Government of Spain underlined the Executive's firm commitment to placing housing at the centre of public policies and stressed the need to apply the Housing Law in all territories with stressed areas but we need the will to apply it and we cannot accept the boycott by some administrations" who was accompanied by the Minister for Housing and Urban Agenda The President of the Government of Spain reiterated his call to all public administrations to apply the Housing Law "once and for all" as a useful tool to respond to the housing problem Sánchez highlighted Catalonia as an example of the effectiveness of this law as it has managed to contain the price of rent in the 270 municipalities in which the law has been applied after they were declared to be stressed areas The head of the Executive welcomed the announcement of the new Plan for 50,000 social housing and affordable rental units in Catalonia based on the promotion of public-private partnership to mobilise public and private land and on the promotion of the financing needed to make the development of these housing units attractive "Catalonia demonstrates the importance of acting in a coordinated and complementary manner autonomous communities and city councils have competencies in housing said the President of the Government of Spain Pedro Sánchez emphasised the Government's commitment to making housing the fifth pillar of the welfare state and stressed the Executive's will to put all the necessary resources on the table to ensure that public policies lead to housing solutions for all citizens The head of the Executive called for administrative collaboration at all levels to make housing a common commitment for the country When all administrations work together to tackle the housing problem commitments are transformed into solutions," he said Sánchez also highlighted the Government's action on housing with a budget eight times larger and a roadmap that already includes the promotion of the Affordable Rental Housing Plan the ICO guarantees for young people and families and the Youth Rental Voucher the Executive has set up the State Housing Company and a system of public guarantees for renting as well as a new PERTE for Housing to promote industrialised and modular construction This website uses its own and third-party cookies to maintain the session, offer a better user experience and obtain statistical data on user navigation. For more information see Cookies policy 2025: Molins de Rei to Sant Boi de Llobregat Stage 2 profile(Image credit: Unipublic)Stage 2 is the first road race stage with a 99km between Molins de Rei and Sant Boi de Llobregat begins with a category 2 climb to Alto de la Creu de L'Aragall then heads through the valley roads and there is a steep descent and flat run-in to the finish line Sant Boi de Llobregat Kirsten has a background in Kinesiology and Health Science. She has been involved in cycling from the community and grassroots level to professional cycling's biggest races, reporting on the WorldTour, Spring Classics, Tours de France, World Championships and Olympic Games. She began her sports journalism career with Cyclingnews as a North American Correspondent in 2006. In 2018, Kirsten became Women's Editor – overseeing the content strategy, race coverage and growth of women's professional cycling – before becoming Deputy Editor in 2023. Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name. The Catalan parliament has unanimously approved reforming the law to protect school playgrounds after many residents have complained about children's noise. The new regulation modifies a 2002 noise pollution law and eliminates the maximum noise levels in school spaces "used for teaching, physical activity, recreation, and enjoyment" between 7 am and 9 pm. Political parties from all sides favored the reform, including the pro-independence Junts, Esquerra, and CUP, the conservative People's Party, and left-wing Comuns, who had submitted a petition to modify the existing legislation. The plenary also approved appeals filed by the Socialists lifting a noise limit on sports activities between 9 am and 10 pm. The parliament passed the reformed ruling after several residents in Barcelona filed complaints and threatened to close playgrounds due to noise pollution in recent months. One affected school, Barcelona's Salesians Rocafort, greeted the news. Its director, Jordi Barberan, considered the reform as "playgrounds will now be able to return to be playgrounds," he told the Catalan News Agency (ACN). The school has had one of the areas closed for eight months and a second one for four months. "We cannot compare the noise from a vehicle with children at the playground," Barberan added. The school has already implemented many measures to "minimize" the noise from the fields and playgrounds. For example, they have lowered the volume of the bell that lets students know when classes start and finish. Barberan said, "We cannot say no to any of those typical things from a school, but we do not plan to go against anybody." Meanwhile, members of the Residential Network Against Noise (Xavecs) and the Catalan Association Against Noise Pollution (ACCA) do not share the school's excitement. Both organizations believe that the parliament has passed an "unfair" law as it grants "privileges" to some children instead of others. The organizations are still planning future steps, but ACCA president Marga Furró did not rule out filing a complaint against such legislation with Spain's Constitutional Court and the European courts on human rights and justice. "Lawmakers cannot suspend laws that protect health," Furró told the Catalan News Agency (ACN). "Noise kills," she said, as many of the residents linked to the association are "sick" because of the noise. Get the day's biggest stories right to your phone v1.1.0. Copyright © 2025. Powered by EBANTIC. All rights reserved. The Catalan government will launch a public tender to build social housing with accessible rents on empty land ceded by several city councils across the territory accompanied by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez visited Sant Boi de Llobregat and announced that the tender would include several measures to speed up paperwork and construction.  "Our goal is to build more houses and faster," Illa said after announcing these "exceptional" measures to tackle housing which is currently one of the most challenging issues across Catalonia "We are going on the right path and working together," Illa told reporters before adding that "when you work this way Sánchez praised Catalonia's housing policies stating that the Spanish Housing Law "works wherever it is enforced." and we cannot accept any boycott from other offices' legislations," he said in a reference to regional governments led by conservative People's Party leaders Both Catalan and Spanish governments are led by Socialists with Illa being the former health minister to Sánchez during the Covid-19 pandemic accompanied by Spain's housing minister Isabel Rodríguez visited 40 new official protection houses for youngsters in the Sant Boi de Llobregat municipality During the event, both politicians talked about the regional government's plan to build 50,000 public houses by 2030 Despite politicians' efforts to promote public housing, earlier this week, housing platform Idealista reported that 20% of Barcelona's flats on rent lasted less than 24 hours in the market. The program – which combines subsidized and free-market housing – practically requires filling the available volume along with the demands of efficiency and simplicity represents a challenge for the development of a project with some added value The starting point is laying out a standard floor of 12 homes It was necessary to sacrifice the minimum surface area in communications equipped with two interlocking scissor-type staircases There is therefore a single public entrance and a single centralization of connections on the ground floor that will affect the cleanliness of the commercial space and the underground parking The apartments are laid out in such a way that all the living rooms and bedrooms face the exterior while entrances and bathrooms are placed along the corridors shared by the groupings of three dwellings All the units have a high level of accessibility From this scheme that solidifies the available volume subtraction operations are carried out that allow a new morphology to be sculpted while creating the conditions for cross ventilation and diagonal views The exterior facades are repetitive and sealed with an external ventilated industrial panel sheet seeking an unequivocal and monumental image of the volume The facades of the courtyards and corridors have a quasi-picturesque nature with latticework and ceramic tile flooring with a long tradition in Catalonia Arquitectos ArchitectsestudioHerreros: Juan Herreros & Jens RichterMIM-A: Mariona Benedito & Martí Sanz Colaboradores CollaboratorsAbraham Piñate (responsable del proyecto architect of the project); Martha Sosa Días Ignasi Navàs (equipo de proyecto project team) Consultores ConsultantsManuel Arguijo (estructura structure); PGI (instalaciones mechanical engineering); Eulalia Arán (aparejadora quantity surveyor)   there arent any match using your search terms Connecting decision makers to a dynamic network of information Bloomberg quickly and accurately delivers business and financial information Salvador Illa during a campaign event in the Sant Boi de Llobregat district of Barcelona Socialist candidate Salvador Illa is set to win between 41 and 43 seats in the local legislature, up from the current 33, according to a poll of some 3,000 voters by Sigma Dos published in El Mundo Monday. A majority requires 68 lawmakers. Smaller polls in three other publications Monday also show the Socialist party with similar estimates. The gardens of the Sant Joan de Déu Health Park in Sant Boi de Llobregat, on the outskirts of Barcelona, are home to a modernist architectural collection that has remained largely unknown and without recognized authorship.    Nearly a century after its construction, the modernist garden has recently been attributed to Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí, and a new exhibition at the National Museum of Science and Technology of Catalonia (MNACTEC) in Terrassa sheds light on this little-known masterpiece.   The modernist garden, which Gaudí likely used as a "testing ground" for his future works, was built between 1903 and 1912 on the site of the old Sant Boi psychiatric hospital.   The garden features grottoes, lakes and benches decorated with trencadís, Gaudí's iconic broken-tile mosaics, and contains architectural elements that are strikingly similar to some of his most important works, such as the Sagrada Família basilica.  The Cave-Waterfall, built in 1906, incorporates a structural system analogous to the transept and side aisles of the Sagrada Familia, an innovative architectural feature at the time.    The viaduct of the Cave-Waterfall also bears many similarities to those in Park Güell, while the trencadís mosaic benches in the garden, built in 1912, are comparable to the serpentine bench in Park Güell, completed two years later.  The exhibition is based on the extensive doctoral research of David Agulló - an architect, researcher and curator of the exhibition - who has spent more than 20 years studying the site to confirm Gaudí's authorship.  "These are unprecedented structures in the history of architecture, depicted in a rudimentary form, but created before Gaudí began to conceive the structures of the ailes of the Sagrada Família," he said.  There are several reasons that explain why this work was not previously associated with Gaudí, and why the authorship was "deliberately" hidden. One significant reason was the complex and tumultuous reality of the era, culminating in the popular uprising known as the Tragic Week.   During this period, magazines satirized Gaudí, which might have led to the concealment of this work, dedicated to the Virgin Mary.   Additionally, the garden was created in a psychiatric hospital at a time when mental health was heavily stigmatized. Gaudí, a member of the Catalan bourgeoisie, likely did not want to be associated with it, Agulló explains.  The Spanish Civil War also played an important role. The psychiatric hospital was occupied by the CNT militia and later by the Francoist general Juan Yagüe, which led to the loss of papers and documents that could attribute authorship to the garden.  Moreover, the involvement of patients and possibly children in the garden's construction may have contributed to its lack of recognition in the history of architecture. The area in Sant Boi where the modernist garden is located is currently being restored with the aim of opening it to the public in the future.  have started issuing fines to non-authorized vehicles driving within their low emission zones as of Monday Only non-polluting vehicles can drive in the towns on working days Vehicles without any of the Directoral Generate for Traffic office’s environmental stickers (blue and yellow) can ask for a temporary permit to drive in one of the cities without facing a fine While fines for cars and motorcycles started on Monday and buses will only come into force in 2025 will also start sanctions in the coming weeks delaying after they were expected to start coinciding with El Prat and Gavà Sant Boi de Llobregat and Cerdanyola del Vallès will issue fines from January 1 Sanctions can reach as high as €260 when pollution is particularly high while they can be up to €200 on normal days All low emission zones in the Barcelona metropolitan area can be checked online and each plate's environmental category can be found by using a search engine The low emission zone (LEZ) was implemented in Barcelona on January 1 The Catalan High Court annulled the LEZ regulations in March of 2022. They argued that there were not enough studies on the matter.  The court also ruled that the ordinance surpassed the council's jurisdiction, and there were some deficiencies in the types of vehicles excluded from entering Barcelona.  As such, Barcelona City Council canceled 140,000 fines given to drivers who entered the city's low emission zone with old and polluting cars.  The fines add up to approximately €20.1 million.  Company breaks ground on 8.4MW facility in Catalonia EdgeConneX has broken ground on a new Edge data center facility in the Sant Boi de Llobregat region of Spain 8.4MW carrier-neutral facility known as EDCBCN01 is located just from Barcelona city center and scheduled to go live at the end of 2021 It will have two data halls of 1,700 sq m each Register now for DCD's virtual event on edge infrastructure innovation & deployment, DCD>Building at the Edge “We are continuing our push to bring the Edge closer to those that need it most It's a client-centric philosophy that runs company-wide and takes us to places like Barcelona where we alongside our technology partners and community leaders can have an immediate and positive impact on overall business opportunity and edge market growth,” said Dick Theunissen The N+1 data center facility will provide businesses in the region with local cloud and content access as well as colocation services EdgeConneX says it will be a carbon neutral facility employing renewable energy but doesn’t provide details The company says it has secured a ‘global IT services provider and systems integrator’ as its first anchor tenant Barcelona and all of Europe is in position to be the next great digital hub,” adds Lluïsa Moret Sabidó “The EdgeConneX data center facility will not only provide necessary local access and connectivity to cloud and content providers for our growing business community but will provide new jobs and opportunities continuing to lift our local and regional economy.” In January, EdgeConneX announced a new Edge data center in Santiago, Chile. The company also recently announced a new joint venture in India with Adani Enterprise to develop 1GW of data center capacity in the country over the next 10 years including both Edge and Hyperscale facilities Data Centre Dynamics Ltd (DCD), 32-38 Saffron Hill, London, EC1N 8FH Email. [email protected]DCD is a subsidiary of InfraXmedia Nienke Veenhoven sprinted to a sixth-place finish in the Classic Brugge – De Panne. The 21-year-old rider was well-positioned by her teammates in the final phase, after which she delivered a strong sprint in a competitive field. Lorena Wiebes proved to be the strongest in the streets of De Panne. In the eighth edition of the Belgian spring classic, it quickly became clear that the race would end in a sprint. Despite several attack attempts, a large peloton headed toward the center of De Panne. In the final kilometers, the yellow-and-black team positioned themselves well at the front, and Veenhoven managed to settle in at the front as well. In the sprint, the young Dutch rider then powered her way to a strong sixth-place finish. “With a sixth place in this field, Nienke did really well", reflects team manager Jos van Emden with satisfaction. “Nienke is making tremendous progress. Lately, she’s been getting better at mixing it up in the sprinting chaos, and it’s great to see. That she was also up there today is a positive sign. However, there are still areas we can improve together.” Since this year, Veenhoven has formed a sprinting duo with Martina Fidanza, and Van Emden sees that this collaboration is working out excellently. “We’re really happy with Martina. The collaboration between her and Nienke is going really well. Martina brings a lot of experience, which we’re already seeing in the finals. She’s also very strong communicatively, and as a team, we’re learning a lot from her.” Subscribe yourself for the Team Visma | Lease a Bike newsletter and receive previews for races, exclusive interviews, video's and promotions! We proudly present our new Tour de France jersey: The Masterpiece. This is the limited edition jersey for our riders of the Tour de France. This unique piece is inspired by iconic paintings of the world famous Dutch Masters Rembrandt, Vermeer, and Van Gogh. You can now pre-order your very own Masterpiece and show it off during your own rides, just like Primoz, Marianne and Wout! It is also possible to sign The Masterpiece by adding your name and number to the jersey or those of your favourite Team Jumbo-Visma rider. And to top it off, a matching bib short, socks, gloves, and race cap are also available in the webshop. A quick look at the map of the winners of the last local elections tells some interesting stories Looking toward the Barcelona metropolitan area one can see a concentration of towns in red where the Socialist Party came out on top more than any other part of the territory.  The red belt encircling Barcelona is a stronghold for the Socialists and has been for decades the left-leaning party has governed consistently ever since the return to democracy in 1979 as is the case in Sant Boi de Llobregat and in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat the second-most populous city in Catalonia immediately south of Barcelona.   the biggest question this election will be whether the Socialists can win another absolute majority The task for the challengers is to grow enough just to have some say in the council for the next four years.  says she feels "stronger than ever" ahead of the 2023 elections after her last mandate was marked by a corruption investigation she was later cleared of although two of her former councilors are still facing trial.  Jaume Graells of pro-independence Esquerra Republicana (ERC) will be her biggest challenger after he left the Socialists during the last term, and it is he who filed the initial complaint that led to the investigation.  Then there are towns where the Socialists govern with minority governments, as is the case in Sant Adrià de Besós and Cerdanyola del Vallès. In these places, the PSC will target growth, repeating absolute majorities as they have done in many other municipalities, whereas challengers will look to wrestle back some more control. But why is it that the Socialist Party is so strong in the areas surrounding Barcelona? History, demographics, and industry can go a long way to explaining this.   During the 1950s and 60s, many people moved northwards from other parts of Spain in search of jobs in industrialized areas on the outskirts of large cities, including Barcelona. In Catalonia, many people moved from the southern region of Andalucía, also traditionally a working-class Socialist stronghold, and passed their voting patterns down the generations. The Barcelona metropolitan area's red belt also has some purple patches across it too. The political space led by Ada Colau's En Comú movement, left of the Socialists, encapsulates the former Communist party, which was very strong in municipal elections in Catalonia particularly shortly after the return to democracy, before later evolving into the Green party.  In more recent years, this political space has developed into the anti-austerity En Comú movement in Catalonia, and Podemos movement across Spain, born out of the difficult post-2008 crisis years.  This part of the left-wing space in Catalonia saw a huge surge in the 2015 elections, including Ada Colau becoming the mayor of Barcelona, but 2019 saw a drop-off in support. Yet, for the past four years they have still controlled the councils of Montcada i Reixac, Ripollet, El Prat, and of course Barcelona itself after reaching a deal with other parties as Colau finished just behind ERC's Ernest Maragall in the voting.  In many Socialist-governed towns, Esquerra Republicana are the second-strongest party, as is the case in towns such as L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Sabadell, Sant Adrià de Besós, Esplugues de Llobregat, Granollers, and more.  Santa Coloma de Gramenet will be an interesting battlefield this year, as Esquerra have put Gabriel Rufián up as their candidate for mayor. Having spent years confronting the Spanish government as an MP in the Congress in Madrid, Rufián has become a very well-known figure in his hometown.  Liberals Ciudadanos were another strong force in a lot of metropolitan municipalities in the last election, but polls predict that their biggest goal will be just to survive.  It's expected that they will lose voters, with the conservative People's Party, far-right Vox, or even the Socialists likely to benefit from their fall. The first Silence S04 vehicles in series production at ACCIONA's new automotive factory –located in Barcelona's Zona Franca– have already started to roll off the assembly line combines state-of-the-art technology with a highly experienced team of professionals many of whom come from the traditional automotive sector Everything from chassis construction and the coat of paint to the assembly of all components is carried out in the Zona Franca Factory Batteries will also be produced at this facility in the future although in this initial phase they will come from the company's factory in the nearby town of Sant Boi de Llobregat combines technology and a compact size to create a four-wheeled vehicle that is 100% electric and specially designed for urban driving The two-seater model –which combines the safety and comfort of a car with the agility of a motorcycle– paves the way to the urban mobility of the future with a comfortable sustainable vehicle that is also easy to park due to its small size The comfort of the S04 goes beyond parking ease as it is specially designed to optimize the interior space The two seats have a staggered arrangement which provides spaciousness and greater freedom of movement to the occupants can store shopping bags or two passengers’ usual luggage The first version on the market is the L7e reaches 85km/h and has a homologated range of 149 kilometers the version without a driving license requirement The batteries are removable and come with wheels and a handle for convenient and safe trolley-like transport In addition to charging the batteries directly in the vehicle this model also makes it possible to remove them and charge them easily from any socket The brand also offers the possibility of purchasing the S04 without batteries and subscribing to its Battery Station service the driver can locate the nearest battery station and swap batteries thanks to the Silence app the drivers can leave their empty batteries in the vacant charging units and pick up another fully charged pack The whole operation can be done in just 30 seconds the user can buy the S04 without batteries saving almost 40% on the cost of purchasing the vehicle I accept Information on data protection In compliance with Regulation (EU) 2016/679 on Data Protection and with other Data Protection regulations in force you are hereby informed that your personal data shall be processed by Acciona whose identification data are as follows: Tax ID No (NIF): A08001851; Address: Avenida de la Gran Vía de Hortaleza No.: +34 91 663 28 50; email: protecciondedatos@acciona.com Your data shall be processed in order to send you information through the subscription to our Newsletter through electronic means activities and news pertinent to our activity sectors The consent given by the data subject by indicating that they have read and accept this data protection information comprises the lawfulness of processing the subscription Request cannot be satisfied We may also process your satisfaction or preferences Data shall be stored until the elimination is requested we may give access to your data to service providers (such as technology service providers) who assist us in fulfilling this purpose may be located outside of the European Economic Area in territories that do not offer a level of data protection that is comparable to that of the European Union we transfer User data with appropriate safeguards and always ensuring the security of the same The data subject can exercise their rights of access to or rectification and/or the restriction of or objection to the processing of such data by writing the Department of Data Protection located at Avenida de la Gran Vía de Hortaleza 28033 (Madrid) or by sending the form available in the link: FORM If we consider it necessary in order to be able to identify you, we may ask you for a copy of an identity document. Furthermore, at any time the data subject may withdraw the granted consent by contacting the aforementioned address and file a claim to the Supervisory Authority (Agencia Española de Protección de Datos www.aepd.es) You can also unsubscribe from the Newsletter communication For any further information you can visit the Privacy Police on the website https://www.acciona.com/privacy-policy/ All News FIDE News Chess News Top Top Federations Main Page / Search Tournaments Titles Transfers Calculators Download FIDE Circuit Women's Events '24-'25 Open Cycle 2025-2026 Women’s Cycle 2025-2026 Women’s Cycle 2023-2025 All Tournaments Main Events About FIDE Handbook Documents Financial Reports Officials Commissions & Committees Federations Affiliated Organizations Affiliated Members Honourable Dignitaries Chart December was mainly about the FIDE World Rapid & Blitz Championships and the qualification spots for the Candidates so there have been slight but no significant changes at the top returned to 2800+ following his strong showing at the 2023 GCT Sinquefield Cup who also did an excellent job in Saint Louis Alireza Firouzja lost quite a few rating points in this competition but partly compensated for them by winning the 15eme Open International d’Echecs de Rouen It allowed Alireza to preserve his sixth position in the rating list and qualify for the Candidates 2024 Humpy Koneru also made her way into the Candidates grabbing the rating spot as Hou Yifan did not play enough games in 2023 Biggest rating gains in top 100 Open and Women Hans Moke Niemann won this nomination thanks to his stellar performance in the Tournament of Piece 2023 Sunilduth Lyna Narayanan (pictured below) emerged as the winner of a very strong open tournament The native of Kerala debuted in the top 50 open His compatriot Chithambaram Aravindh achieved good results at the above-mentioned Sant Boi de Llobregat and X Chessable Sunway Sitges International Festival and earned 16 points Arjun Erigaisi tied for first place in the Chennai Masters with Gukesh D and picked 11 points collecting 13 points and returning to the 2700+ elite group Monica Socko delivered two good performances in the Poland vs Rest of the World match and Bundesliga that brought her 13 rating points Ageless Michael Adams shone on his home turf in the London Chess Classic 2023 The English GM won the title and increased his rating by 13 points The recently concluded World Rapid and Blitz Championship brought about substantial shifts in the Rapid and Blitz rating lists Volodar Murzin (+39) and Bharath Subramaniyam (+52) significantly improved their positions in the Rapid Open Alexey Grebnev (+47) and Artem Uskov (+68) became the primary rating beneficiaries of the World Blitz Championship Anastasia Bodnaruk created a major sensation at the WRB 2023 Being outside of the top 100 Women Rapid before the start she won the women’s rapid event and earned 45 rating points The biggest gains in the entire competition belong to young Sahithi Varshini (pictured below; +191 – Women Rapid) and Velpula Sarayu (+264 – Women Blitz) The laurels of the best overperformers by the sum of rapid and blitz tournaments go to Ediz Gurel (rapid +108; blitz +106) Mukhammadali Abdurakhmonov (rapid +94; blitz +142) Xeniya Balabayeva (rapid +139; blitz +108) Leya Garifullina (rapid + 48; blitz +106) Alua Nurmanova (rapid +47; blitz +113) and Rakshitta Ravi (rapid +158; blitz +40) Photos: Anna Shtourman, Anastasia Korolkova, Lennart Ootes, londonchessclassic.com, elllobregat.com/openchess © 2025 FIDE International Chess Federation. All Rights Reserved. No part of this site may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any way or by any means (including photocopying, recording or storing it in any medium by electronic means), without the written permission of FIDE International Chess Federation. Get quality reporting directly into your inbox, every week Authorities have been investigating the scheme since 2017 and found that a company in Mexico was manufacturing the concrete blocks specially for the Beltrán Leyva cartel. The blocks of precast cellular concrete had a hollow compartment inside and safely protected the drugs during transport, while also making them undetectable to all forms of customs inspections. Police seized 2,549 kilograms of methamphetamine, 1,370 kilograms of cocaine, and 17,000 litres of chemicals intended for the production of illicit narcotics during the operation. Historically, cartels and other transnational drug trafficking groups have never failed in discovering new ingenious ways of infiltrating their narcotics into the market. Examples include storing cocaine bricks within the very walls of the shipping containers themselves, or bypassing customs altogether by commandeering submarines for transport across the Atlantic. The first breakthrough in the case came in 2019 when Dutch authorities seized 2,537 kilograms of pure methamphetamine in a Rotterdam warehouse. From there, the investigation led them to a second warehouse in Utrecht, where they discovered 17,000 litres of chemicals intended by the cartel to be used to manufacture illegal drugs. Spanish police report that the chemicals seized by Dutch authorities in 2019 originated from a company based in Spain that was also working on behalf of the Beltrán Leyva cartel. As COVID-19 spread across the globe, investigators determined that the cartel’s liaisons in Spain sought to take advantage of the pandemic after wrongly assuming that police would redirect their attention elsewhere in response to the crisis. As a result, they ordered a larger than normal shipment of drugs concealed in concrete blocks to be delivered from Mexico to Barcelona. However, after leaving the Port of Barcelona, police intercepted the shipment in the town of Sant Boi de Llobregat, where they drilled through the concrete to discover 834 kilograms of cocaine and 12 kilograms of methamphetamine hidden within. Reportedly, one consideration that initially helped police discern that the blocks were loaded with drugs is that concrete is not a widely used construction material in Spanish buildings. The seizure also revealed to investigators a telltale sign used by the cartel to track their product: the loaded concrete blocks could be identified by a blue ribbon and the corporate logo of the Mexican company that manufactured them. Subsequently, this new intelligence allowed police to intercept two additional compromised shipping containers, wherein they discovered the same company’s concrete blocks and 536 kilograms of cocaine. Another goal of the investigation was to determine how the Beltrán Leyva cartel was laundering the proceeds from their European operations. While the concrete was loaded with cocaine, the blocks’ actual intended customers in Spain were determined by investigators to be legitimate. When an order was placed, the company would ship the blocks in addition to the ones loaded with cocaine, which would hide amongst their legitimate counterparts. However, the companies that rented the properties used to store the blocks before they reached their legitimate customers - even for the blocks that did not contain any drugs - were found to be complicit along with several shipping and manufacturing companies. All of them played a role in the Beltrán Leyva cartel’s money laundering operations. Investigators discovered that large amounts of money from the United Arab Emirates and Hong Kong were transferred to Mexico via the bank accounts of the cartel’s Spanish-based businesses. The funds, which police believe were accrued from drug trafficking, travelled through Spain’s financial system and into Mexico’s without the senders reporting the money’s commercial origin. Support from readers like you helps OCCRP expose organized crime and corruption around the world. By donating, you’ll be directly supporting investigative journalism as a public good. You’ll also gain access to exclusive insights and benefits. The so-called “Princess of Orange,” heir apparent of the Dutch Monarchy, was forced to return home to the Hague, just months... Hugo Carvajal Barrios, who served as Venezuela’s military intelligence director, is set to go to trial in the U.S. in June... Investigative files shed new light on the dangerous dealings of a German police informant whose life was cut short by a... First published: October 25, 2022 06:52 PM Barcelona residents and visitors alike will already be familiar with the red bikes that make up the city's Bicing bicycle sharing scheme. From 2023, the wider metropolitan area will have its own equivalent in red and blue livery: AMBici.  AMBici will be launched progressively next year with 2,600 latest-generation electric bikes and 236 parking stations.  Sant Feliu de Llobregat, Sant Joan Despí and Cornellà de Llobregat will be the first municipalities to welcome the new scheme at the beginning of 2023, with the rollout reaching twelve other municipalities over the following three months.  The annual cost of the service in 2023 will be €25. This allows users to use bikes for 30 minutes free of charge. After the first half hour the cost will be 50 cents per 30 minutes.  From 2024, the subscription will rise to €40 a year and cost 15 cents for the first half hour and 50 cents per half hour thereafter.  It has not proved possible to fully integrate the new AMBici scheme with Barcelona's existing bikeshare system, Bicing.   However, to facilitate shared use, seven transfer stations will be installed, two in Sant Adrià de Besòs, three in L'Hospitalet, and one each in Santa Coloma de Gramenet and Esplugues de Llobregat, where users of the two systems can swap their AMBici bike for a Bicing one or vice versa.   An integrated metropolitan subscription will be created for the two services, costing between €53 and €65 annually.  AMBici will be managed by TMB (Barcelona Metropolitan Transport) and is co-financed with €7m from EU Next Generation funds. It represents a new impetus to enhance and facilitate sustainable mobility options in the metropolis of Barcelona, Antoni Poveda, vice-president of Mobility, Transport and Sustainability at the AMB, explained at Tuesday's presentation.  First published: January 16, 2024 01:52 PM The Spanish government has approved a decree that equates the regulation of heated tobacco products with that of traditional cigarettes, prohibiting products with flavorings. In addition, it will now be mandatory for labels to contain warnings that these products are harmful to health. This regulation only affects heated tobacco products and not all vaping devices. In the meantime, the ministry of health is working on regulation for these products. Specifically, the ban will cover tobacco products with an aroma or flavor in their components (such as filters, papers, packaging, or capsules) or any other technique that allows modifying the smell or taste of the products or intensify the smoke. Filters, papers and capsules cannot contain tobacco or nicotine. Heated tobacco products must include the following informative message on their outer packaging: 'Tobacco smoke contains more than 70 carcinogenic substances', with relevant accompanying photographs. This decree will enter into force three months after its publication in the official state gazette (Boletín Oficial del Estado). EVARM is known for converting polluting vehicles to ones using alternative fuels ACN | Barcelona The first truck running with green hydrogen could be driving around the streets of Catalonia by 2023 based in the city of Sant Boi de Llobregat on Wednesday launched the first vehicle in Spain running with this alternative fuel They plan to start transforming trucks using the technology in 2023 after it has been through all the required technical tests These vehicles will have a driving range of two working days.  and available for companies to apply at an affordable cost," Xavier Ribas The solution proposed by the Catalan company is "feasible" for all businesses as it will convert a polluting truck into a zero-emission vehicle something not currently possible with electric cars.  "Through the R&D process and after building the prototype we have shown that the technology is efficient and it is a solution for everybody," Ribas said.  the team has received up to €200,000 in subsidies from Catalonia Trade & Investment.  EVARM expects to create 30 new workplaces after opening a 3,000 sq meter warehouse in Sant Boi de Llobregat.  Green hydrogen is one of the options for greener fuels of the future the concept is relatively unknown as it is not fully exploited due to the current high cost The process to create green hydrogen is defined as the "hydrogen produced by splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen using renewable electricity," Dr Taibi added.  In fact, green hydrogen could save up to "830 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year, emitted when producing hydrogen using fossil fuels. The amount of carbon dioxide "is equivalent to the CO2 emissions of the United Kingdom and Indonesia combined," the International Energy Agency reported.  The Catalan president, Pere Aragonès, visited Germany in mid-March, where the governments of Catalonia and Baden-Württemberg agreed to create a working group to develop green hydrogen projects Aragonès made the announcement in Stuttgart following a meeting with Winfried Kretschmann which was also attended by Catalan business minister Roger Torrent the Catalan president also announced a €10 million investment from German company Freudenberg to open an automotive components factory in Catalonia.  Nissan’s successor in the plants it occupied in Catalonia is still unknown, after the Japanese firm pulled out Months of talks between firms and several other parties including unions representing redundant workers has not resulted in a final outcome.  Nissan left its factory in Barcelona’s Zona Franca at the end of 2021 yet the future of the plant is still not clear The main candidate is a decarbonization hub (d-hub) led by QEV Technologies and BTech these companies launched their goal to manufacture 100,000 vehicles of two different brands over five years.  "We expect to start hiring people for the reindustrialization process in June and slowly hire 100 or 200 people this year to start preparing the manufacturing line," Joan Orús will account for up to 60,000 electrical trucks and vans while the other 40,000 ones will be under the historic Ebro brand recovered in a joint venture between QEV Technologies and BTech The Ebro was the vehicle brand created during the Spanish Francoist dictatorship for the Motor Ibérica company Motor Ibérica used to build vehicles in what is now the former-Nissan factory The Japanese company had acquired 80% of the Spanish brand by 1986 and the Ebro brand disappeared from vehicles Spain's most coveted Christmas lottery prize, 'El Gordo,' was the 72480, completely sold in Spain's La Rioja The biggest prize in the raffle is 'The Fat One' in English and all 193 series (of 10 decimos each) were sold in just one lottery administration But how does Spain's Christmas lottery work with a total prize pool of €2.7 billion and over 70% of Spaniards participating It is also the second longest-running lottery in the world even surviving the Spanish Civil War and the Covid-19 pandemic including Catalonia's Sant Boi de Llobregat with 5.8 series Catalonia saw €31,253,000 of the main prizes Catalan lottery players may have been lucky if they had bought the 11840 Most of the décimos were sold outside of Catalonia but the lottery administration sold 200 décimos in northern Catalonia's La Pobla de Segur Many workers at the Blancafort Hotel in La Garriga were among the lucky winners of the third prize "A worker said we could look for the ticket numbered 1840 and that's what we decided to do," one of the lucky lottery buyers told the Catalan News Agency (ACN) surrounded by friends and family members who shouted with joy "I am very happy because not only have we won the prize many people have tickets and many of them have bought winning numbers for their relatives," said Eva León Alella and Montgat were also among the lucky cities that sold the 77768 The lucky winners will receive €20,000 per décimo Some series were sold in Sant Boi de Llobregat About 20 minutes after the start of the lottery at 9 am the students of San Ildefonso sang the number 37876 as the first big prize of the day The first of the five prizes is a €6,000 décimo While most tickets were sold in Valencia and the Canary Islands some lucky buyers in the northern city of Girona and the inland town of Sort also bought 37876 74778, was sold in many places across Spain some tickets were also sold in Catalonia in more than a dozen towns from the north to the south of the territory was also sold all over Spain but not in Catalonia Barcelona residents could have been lucky if they bought the fourth-fifth prize, 45456 there were no lucky tickets for the fifth-fifth prize and 450 décimos (45 series) were sold in Barcelona Tickets can be redeemed from December 23 to March 24 Can Mariano de Baró had bought several series of the 11840 number with several regular customers among the ticket holders Bar owners were serving breakfast when the number was prized "Celebrations will have to wait," Maria Pilar Devissa as many customers were still having breakfast Loteria Merche is a small family owned lottery administration in Girona currently managed by Carlos and Andreu she sold some awards for the Christmas lottery the two siblings sold tickets for the 37876 "It is very emotional," Carlos Voz told ACN on Sunday they sold some tickets for the 'El Niño' lottery's first prize but never a winning ticket for the December 22 drawing but we learned it was us when they called from the radio," Carlos and Andreu Voz said All the winning tickets of the 37876 were mainly sold in person "between different customers" at the Loteria Merche in Girona minutes after the 'El Gordo' was announced one of the San Ildefonso school students sang a second time because "a boy asked me to do it," she said The 43226 was the second "El Gordo" to sing which sang earlier in the morning at 11:27 am The event takes place every December 22 Only in Catalonia residents bought tickets worth €423,498,540 an increase of 3.64% compared to the last edition people have spent the most on average, €108.44 per person and each number is printed on 1,930 décimos which means "a tenth of a ticket," is the most common ticket people buy a cashback prize where you receive your €20 back if your ticket’s last digit matches the last digit of the winning number Catalan News' podcast Filling the Sink explores the history of this festive prize draw and discovers how it is celebrated We visit some of Barcelona’s most iconic ticket outlets to meet lottery vendors and discuss the odds of winning ‘El Gordo,’ as well as the controversy surrounding state taxation of winnings We also chatted with some of the players about their lucky numbers and how they hope to beat the odds this year Listen below to the Christmas lottery episode of Filling the Sink. The event was inaugurated by reigning Under-16 World Champion Javier Habans Aguerrea who rang the traditional bell to officially open the tournament Recognized as Spain’s strongest chess event in 2023 this year’s edition has drawn 118 players from 41 countries in the prestigious Group A category competing for a prize fund of 25,000 euros With top seeds and emerging talents in action the tournament promises thrilling competition ahead Barcelona – The 5th Elllobregat Open Chess Tournament recognized as Spain’s strongest chess event began today in Barcelona with top players securing comfortable victories offering an excellent opportunity for players to achieve international norms Group A includes 118 participants from 41 countries with six players representing India.   Karthik Venkataraman Withdrawn from Future Events did not arrive in Spain for the event and missed his first-round match IM Luis Carlos Torres Rosas from Mexico was awarded a walkover Chief Arbiter IA Hernan Siludakis explained that all players had been instructed to notify the organizers if they intended to withdraw Since Karthik neither informed the organizers nor arrived for the event he has been disqualified from this tournament and will be barred from participating in future editions of the Elllobregat Open.   GM Cristobal Henriquez Villagra of Chile defeated FM Leo Valle Luis of Spain while Hungarian GM Adam Kozak triumphed over Sweden’s FM Theodor Kenneskog on board three German GM Martin Kraemer beat Spain’s IM Antonio Torrecillas Martinez on board four and Bulgarian GM Momchil Petkov secured a win against Malaysia’s FM Kim Yew Chan on board five.   10-year-old Indian WCM Charvi A delivered an upset by defeating Bulgarian FM Valentin Mitev starting her campaign with a strong victory.   With a prize fund of 25,000 euros and fierce competition from 41 countries the 5th Elllobregat Open Chess Tournament promises thrilling rounds ahead.  GM Mahdi Gholami Orimi (Iran) emerged victorious with 6 points showcasing dominance and sharp tactical play Blitz Round 1 We have launched the ChessBase India App. Check out this amazing resource! Android for now - Download the app now Follow Tweets by @ChessbaseIndia ChessBase India is proud to be the official partner of chessbase.com reporting on events in India Like our Facebook page for more Indian chess updates The all new ChessBase Premium Account which gives you access to ten amazing online ChessBase services like PlayChess Become a part of the ever-growing ChessBase India Youtube Channel. Subscribe now and stay update with our awesome video content.  First published: December 28, 2023 06:03 PM For the first time since 2017, Badalona becomes Catalonia’s third largest city with 225,957 inhabitants as of January 1, 2023, according to data of the municipal register of residents from the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE).   Barcelona is still the largest Catalan city with 1,660,122 inhabitants, while neighboring Hospitalet de Llobregat remains in second place with 274,455 inhabitants.   The smallest Catalan towns are Gisclareny with 27 inhabitants, followed by Sant Jaume de Frontanyà with 29 inhabitants, and are both located in northern Catalonia.   Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker The ban on electric scooters on public transport in Barcelona will remain in force until October 31 for three more months than initially planned as announced by Barcelona's Metropolitan Transport Authority (ATM) on Wednesday The restriction came into force on February 1 for a period of six months with fines of €200 for infringement.   The ATM moved to bring in the ban after an e-scooter exploded and caught fire on board a train in Barcelona in November 2022.  Authorities are asking for three more months for the working group to find a definitive regulation for access to such vehicles on public transport. Similar bans on buses have also been adopted by authorities in towns and cities such as Girona, Tarragona, Lleida and Sitges.  While the ban is in place, e-scooters will not be allowed on board vehicles or past ticket barriers in stations. Parking spaces at railway stations and bus interchanges are being promoted.  In fact, AMB (Barcelona Metropolitan Area) is looking at the possibility of using space in larger car parks to accommodate e-scooters in a way that is secure and easy for users to access.   Dozens of e-scooter users have signed up for the Bicibox system, a free bicycle parking service in the Barcelona area, but in early February, Carles Conill, director of Sustainable Mobility at the AMB, expected that number to rise.  Although the AMB was already working on the integration of electric scooters into the Bicibox system to "encourage intermodality", Conill told the Catalan News Agency (ACN) that the ATM's six-month e-scooter ban took them by surprise.  "We trust that opening up Bicibox to electric scooters will be a useful measure for users and we will see during these first days how it works," he added.  The incident that prompted the ban in the first place happened in November 2022 near the Sant Boi del Llobregat station of the FGC train line, and CCTV footage showed passengers hurriedly moving away from the fire, before the carriage filled with smoke. Three people were left injured.  Following some incidents that put the safety of passengers at risk the General Council of the Metropolitan Transport Authority banned electric scooters from Barcelona’s public transport system for at least six months the ATM invited all transport operators (streetcars Ferrocarriles de la Generalitat and Renfe Rodalies trains) to draw up a temporary regulation that prohibits users of electric scooters from boarding public transport with these vehicles While the goal is to move towards sustainable mobility banning these vehicles is not the end point The ban was imposed because there have been several incidents One of them was the fire and explosion of a scooter inside a Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat carriage on the route Sant Boi and Molí Nou (Barcelona) The incident occurred when the electric scooter was charging The fire spread and three people were injured inside the car The cause of the fire was determined to be a battery problem all passengers in Sant Boi de Llobregat had to be evacuated immediately Secretary General of Territory of the Generalitat indicated that it is not yet known when the ban will come into force he said that each transport is responsible for independently drafting the ban During this time the MTA will study how to safely introduce these scooters into public transportation The ban seeks to ensure “maximizing safety” for users of each mode of transportation Within multimodal transportation solutions It is even fundamental to the concept of sustainable mobility The goal is to find a suitable solution as soon as possible in order to be able to put these vehicles back on wagons and buses The Autoritat del Transport Metropolità states that these vehicles are not dangerous and they do not rule out that in the future it will be possible to access public transport by scooter it will most likely be forbidden to connect them to the network for charging The measure is expected to last for a maximum of six months electric scooters are prohibited from entering the subway After this period the MTA will decide whether to ban them completely or to come up with a less restrictive solution The important thing is not to repeat incidents like the one in Sant Boi Stock images by Depositphotos La venta de la nuda propiedad Copyright © 2022 Salirporbarcelona , All rights Reserved. Created by JEZZ Media Access all of the club's multimedia content Un estadio referente y reconocido internacionalmente por sus instalaciones modernidad y capacidad para acoger eventos durante los 365 días del año Make your reservation to visit every corner of the amazing RCDE Stadium and discover all the history of RCD Espanyol de Barcelona Feel the pre-match excitement with exclusive pitchside access to watch the players’ warm-up up close witness the starting eleven step onto the field from the tunnel And get to meet and greet the stars after the match RCD Espanyol take on RC Celta de Vigo this Tuesday 3rd January 2023 at 7pm CET at the RCDE Stadium The first match of 2023 sees the Copa del Rey return to the RCDE Stadium in the round of 32 Here is all of the important information to know ahead of the cup tie Tickets and ticket offices: 10% discount on the purchase of additional tickets for all members with children under 15 going for free when accompanied by an adult and claiming their ticket before the match The ticket office will open on matchday from 10am CET to 2pm CET All members will be able to access the stadium with their RENEWED season ticket for the 2022/23 season How to get to the RCDE Stadium: To avoid traffic by the RCDE Stadium at the end of the match the Cornellà police force recommends that fans who attend in their own vehicle take the following routes: Camí del Mig and Volta del Llobregat towards Sant Boi motorcycles or coaches from supporters clubs In honour of the Día de los Reyes Magos (Epiphany) on Tuesday young pericos will have the chance to deliver their letters to the Royal Page of Their Majesties the Magi from the East from 5pm CET to 7pm CET A toy collection point will also be set up for those families in need and the solidarity calendar will also be put on sale we remind you that by updating the club's official app perico members will be able to upload their digital membership or season ticket card and enter the RCDE Stadium turnstiles throughout the remainder of the season On the other hand, the new version of the app allows access to exclusive Club promotions and benefits for blanquiazul fans, as well as the latest news on the teams and audiovisual content. Download it now! Everything about the game on your mobile phone © 2025 Official Website of RCD Espanyol de Barcelona S.A.D the Salesians of Sant Boi de Llobregat (Barcelona) organized the Feast of Don Bosco Youth Centers of Catalonia which was attended by 500 children and youth The meetings resumed after two years that had been interrupted due to the pandemic ANS - “Agenzia iNfo Salesiana” is a on-line almost daily publication the communication agency of the Salesian Congregation enrolled in the Press Register of the Tibunal of Rome as n 153/2007 This site also uses third-party cookies to improve user experience and for statistical purposes By scrolling through this page or by clicking on any of its elements The transition from Bicing to metropolitan bikes in the Catalan capital is expected by 2023 This new service will be called “Ambici” and will be extended to 15 nearby towns with interchange stops within the city limits passengers can switch from one type of bicycle to another Ambici is different from Barcelona’s Bicing and will not be used to travel around the Catalan capital Bicycles in the city may also not be taken to ride outside the city limits will build seven stations where it will be possible to exchange the two-wheeled bikes of one system and the other in towns near the city It will be something like someone who gets off the bus and takes the subway or the railroad The aim is to integrate the two bike-sharing models The future merger will take several years to consolidate while the contracts are coming to an end: the Ambici contract for six more years and the Bicing contract The connection stops will be located at three strategic points: a metropolitan pass will be marketed with which cyclists will be able to use both services The price of the integrated subscription will be between 53 and 65 euros Bicing users who buy the integrated pass will save 20% as the flat rate will go from 50 to 40 euros and the usage rate from 35 to 28 euros Ambici’s new service will be launched in early 2023 with 2,600 bicycles this service currently has more than 7,000 with 2,000 electric prototypes and around 135,000 subscribers Ambici is estimated to cost the AMB about $40.5 million 7.2 million came from the European Next Generation anti-crisis funds which were earmarked for the purchase of bicycles and stops The first will be located in Sant Feliu de Llobregat which will take place during the first quarter of 2023 the stops will be extended to 12 more locations: L’Hospitalet de Llobregat The International Vintage Car Rally Barcelona-Sitges the important thing is to participate and aesthetics is valued more than speed: both the driver and the occupants must be dressed in period costumes Vintage cars of such emblematic brands as Rolls Royce will drive through the streets of Barcelona towards Sitges The rally starts at the Plaza de Sant Jaume in Barcelona and continues through the streets of Barcelona C-246 road (Costas del Garraf) and ends with a parade through the streets of Sitges and a contest of elegance The total distance is 40 kilometers and participants come from all over Spain and other countries other parallel activities are also organized Barcelona: Plaça Sant Jaume -> Jaume I street -> Plaça de l'Àngel -> Via Laietana -> Plaça Correus -> Passeig de Colom -> Plaça Portal de la Pau -> Passeig Josep Carner -> Plaça de les Drassanes -> Avinguda Paral-lel -> Plaça Espanya -> Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes -> Gran Via -> Plaça Ildefons Cerdà -> Rambla Badal -> Constitució street By L'Hospitalet de Llobregat: Santa Eulàlia street -> Enric Prat de la Riba street -> Barcelona street -> L'Hospitalet road -> Avenida de la Fama -> Tirso de Molina street -> Avenida Barcelona By Cornellà de Llobregat: Carretera de l'Hospitalet > Avinguda de la Fama > Tirso de Molina street > Avinguda Baix Llobregat (and link with the C-245 road passing through Sant Boi de Llobregat Costas del Garraf and arrival at the Port de Sitges-Aiguadolç at approximately 12:15 h) Where can I obtain a poster of Barcelona Sitges 23 We are sorry but we do not have the information you asked for In reply to by Michael Nivens (not verified) The definitive guide to not miss anything this holiday season the streets already smell of castanyeras that announce with their embers the arrival of the holidays and the streets boast of Christmas lights waiting to be lit This is one of the most beautiful times of the year in Barcelona Hundreds of lights illuminate the streets and buildings at night transforming the city into a true Christmas paradise So that you do not miss any of these and other plans we bring you a summary of everything you can do during Christmas 2024-2025 in Barcelona so you can celebrate as Santa Claus commands We said that December is the month of brilli brilli And this includes visiting all kinds of lights and decorations in the streets The one that wins par excellence is the Christmas lights And is that the City Council considers the lighting an essential tool to enhance the commercial fabric of the city the lights will illuminate the streets of the city until after midnight From Sunday to Thursday they will be on until 1am and on weekends and public holidays until 2am different totem poles with Christmas shapes will be installed in all districts of the city because Barcelona wants to have its own Christmas brand that mixes the traditional with the contemporary the Bosch i Alsina pier (Moll de la Fusta) will once again host the sixth edition of ‘Nadal al Port’ to the multiple Christmas offer of Barcelona and offers the already mythical Christmas market at the seashore that tries to promote the maritime heritage among the citizenship consolidating the Moll de la Fusta as a meeting space that favors the relationship between the port and the city thanks to the market s/n),Palace 2 and Plaza de l’Univers Cinesa La Farga (L’Hospitalet de Llobregat) Location: Espacio Inmersa – Access 1 Calle Llull each corner of this exhibition recreates iconic moments from films such as Toy Story allowing you to immerse yourself in the most emblematic Pixar worlds each scenario has been carefully designed to make you feel the Christmas spirit of the stories of our childhood Location: Outdoor Parking – Westfield La Maquinista the city of Barcelona will enjoy Els Llums de Sant Pau an experience that has established itself as one of the most outstanding Christmas events in the city the Sant Pau Art Nouveau Site will be transformed into a spectacle of light and color with outstanding new features and a completely revamped Christmas experience this event has already become one of Barcelona’s most outstanding Christmas traditions after attracting more than 400,000 visitors in its first two editions Els Llums de Sant Pau returns this year with new features where Christmas is the protagonist par excellence The series of concerts that has already conquered half the world has prepared some other Christmas tribute to celebrate the holidays How about a concert recalling the most repeated songs at this time in the Gaudí Crypt one of the best Christmas plans to do in Barcelona this 2024 The musical tribute to Christmas carols and the most typical Christmas songs is not the only great plans that Candlelight has prepared for the most festive season of the year there will be many more concerts for all tastes Barcelona has its own Christmas village but there is a place next to Barcelona that has a forest that is Santa Claus’ dream fifteen minutes from the center of Barcelona The party will be in the Parc de la Torre Lluc and it will be a free access event that will include the lighting of the tree and the opening of the Bosc Encantat with all its 50 thousand lights and its giant Christmas tree included If it is already nice to feel the winter cold and walk through a city full of Christmas lights what to say about a whole village dedicated to snow and gifts That’s why one of the great plans for Christmas (especially for families) is to approach the Spanish Village and soak up the Christmas spirit of a whole (small) town the Poble Espanyol will be transformed into Natalis a magical and unique world where visitors will enter to find several worlds with lots of emotions and adventures for the whole family Le Barcarès is an idyllic fishing village, which lives from fishing in winter and tourism in summer. But, like other villages at this time of the year it is transformed during Christmas to welcome Santa Claus who is installed from November 18 to January 7 in the Village de Noël Le Barcarès another Christmas village is born in Barcelona: El Bosc dels Somnis de Sant Boi its 4500 m2 of show are full of actors that make the walk in an immersive outdoor experience something like the classic tunnel of terror the Masia de Can Julià (Carrer Bonaventura Calopa Sant Boi de Llobregat) will host an immersive tour Forget the traditional Christmas decorations The new festive attractions are the houses of neighbors transformed into authentic Christmas scenes in the purest American style Francisco García has turned his street into a light show with 300,000 LED bulbs turning his facade and those of his neighbors into a unique Christmas attraction his decoration on Carrer Martí Casas attracts visitors and locals alike transforming this quiet Maresme town into a true Christmas paradise Their Majesties the Three Wise Men will enter our homes to fill them with gifts but not before having walked the streets of the city handing out candy in Marquès d’Argentera Avenue and will go through the main streets of the city until it reaches the Magic Fountain of Montjuïc But this list is missing a small enclave that marks the official start of the holidays: the opening of the Toy Factory at Fabra i Coats If you are looking for a different place to get inspired for Christmas shopping you have to visit SHEIN District at Fira Barcelona Here you will find the latest trends in fashion and art in an impressive space that brings together creative workshops to surprise all visitors in a fantasy world Be sure to participate in the draw for a free shopping cart ensuring that your dinner will be a success one of the best ways to combat the cold is by indulging in a good hot chocolate so we leave you a list of the best chocolate shops in the city for you to enjoy Christmas com deu mana The Macarfi guide defines the 10 best restaurants in Barcelona and the 5 best openings of the year Within the ecosystem of the most veteran restaurants the big winner in Barcelona has been Alkimia It has been followed by Estimar and Via Veneto Coure and Albert Adrià’s Enigma.You can also take a trip to the province of Girona and try some of the winners there: El Celler de Can Roca At Christmas time Barcelona is full of Christmas markets that turn the city and its surroundings into living reflections of what one expects from a city during Christmas From markets of fir trees or Tiós de nadal to design markets to find the most original gifts Surely you did not know that just an hour from Barcelona is the largest Christmas decoration store in the country a shop in Sant Fruitós del Bages with more than 1,400 m2 of exhibition and 50,000 items on display among which you can find everything from simple Christmas tree balls to a life-size carriage of the Three Wise Men December is also the month of snow and outdoor plans in the mountains and skiing The perfect excuse to leave the city and go to one of the many snow paradises: Baqueira Beret Vall de Núria… We tell you in detail what you will find in each of them Youth teams from Marbella Rugby Club came away from a prestigious tournament in Catalonia last week with "magnificent results" All of the club's academy teams were highly placed in the annual Melé tournament which was celebrating its 100th anniversary and is one of the most important youth tournaments in Spanish rugby Participation in the competition held in Sant Boi de Llobregat The Marbella club made a huge financial and organisational effort to send all members from all categories to the Catalan region 40 coaches and representatives filled the three buses travelling from Marbella funded by families and club members with some help from the Marbella town hall There was a record-breaking number of participants in the competition A total of 85 teams spanning eleven clubs and over 1,800 players all congregated at the UE Santboiana's top-of-the-range facilities which according to Marbella RC were "unbeatable" And the results for the Andalusian club were impressive the under-8s and under-16s took third place under-12s and under-14s took fourth while the under-18s held onto fifth The under-10s' win means that the club has won in at least one category in the last four years This performance by the Marbella RC proves again why they are one of the premier clubs in the country one of the pioneers in the development of players and the performances in the tournaments they participate in Comentar es una ventaja exclusiva para registrados We offer you several indoor plans to enjoy with kids even when it rains or when it is extremely hot outside That’s why we offer you some alternatives to crafts homemade pizzas or muffins with secret ingredients that only kids will know Indoor plans so that rainy days won’t be boring or monotonous Located in the heart of Barcelona’s Eixample (c/Villarroel 237) it has more than 200 square meters with corridors Another free play option is Mamá Canguro which is located in the Gracia neighborhood (C/Sant Salvador 117) and takes the form of little houses that invite the little ones to get ready for symbolic play In the heart of the Sarrià neighborhood (C/Santaló 130) we find Peek a Boo a space where numerous activities and workshops are organized It is a sensory experience that appeals to both adults and children and allows you to take a break from your weekday routine for a while It is also a very good indoor plan for when it rains Visiting museums in the city on rainy or extremely hot days is also a good plan One of the most familiar is the Museu de les Ciències Naturals the Museu Marítim or the Museu d’Arqueologia de Catalunya The parks with inflatables or ball pools are always a guaranteed plan be careful when it rains because that is when they are most crowded The best known in Barcelona are Planeta Màgic in Viladomat Street and also in Sagrada Familia and Aventura Park de Roma and Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes A proposal to see up close the different animals found in tropical waters as well as in the Mediterráneo The ticket is free for children under two years of age lasts at least two hours and with it you can stay in the facilities as long as you want within the same day of visit seeing their teeth up close and learning what they eat each day It is a therapeutic and playful space that allows you to feel the benefits of salt in the body is a good plan for the whole family even when it rains outside it allows them to experiment with salt and have a good time doing halotherapy breathing an environment saturated by salt mithroparticles of mineral origin