The future of Madrid’s street furniture is stored in Vicálvaro: it is in this district of Madrid where the Almacén de Villa warehouse is located, the place where the first benches with a new design are already being produced and will gradually be rolled out across the city.
The traditional benches will be a thing of the past, giving way to models that have been designed with “accessibility, sustainability, and aesthetics” in mind, according to the Madrid City Council. The intention is that by 2027, 90% of Madrid’s street furniture will comply with accessibility regulations, according to the delegate for Urban Planning, Borja Carabante.
Models such as the Tena bench-table exemplify this change: it allows for various seating positions and can be used by people in wheelchairs or with baby strollers, for example. Another striking feature of this new version is its color, a bright green.
This aesthetic will be shared by other models: as part of the renovation and modernization process, the local administration has opted to add color to the benches. Some of them, in fact, are already installed: a blue model has been installed throughout the area around Avenida de Asturias, a green model in Vallecas, and colorful benches have been placed in children’s areas.
El Almacén de Villa: laboratory and graveyard of urban planning at the same time
Image courtesy of: Madrid City Council
All these bench models come from the Almacén de Villa, which houses a closed warehouse where various types of street furniture are also stored, such as bollards, bicycle racks, railings, planters, pergolas, and tables. It is a kind of urban laboratory where designs are stored and tested before being put out on the streets.
If the interior is a laboratory, the exterior is like a cemetery: objects removed from public roads for various reasons are stored there, such as construction work, urban redevelopment, deterioration, or replacement with more modern models.