PORT AND XUNTA WORK ON A NEW SPACE ACCESSIBLE TO ALL CITIZENS ON THE SEAFRONT OF THE CITY

The president of the Port Authority of Vigo, Carlos Botana, the Regional Minister of Housing and Infrastructure Planning, María Martínez Allegue, and the delegate of the Xunta de Galicia in Vigo, Ana Ortiz, visited this morning a new space of approach between the Port and the City that, once completed, will allow its enjoyment by all groups.

It is about the works of improvement of mobility and humanization of the 2nd section of the Orillamar road, from the traffic circle of Coruña street to the church of San Miguel de Bouzas, which will complete an itinerary of almost 7.5 km that will allow a sustainable mobility from the Arenal gardens to the Paseo de los Peces in Bouzas, the one that surrounds the car terminal.

As Martínez Allegue recalled during the visit, it is “a work highly demanded by the neighbors” and that has been possible thanks to the collaboration signed between both institutions -Xunta and Port- to recover the seafront of Vigo, specifically, in two key sections: the one that runs between El Berbés and Portocultura, already made available to the city since last year, and the one that is about to be completed between the Plaza de la Industria Conservera and Bouzas. 

Specifically, in this space, the humanization and provision of safer spaces for pedestrians and bicycles is being carried out along 1.5 kilometers and will involve making available to citizens 11,300 square meters of public space, in addition to 1,400 square meters of landscaped area, new street furniture and bicycle parking spaces, among other actions.

Universal accessibility

With these works, which are expected to be completed by the end of the year, the Port and the Xunta try to achieve universal accessibility, adapting the promenade to groups with special needs. A task that began with the collaboration carried out with the Social Group Eleven in the section of the Paseo de Bouzas, in which various measures were developed to facilitate the enjoyment of the environment for people with visual difficulties.

According to Botana, “as a society, we have to be more inclusive and, in this stretch, where the best shipyards in the world, the fishing sector and the city are concentrated, managing to bring together all these sensitivities, makes me feel very grateful for the generosity of the companies and the work of the entire technical team involved”.

After the adaptation of the promenade that surrounds the Terminal of cars, Port and Xunta work in the adaptation of this new section for people with visual difficulty and they will make it extensible also for the groups with autism spectrum disorder, thanks to the collaboration of the Federation of Autism Galicia. This is a pioneering project in Galicia in terms of the provision of a new adapted information system within an urban infrastructure, aimed at overcoming the cognitive and communication barriers of people with autism, facilitating their participation in society in an autonomous way.

To achieve this, this space will be provided with explanatory signage through ARASAAC pictograms, whose purpose is to enhance and stimulate the citizen's information through graphic signs representing an action or an explanation. Also, the signs that will be placed on the promenade will be equipped with a QR code that will provide information about the area in which the pedestrian is, thus gaining full autonomy. “We want to transform the port edge without leaving anyone behind”, since ‘the Port of Vigo must be accessible to everyone’, remarked the port president.

The works carried out on the seafront of the city, from Arenal to Bouzas, have involved a total investment of 15M€, of which 3.5M€ have been contributed by the Xunta de Galicia thanks to a collaboration agreement signed between both institutions.

With these actions, the body chaired by Carlos Botana seeks to “improve the interaction between the Port and the City, bringing the port activity from a sustainable point of view to the citizen”, as stated in its Blue Growth strategy and its objective of Accessible Port.

Blue Trail 2025

The Port Authority of Vigo has decided to submit the entire route of the port front to the Blue Trails 2025 Program. An initiative promoted and developed by the Association of Environmental and Consumer Education, which values the enhancement, conservation and improvement of already humanized environments and the interpretation of natural and cultural heritage. Thus, through the incorporation of posters, the most relevant elements of the fishing sector, the shipbuilding industry, port development, natural, historical and cultural heritage, as well as the close relationship and dependence of the port with the city and vice versa will be highlighted. These panels will have an innovative application that will offer an immersive experience. They will allow the itinerary to be followed on Google Maps, enabling access to digital content (videos, photographs and information on the featured elements) and will contain animations designed specifically for the port that will promote user interaction.

“We hope that after all these actions we have managed to improve and bring the Port even closer to the enjoyment of all citizens,” said Botana.