From July 27, four new stops will be activated in the areas of Maria Cristina, Palau Reial, and Zona Universitària to optimise the Diagonal corridor, which handles up to 1,800 daily services.
The Barcelona City Council and the Department of Territory, Housing, and Transition of the Generalitat have announced a reorganisation of intercity bus stops on Avenida Diagonal, one of the main exit routes from the city. The measure, which will come into effect on July 27, aims to alleviate congestion at points with the highest accumulation of lines and improve service flow.
Currently, the Diagonal corridor records around 1,800 daily services of intercity buses, and some stops can concentrate up to 40 different lines. With the new distribution, no stop will exceed 20 lines, which will help reduce vehicle congestion and speed up user waiting times.
The intervention involves increasing the current 13 stop points to 23, distributed across three areas: Maria Cristina (from 5 to 8 stops), Palau Reial (from 4 to 7), and Zona Universitària (from 2 to 6). In addition, the two existing stops at Pius XII will remain unchanged. Most of the new points will be double stops, allowing for the simultaneous loading of two buses, reducing waiting times and increasing service efficiency.
Four of the new stops will utilise existing shelters that are currently unused. Over the past few weeks, horizontal signage and new stop posts have been installed, and this week, real-time information panels are being relocated. In a later phase, new shelters will be placed where necessary.
The redistribution responds to the strong increase in demand recorded during the first half of 2026. According to data provided by the administrations, the Vilafranca del Penedès corridor has grown by 42%, Manresa by 25%, Sant Sadurní d'Anoia and Gelida by 18%, Sant Feliu de Llobregat by 15%, Corbera de Llobregat by 11%, and Igualada by 2.5%. This increase in passengers has made it necessary to optimise space and operations at the stops.
To minimise inconvenience to citizens, all lines changing stops will do so just a few metres from their current location. The new distribution also separates stops by corridors and operators, aiming to make user orientation clearer and simpler.
This action is part of the joint work between the Generalitat and the Barcelona City Council to provide better services at intercity bus stops throughout the city, reduce the impact on public space, and improve traveller comfort. Both administrations are also collaborating on the planning of high-capacity interchanges at the main access corridors.
Users will be able to check the changes from July 27 on the information panels at the stops and in public transport applications. It is recommended to pay attention to the new numbering and location of the stops to avoid confusion during the first days of the reorganisation.
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