Subways, urban trains and a cable car over the Forest: the ambitious plan to transform traffic in La Plata
The incessant growth of the vehicle fleet and the saturation of the avenues reopened the debate on mobility in the capital of Buenos Aires. The Urban Planning and Architecture System (SPAU) presented a comprehensive project that seeks to decentralize transit through unprecedented infrastructure in the region.
The founding layout of La Plata, with its perfect square and diagonals, was conceived at the end of the 19th century as a model of avant-garde urban planning. However, that design designed for a smaller-scale city today faces an unprecedented mobility crisis. The collapse of traffic on the main arteries, traffic jams at peak hours and a bus system that is not sufficient to connect the center with a constantly expanding periphery, prompted the Urban Planning and Architecture System (SPAU) to propose a root solution.
It is a Comprehensive Transportation Plan which proposes the incorporation of three unprecedented mass mobility systems for the Buenos Aires capital: a subway network, local urban trains and a cable car that flies over the Paseo del Bosque area.
A subway under the urban area
The most resonant point of the proposal is the creation of a subway network designed to absorb the bulk of the flow of passengers that daily enters and exits the downtown area of La Plata. This system would allow fast and uninterrupted trips, decongesting the surface that today is dominated by private cars and automotive transport lines.
One of the central axes of the project is that the network crosses the areas with the highest population density. To do this, the SPAU outlined three main corridors:
- A line that would join the Train Station with the Ring Road on 1st Streetpassing through key points such as the San Martín Hospital and different faculties.
- Another branch that would run through the Diagonal 80 to Plaza Morenoto later extend towards the Cemetery.
- A third trace by below 7th avenueconnecting from Tolosa and Ringuelet to Villa Elvira, with a direct connection to the Airport.
The cost of these works could be significantly lower than expected by many sectors: the president of the SPAU, Sergio Poggi, explained that the construction of each kilometer of subway would cost 10% of the figures that are usually considered, around US$30 million.
Cable car: an aerial and ecological solution for the Forest
The vehicle collapse not only affects the shopping center, but also the university center. For the Paseo del Bosque area, where thousands of students from various UNLP faculties and the Gimnasia and Estudiantes stadiums converge, the SPAU proposes an alternative that combines efficiency with tourist attraction: a cable car.
This means of air transportation, sustainable and with low environmental impact on green spaces, would link strategic points in the area without the need to widen streets within the main lung of the city. As detailed by the entity, the investment for this system would also be accessible in terms of major infrastructure: each kilometer of cable car would be worth approximately US$10 million.
The connection with the periphery: the return of the urban train
La Plata does not end at Avenida Circunvalación, and the demographic growth of the most remote neighborhoods requires large-scale solutions. The third pillar of the SPAU plan is the reactivation and construction of branches for urban trains or modern trams.
This complementary network would function as the main link between the periphery and the subway headers, forming a truly intermodal system. By reducing the number of bus units that enter the urban area every day, a drastic reduction in noise and environmental pollution would also be achieved.
The challenge of viability
Although the diagnosis of the transportation crisis in La Plata is unanimous, the SPAU Comprehensive Plan opens a deep debate on its implementation. Works of this magnitude require a strong political decision and extraordinary financing, considering that the execution deadlines far exceed a mandate.
Meanwhile, the proposal is already on the table, with concrete numbers and defined layouts, inviting the people of La Plata to imagine a city where getting around stops being a daily headache.
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