Transforming Serrano street



On 8 August, 2008, the Madrid City Council awarded the contract for the Serrano street refurbishing project to a consortium comprising Cintra Infraestructuras and Iridium Concesiones, along with the design of the project, construction and exploitation of three car parks with a total of 3,297 public and resident parking spaces.

The project entails the total transformation of Madrid's most exclusive avenue – inviting pleasant strolls through its shopping area with an increase of up to 64% in sidewalk space, as well an enhancement in environmental quality throughout the area. 813 new trees have been planted and over 2.1 kilometres of bicycle lanes built. The avenue has also been equipped with the most modern urban furniture – providing meeting and relaxation points.

This urban reorganisation was completed with the creation of two lanes reserved for public transportation – one for buses and another for taxis – with three others for private vehicles. All car park entrances and exits are located on streets adjoining Serrano, which have also been transformed by the project. The new avenue was inaugurated on 25 September, 2010 with a huge celebration. The new car park was opened to the public on 4 December, 2010 – with the presence of the his Excellency the Mayor of Madrid. Altogether a new engineering milestone in Spain.

In order to get an idea of the magnitude of this project, we need only cite a few construction figures:
  • Over 9,000 tons of steel.
  • Over 125,000 m3 of on-site concrete.
  • Over 65,000 m2 of prefabricated assemblies.
  • Over 87,800 m of piles and walls from 450 to 850mm in diameter.
  • Over 65,000 m2 of granite.
  • Over 11,000 m of kerb.
  • Over 56,000 m2 of agglomerate.
During construction, more than 350 operators worked simultaneously with 80 engineers and administrative personnel who were directly dedicated to the project.

Basic urban services were modernised as part of the challenge to transform the centre of Madrid without at any time interrupting the daily life of its citizens:
  • Replacement of the sewage network with over 3,000 m of visitable sewer tunnels with 150 manholes.
  • Replacement of the natural gas network with pipe diameter of up to 65".
  • Replacement of the telephone networks of 5 different companies with over 30,000 m of cable and 6 stations.
  • Replacement of over 4,500 m of CYII (Madrid water system) sewage pipelines of up to 850 in diameter.
  • A new electricity substation and 10 new transformer centres.
  • A new service tunnel along Serrano street over 1,600 m long.
All of this work was carried out with the highest respect for the environment and the most stringent quality controls. All of this work – thinking of you.