It has occurred to me that it is somewhat ironic that the Council of Mallorca can insist on "rescuing" the Sóller Tunnel (at a cost of fifteen million euros, if it's lucky) while at the same time it can sanction an event like Mallorca 312 and also be marching forward in wishing to limit traffic in parts of the island.
The "rescue" - it is always referred to as "rescate", albeit this could also mean recovery - is on behalf of the citizens, and not only those in Sóller. The citizens and their cars will be rescued from having to pay a toll that doesn't apply anywhere else and will thus be able to use all roads in Mallorca in a free and unfettered fashion. In the process, if some anxieties are confirmed, the elimination of the toll will mean that Sóller will "collapse" because of the volume of cars.
While the Council doesn't itself appear to be unduly alarmed at the prospect of Sóller collapsing, it shares concerns about collapse elsewhere. Which will be why it enabled 312 to go ahead and generate collapse - in the form of being cut-off - for several hours in places like Deià. Still, only for one day as they say: until the next time.
Fortunately, it doesn't appear that anyone in Deià was needing to be rescued while the roads were closed. Just as well really, as the fire service (Council-run) would have sent its tenders roaring along the narrow roads and eliminated good numbers of 312 participants.
Meanwhile, the other great controversy of the moment (apart from various other ones, such as the Més contracts, holiday rentals and what have you) has risen to the top of the debating agenda. Yes, it's those roads again, and specifically the ones for accessing quiet, unspoiled coves or promontories with fine views. It may not be the Council doing the closing, but denying access to non-residents in a part of Santanyi sounds very much like a reverse principle of the tunnel's rescue. The citizens will not be able to use all roads in a free and unfettered fashion, because the town hall won't let them.
If the citizens wish to get to the coves - s'Almonia and Moro - they will instead, once they get the bus operating, have to park in Santanyi's industrial estate and then pay for the shuttle. Then pay for the return trip. Hmm, it almost sounds like they'll be having to pay a toll, just as they may well have to in order to access other parts of the island in the future in addition to Es Trenc, for which they already have to pay.
While the situation with the shuttle buses in Santanyi seems to have caused little institutional fuss (apart from the slight issue of there not yet being a bus), this cannot be said for Escorca, Manacor or Valldemossa. None of the town halls have been properly consulted or informed by the Council. The mayor of Escorca, speaking about the Council's announcement that it is thinking of stopping vehicles entering Sa Calobra (and having a shuttle bus from somewhere - and "where" would be a good question), says that the Council has demonstrated "irresponsibility". It has made its announcement without any consensual agreement.
It's the same story in Valldemossa regarding access to the port, while in Manacor (for Cala Varques), the mayor says there's been no dialogue. He doesn't know where the shuttle bus would leave from or where it would drop people off.
The Council, and specifically its councillor for land, Mercedes Garrido, was going on about shuttle buses last year. Another one she was eyeing up was for the Es Comú part of the beach in Playa de Muro. At the time she mentioned this, Muro's mayor said that it was an idea worth looking into but had received no information. He's still waiting. As will be the mayor of Santa Margalida, given that Can Picafort would be a more likely location for a park and ride scheme to service the beach.
So, the Council is merrily going around, coming up with ideas for shuttle buses that town halls have no idea of and which will imply charges to citizens. At the same time, they're rescuing the tunnel. There may well be a very good need for restricting traffic in certain parts of the island, but I'm afraid the Council's logic is contrary.
Instead of announcing shuttle bus plans in a piecemeal manner, there is clearly the need for a coherent debate that involves town halls, regional government and others. There are parts of the island that cannot cope with the traffic and the numbers of people. This is becoming abundantly clear, and it isn't just because of tourists. Residents, the citizens, go to these beaches just as much if not more than tourists. Tolls by the backdoor may be the only solution, but a proper debate needs to be had.
Showing posts with label Traffic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Traffic. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 02, 2017
Tuesday, July 19, 2016
When It Rains, It's Colapso
The weather was a bit iffy last Thursday. Highs only around 23 degrees, some rain about, mostly cloudy all day. What to do, if you're a tourist? Head to the nearest hire-car agency. Look at all those cars that have been brought over from the mainland. Look at them all, many of them from agencies paying nothing in taxes. That's a story in itself. Part of the story means that these immigrant vehicles add to the "colapso", taking advantage of roads and car parks for which there are no contributions.
They love a good colapso in Mallorca. Love talking about it anyway. It has nothing to do with vino, and thank God it doesn't. All those hire cars with all those tourist drivers with little clue where they're going and their task is made more difficult by having had a glass or several. Mind you, it's enough to drive you to drink: driving when everything's colapso, as in the traffic. Logjam, standstill, collapsed: there's your colapso.
It happens all the time when there's dodgy weather. This is what you get from alternatives to sun and beach. When the sun doesn't shine, when the beaches are empty, when the poolsides have not been attacked from the earliest hour by the race to lay the towels, what is there to do? Yep, let's all go to Palma. All those with a hire car, that is; those who are prepared to splash out for one. Pity the poor economy-class all-inclusive vacationer, wandering lonely as a cloud, several clouds, thick clouds and wondering what on Earth to do. Or maybe you shouldn't pity them. That's up to you.
Of course it isn't only the all-inclusive guest who does the in-resort wandering. There are the other hotel occupants. The hire-car drivers are all in holiday rentals, the thousands upon thousands of those. That's what the regional government seems to think at any rate. Whatever accommodation the drivers have, it's always the same: head for Palma.
Someone has suggested - Javier Mato, writing in "Preferente" - that there should be information available for tourists, advising them what to do on an iffy day, warning them that if they go to Palma, they'd wish they hadn't bothered. Jam after jam, nowhere to park. It sounds a good idea, until Javier mentions that this would be information in hotels. Eh? In hotels? It would need to be in holiday rentals - legal or not - because the government says that colapso occurs because of the rentals.
Why aren't there park and ride schemes? Like with the car park that was created for just this purpose but which has since become unused, unloved and unmanaged. Why not? Because local authorities, let's them call them Palma's town hall, are useless. Too busy mucking around with closing roads in the city centre than doing something sensible like providing park and ride. There again, the turning into Antoni Maura off the Paseo Marítimo was bad enough as it was, what with being one lane, there being pedestrian crossings, buses (public and excursion) blocking the way and traffic lights that gave no more than thirty seconds of green.
What would make things really ducky would be for an iffy day to coincide with twenty odd thousand cruise passengers traipsing around the city. Colapso? You bet it would and would include the loos. The system couldn't take all the bar bogs being flushed at one go by the cruise passengers and the hire-car occupants, stuck in jams for hours, haring to the nearest bar to relieve themselves.
Why not take a bus instead? Or the train? Are you kidding? Ever tried getting on a bus to Palma on a good day let alone a bad one? You might succeed, but then there's the getting back as well. The train? What train, if you are in Pollensa, Alcudia, Cala Ratjada, Cala Millor, Cala d'Or, Colonia Sant Jordi, Magalluf, Andratx?
Why go to Palma at all? What about other parts of the paradise island? Fancy Soller? Not by car you shouldn't. The train? A good alternative, if there were space. Large (largish) towns like Inca? Why would anyone want to go to Inca? Actually, there are some interesting parts and it has what seems to be the main reason to want to go to Palma - shopping, though not on anything like the same scale admittedly.
How about mooching around the small towns and villages? Petra, Sant Joan, Lloret and many others? Well, how about it? Does it cross anyone's mind to do this? It should do. You never know, you might be surprised by what you find. Mallorca.
Overwhelmingly though, the choice will be Palma, which will be overwhelmed to a greater degree than it constantly appears to be. Mallorca is geared to two things - sun and beach. Take them away, if only temporarily, and there's colapso.
They love a good colapso in Mallorca. Love talking about it anyway. It has nothing to do with vino, and thank God it doesn't. All those hire cars with all those tourist drivers with little clue where they're going and their task is made more difficult by having had a glass or several. Mind you, it's enough to drive you to drink: driving when everything's colapso, as in the traffic. Logjam, standstill, collapsed: there's your colapso.
It happens all the time when there's dodgy weather. This is what you get from alternatives to sun and beach. When the sun doesn't shine, when the beaches are empty, when the poolsides have not been attacked from the earliest hour by the race to lay the towels, what is there to do? Yep, let's all go to Palma. All those with a hire car, that is; those who are prepared to splash out for one. Pity the poor economy-class all-inclusive vacationer, wandering lonely as a cloud, several clouds, thick clouds and wondering what on Earth to do. Or maybe you shouldn't pity them. That's up to you.
Of course it isn't only the all-inclusive guest who does the in-resort wandering. There are the other hotel occupants. The hire-car drivers are all in holiday rentals, the thousands upon thousands of those. That's what the regional government seems to think at any rate. Whatever accommodation the drivers have, it's always the same: head for Palma.
Someone has suggested - Javier Mato, writing in "Preferente" - that there should be information available for tourists, advising them what to do on an iffy day, warning them that if they go to Palma, they'd wish they hadn't bothered. Jam after jam, nowhere to park. It sounds a good idea, until Javier mentions that this would be information in hotels. Eh? In hotels? It would need to be in holiday rentals - legal or not - because the government says that colapso occurs because of the rentals.
Why aren't there park and ride schemes? Like with the car park that was created for just this purpose but which has since become unused, unloved and unmanaged. Why not? Because local authorities, let's them call them Palma's town hall, are useless. Too busy mucking around with closing roads in the city centre than doing something sensible like providing park and ride. There again, the turning into Antoni Maura off the Paseo Marítimo was bad enough as it was, what with being one lane, there being pedestrian crossings, buses (public and excursion) blocking the way and traffic lights that gave no more than thirty seconds of green.
What would make things really ducky would be for an iffy day to coincide with twenty odd thousand cruise passengers traipsing around the city. Colapso? You bet it would and would include the loos. The system couldn't take all the bar bogs being flushed at one go by the cruise passengers and the hire-car occupants, stuck in jams for hours, haring to the nearest bar to relieve themselves.
Why not take a bus instead? Or the train? Are you kidding? Ever tried getting on a bus to Palma on a good day let alone a bad one? You might succeed, but then there's the getting back as well. The train? What train, if you are in Pollensa, Alcudia, Cala Ratjada, Cala Millor, Cala d'Or, Colonia Sant Jordi, Magalluf, Andratx?
Why go to Palma at all? What about other parts of the paradise island? Fancy Soller? Not by car you shouldn't. The train? A good alternative, if there were space. Large (largish) towns like Inca? Why would anyone want to go to Inca? Actually, there are some interesting parts and it has what seems to be the main reason to want to go to Palma - shopping, though not on anything like the same scale admittedly.
How about mooching around the small towns and villages? Petra, Sant Joan, Lloret and many others? Well, how about it? Does it cross anyone's mind to do this? It should do. You never know, you might be surprised by what you find. Mallorca.
Overwhelmingly though, the choice will be Palma, which will be overwhelmed to a greater degree than it constantly appears to be. Mallorca is geared to two things - sun and beach. Take them away, if only temporarily, and there's colapso.
Saturday, March 26, 2016
A Traffic System That's Taken Fifty Years
As Puerto Pollensa's first phase of semi-pedestrianisation heads towards completion - hopefully by 4 May, and yes, there is another phase to come, so be warned - thoughts naturally turn to the traffic system. Well, you would think that the two would be considered together, which they probably have been, but only now has the master plan been unveiled, insofar as it represents anything that hadn't already been said.
They've been talking about the traffic system for as long as they have pedestrianisation, so the two have formed part of the same package and have done so ever since the late 1960s: things move slowly here, we know that. Rather more recently - late 2008 - there was to have been a grand "mobility" plan (i.e. traffic plan) for Puerto Pollensa. The then mayor, Joan Cerdà, said so. And it was to be agreed through "general consensus", something that was seemingly absent when Joan had gone full steam ahead with the original pedestrianisation plan and its lamentable pilot scheme (abandoned after a few weeks).
The mobility plan, the impression was given, was to have been one for the whole of Puerto Pollensa, which sounded reasonable enough. Some time later, still during Joan's reign, a plan was being cobbled together. If I remember rightly, it was the work of a relative (son, nephew or someone or other) of the then town hall delegate for Puerto Pollensa. Questions were asked, as you might have expected. We heard very little more.
And so now to the consultancy company which has apparently been working on mobility since April 2013. Its plan is? Well, basically what we knew. Two-way traffic as far the Llenaire avenue coming from Alcudia and then one-way into the port and up to the yacht club roundabout. (The plan refers to the Plaça Enginyer Gabriel Roca, of which no one has heard but which may or may not be in front of 1919. Who can say for sure? So-called squares with names pop up in every town without anyone having the slightest idea where they are.)
What more do we learn? There will be a speed limit of 40kph coming into Puerto Pollensa as far as the Llenaire avenue, then it'll become 30kph as far as the Paris avenue and then it'll be 20kph up to the Plaça Enginyer Gabriel Roca (let's stick to the yacht club roundabout).
And that is pretty much it. A fine recipe for speeding tickets quite possibly, but within the plan there is very little about parking. It will be on one side of the coast semi-pedestrianised road up to the Paris avenue (which we also knew). But where else will cars park? It still sounds like a flaw in the whole scheme, if parking is pushed further and further from the beach.
They've been talking about the traffic system for as long as they have pedestrianisation, so the two have formed part of the same package and have done so ever since the late 1960s: things move slowly here, we know that. Rather more recently - late 2008 - there was to have been a grand "mobility" plan (i.e. traffic plan) for Puerto Pollensa. The then mayor, Joan Cerdà, said so. And it was to be agreed through "general consensus", something that was seemingly absent when Joan had gone full steam ahead with the original pedestrianisation plan and its lamentable pilot scheme (abandoned after a few weeks).
The mobility plan, the impression was given, was to have been one for the whole of Puerto Pollensa, which sounded reasonable enough. Some time later, still during Joan's reign, a plan was being cobbled together. If I remember rightly, it was the work of a relative (son, nephew or someone or other) of the then town hall delegate for Puerto Pollensa. Questions were asked, as you might have expected. We heard very little more.
And so now to the consultancy company which has apparently been working on mobility since April 2013. Its plan is? Well, basically what we knew. Two-way traffic as far the Llenaire avenue coming from Alcudia and then one-way into the port and up to the yacht club roundabout. (The plan refers to the Plaça Enginyer Gabriel Roca, of which no one has heard but which may or may not be in front of 1919. Who can say for sure? So-called squares with names pop up in every town without anyone having the slightest idea where they are.)
What more do we learn? There will be a speed limit of 40kph coming into Puerto Pollensa as far as the Llenaire avenue, then it'll become 30kph as far as the Paris avenue and then it'll be 20kph up to the Plaça Enginyer Gabriel Roca (let's stick to the yacht club roundabout).
And that is pretty much it. A fine recipe for speeding tickets quite possibly, but within the plan there is very little about parking. It will be on one side of the coast semi-pedestrianised road up to the Paris avenue (which we also knew). But where else will cars park? It still sounds like a flaw in the whole scheme, if parking is pushed further and further from the beach.
Saturday, August 15, 2015
The Perfect Storm Of August
Might this August mark a watershed in Mallorcan and Balearic tourism? Within the context of the political change in spring, various factors are colliding, producing a perfect storm of tourism dynamics which might go beyond this weekend's anticipated storm and produce responses to more than simply the collapse of the road network caused by tourists seeking an alternative to the beach on account of poor weather.
In fact, the roads, especially in and around Palma when the weather is less than benign, have already provoked tourism minister and vice-president, Biel Barceló, into declaring that saturation point has been reached and surpassed. Palma struggles to cope when the clouds gather: its roads clogged, its car parks full to overflowing. Why are there so many tourists? Many are the factors, but always taking some into account, such as instability in parts of the Mediterranean, there is one which, more than others, is being singled out: private holiday accommodation.
It will be some months before they release the figure for the day in the middle of this month when Mallorca and the Balearics reached their highest level of human occupation, but when it comes, it will surely be higher than ever before. It may even be substantially higher. Aptur, which is the association that defends the rights of the private owner to rent out his or her accommodation to tourists, is not blind to the problems that the internet has caused. It is speaking of a "bubble" which it believes will burst because of the rotten quality of some of the accommodation, thus fuelling the arguments of the hoteliers that the private apartment is not up to scratch in all manner of ways. This is a fallacious argument because there is plenty of high-quality accommodation, but it is also correct, and Aptur accepts that it is.
The association is pressing the case, therefore, for legislation to get to grips with this private supply, to finally introduce a system of properly regulated accommodation with standards to be attained and maintained. It is the pragmatic approach that the previous government simply refused to recognise the need for, preferring to outlaw all apartments rather than bring them into line with a system of standards akin to the keys' categorisation for the hotelier-owned tourist apartments.
The trouble is, of course, that even with regulation the bubble might well keep growing in its illegitimate fashion. Reservations via web portals for Spanish destinations are up on average by 40% this summer. These include perfectly legitimate accommodation, but they also have much which isn't. As Catalonia has discovered, regulation can bring success in one way - by enforcing standards and by also boosting tourist tax revenue - but it doesn't eliminate the problem of the illegal supply, despite the swingeing nature of sanctions. Governments can say all they like about cracking down, but they - their tax and tourism agencies - are massively under-resourced.
Nevertheless, the need for regulation in the Balearics is urgent. Barceló, minded to be permissive towards the private accommodation sector, is an environmentalist at heart, as is his party, Més. He wants a brake applied to the number of tourists, so any regulation would need to be carefully drafted in order to still allow good accommodation to be made fully legitimate. But brake there surely has to be, and the perfect storm of this August is increasing the urgency.
In a different respect, all-inclusives, something else seems to be happening. It is never perhaps wise to cite Magalluf as a benchmark but if, as is being reported, some all-inclusives there have been knocking in occupancy levels substantially lower than those for other types of board, is the consumer worm finally turning? It was always going to be the case, regulation again notwithstanding, that the consumer would decide. A problem in Magalluf is knowing what type of market is leading to the lower AI occupancy. If it is family, then the worm might indeed be moving in a different direction. Ot is it a case of the family having been deterred by negative publicity?
Meanwhile, Menorca has added its voice to the saturation argument. Formentera already has but can seemingly do little to prevent its small size being flooded by tourists. In Menorca, the threshold of human pressure that it can withstand and keep within the boundaries of its status as a biosphere reserve is likely to be exceeded this month. Wherever one looks around the Balearics, the message is much the same: there are just too many people.
There is another factor contributing to the perfect storm: attitudes of residents. For too long overlooked, they have played a part in Alcúdia and Capdepera addressing the type of tourism they receive on occasion, while in Playa de Palma, residents have had enough. Noise, filth, crime, anti-social behaviour and a consequent inability to relax or sleep are pushing tensions high. They are similar in a way to what led Barcelona to come down so heavily in La Barceloneta. When mayor José Hila speaks of a cleaner Palma, he has to take into account that Palma means more than just the old centre and the neighbourhoods.
It is understood, quite clearly understood, that Mallorca lives by its tourism. But it is tourism which should be on Mallorca's terms, not those of others. It is for Mallorca to decide on the balance of its accommodation, not websites, not tour operators. The overwhelming majority of the island's visitors are respectful. And this majority needs to be cared for properly. The perfect storm has arrived: kick out the dross of the minority, kick out the rotten accommodation, kick out the poor quality end of the all-inclusive market. And keep the traffic moving.
In fact, the roads, especially in and around Palma when the weather is less than benign, have already provoked tourism minister and vice-president, Biel Barceló, into declaring that saturation point has been reached and surpassed. Palma struggles to cope when the clouds gather: its roads clogged, its car parks full to overflowing. Why are there so many tourists? Many are the factors, but always taking some into account, such as instability in parts of the Mediterranean, there is one which, more than others, is being singled out: private holiday accommodation.
It will be some months before they release the figure for the day in the middle of this month when Mallorca and the Balearics reached their highest level of human occupation, but when it comes, it will surely be higher than ever before. It may even be substantially higher. Aptur, which is the association that defends the rights of the private owner to rent out his or her accommodation to tourists, is not blind to the problems that the internet has caused. It is speaking of a "bubble" which it believes will burst because of the rotten quality of some of the accommodation, thus fuelling the arguments of the hoteliers that the private apartment is not up to scratch in all manner of ways. This is a fallacious argument because there is plenty of high-quality accommodation, but it is also correct, and Aptur accepts that it is.
The association is pressing the case, therefore, for legislation to get to grips with this private supply, to finally introduce a system of properly regulated accommodation with standards to be attained and maintained. It is the pragmatic approach that the previous government simply refused to recognise the need for, preferring to outlaw all apartments rather than bring them into line with a system of standards akin to the keys' categorisation for the hotelier-owned tourist apartments.
The trouble is, of course, that even with regulation the bubble might well keep growing in its illegitimate fashion. Reservations via web portals for Spanish destinations are up on average by 40% this summer. These include perfectly legitimate accommodation, but they also have much which isn't. As Catalonia has discovered, regulation can bring success in one way - by enforcing standards and by also boosting tourist tax revenue - but it doesn't eliminate the problem of the illegal supply, despite the swingeing nature of sanctions. Governments can say all they like about cracking down, but they - their tax and tourism agencies - are massively under-resourced.
Nevertheless, the need for regulation in the Balearics is urgent. Barceló, minded to be permissive towards the private accommodation sector, is an environmentalist at heart, as is his party, Més. He wants a brake applied to the number of tourists, so any regulation would need to be carefully drafted in order to still allow good accommodation to be made fully legitimate. But brake there surely has to be, and the perfect storm of this August is increasing the urgency.
In a different respect, all-inclusives, something else seems to be happening. It is never perhaps wise to cite Magalluf as a benchmark but if, as is being reported, some all-inclusives there have been knocking in occupancy levels substantially lower than those for other types of board, is the consumer worm finally turning? It was always going to be the case, regulation again notwithstanding, that the consumer would decide. A problem in Magalluf is knowing what type of market is leading to the lower AI occupancy. If it is family, then the worm might indeed be moving in a different direction. Ot is it a case of the family having been deterred by negative publicity?
Meanwhile, Menorca has added its voice to the saturation argument. Formentera already has but can seemingly do little to prevent its small size being flooded by tourists. In Menorca, the threshold of human pressure that it can withstand and keep within the boundaries of its status as a biosphere reserve is likely to be exceeded this month. Wherever one looks around the Balearics, the message is much the same: there are just too many people.
There is another factor contributing to the perfect storm: attitudes of residents. For too long overlooked, they have played a part in Alcúdia and Capdepera addressing the type of tourism they receive on occasion, while in Playa de Palma, residents have had enough. Noise, filth, crime, anti-social behaviour and a consequent inability to relax or sleep are pushing tensions high. They are similar in a way to what led Barcelona to come down so heavily in La Barceloneta. When mayor José Hila speaks of a cleaner Palma, he has to take into account that Palma means more than just the old centre and the neighbourhoods.
It is understood, quite clearly understood, that Mallorca lives by its tourism. But it is tourism which should be on Mallorca's terms, not those of others. It is for Mallorca to decide on the balance of its accommodation, not websites, not tour operators. The overwhelming majority of the island's visitors are respectful. And this majority needs to be cared for properly. The perfect storm has arrived: kick out the dross of the minority, kick out the rotten accommodation, kick out the poor quality end of the all-inclusive market. And keep the traffic moving.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
At Your Inconvenience: Alcúdia's Ironman
When the staging of the first Ironman triathlon in Puerto Alcúdia was announced, it was said that the event would bring various benefits. Among these would be the promotion of Alcúdia as a sports tourism destination, a means of giving a boost to low-season tourism and the generation of revenues for local businesses thanks to all the participants, helpers, exhibitors and visitors.
The first event, in 2011, came, and it was very much a novelty. There hadn't been an event of such a scale before. 3,000 participants, 1,500 helpers, 20,000 visitors. Of these figures, the one that stood out was for the visitors. It stood out because it was both hard to believe that there would be this number and who they might have been. If they were from other parts of the island, then they would have the devil's own job getting into Puerto Alcúdia on the day; the roads were mostly closed. Three events on, and the novelty has now started to wear off. Questions are being asked.
There are unquestionably benefits from the Ironman event. It may indeed help to put Alcúdia more on a sports-tourism map and it does produce business in the early weeks of the tourism season that would otherwise not be produced. There are the doubters who say that triathletes, rather like cyclists, are of little value to businesses (these being bars and restaurants). They are too damn healthy to be chucking volumes of beer or beef down their necks. Not so. As with cyclists, there are triathletes who are quite capable of indulging themselves.
The business generated by Ironman is spread around; it isn't only Alcúdia which benefits from hotel guests or from consumers in restaurants and shops. There are also training camps, not necessarily directly linked to the Alcúdia event, but which are offered in the weeks before the event. Local hotels are the base for these camps. But business which really can benefit, other than hotels, is that in the port area. As ever, the spoils of events are gained by the port or the old town; never by other parts of Alcúdia, such as the main tourist centre. For those who don't benefit and even for those who do, but who face the challenge of disruption, the inconvenience of Ironman has now become more than just a little tiresome.
Closing a main road into the port for a whole week is far more than just a bit of an annoyance. Despite it only being early season, it is still season. And that means that there are an awful lot more people and a lot more vehicles than when it isn't season. The tailbacks have now become a major headache. Someone, somewhere can probably put a number to the benefits of Ironman, but can someone, somewhere put a number to its downsides?
Putting up with road closures for a day is something that can be accepted, but when one road closure creates the chaos that it has for as long as it has, then it is right that questions are being asked. The inconvenience manifests itself in different ways. For bars and restaurants, as an example, they can suffer because deliveries cannot be effected. Or because they are delayed considerably. And for all the claims of benefits to tourism, what about ordinary tourists?
Because of the problems with getting into Puerto Alcúdia, especially on the day of the event, what do you suppose happens to tourists who might be coming or going? Saturday is, after all, a fairly heavy change-round day. One thing that happens is that tourists can be expected to have to get off transfer coaches and then make their own way. Not just across a road but a considerable distance. These are tourists with luggage. Those who may have small children. Those who have been up since early in the morning.
It isn't only tourists in Puerto Alcúdia. In Puerto Pollensa, where involvement in Ironman is only minimal because the cycling leg passes through it, tourists have been told that they would have to leave for the airport seven hours before their flights. Seven hours!
There seems to be precious little concern being shown for those who are affected by Ironman. Alcúdia town hall will doubtless reiterate the benefits, declare the event a great success and look forward to next year's. But the town hall's credibility is taking a heavy knock. The laying of the blue asphalt over the stones on the beach path (used for the running stage) has been met with what has bordered on outrage. There is no other reason for the blue path, so most people believe, other than to meet demands of Ironman. The town hall claim differently, but this just compounds the degree to which its credibility is being shaken. It is surely no coincidence that a blue path along the beach, one that will be filmed and look nice for certain promotions (by Ironman), looks very similar to the blue matting for the triathlon transition area. Colour co-ordination.
Ironman may well bring benefits, but pandering to its every need and wish and the thumbing of the nose to those who are put out is not what might have been expected three years ago. The event needs re-thinking.
Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.
The first event, in 2011, came, and it was very much a novelty. There hadn't been an event of such a scale before. 3,000 participants, 1,500 helpers, 20,000 visitors. Of these figures, the one that stood out was for the visitors. It stood out because it was both hard to believe that there would be this number and who they might have been. If they were from other parts of the island, then they would have the devil's own job getting into Puerto Alcúdia on the day; the roads were mostly closed. Three events on, and the novelty has now started to wear off. Questions are being asked.
There are unquestionably benefits from the Ironman event. It may indeed help to put Alcúdia more on a sports-tourism map and it does produce business in the early weeks of the tourism season that would otherwise not be produced. There are the doubters who say that triathletes, rather like cyclists, are of little value to businesses (these being bars and restaurants). They are too damn healthy to be chucking volumes of beer or beef down their necks. Not so. As with cyclists, there are triathletes who are quite capable of indulging themselves.
The business generated by Ironman is spread around; it isn't only Alcúdia which benefits from hotel guests or from consumers in restaurants and shops. There are also training camps, not necessarily directly linked to the Alcúdia event, but which are offered in the weeks before the event. Local hotels are the base for these camps. But business which really can benefit, other than hotels, is that in the port area. As ever, the spoils of events are gained by the port or the old town; never by other parts of Alcúdia, such as the main tourist centre. For those who don't benefit and even for those who do, but who face the challenge of disruption, the inconvenience of Ironman has now become more than just a little tiresome.
Closing a main road into the port for a whole week is far more than just a bit of an annoyance. Despite it only being early season, it is still season. And that means that there are an awful lot more people and a lot more vehicles than when it isn't season. The tailbacks have now become a major headache. Someone, somewhere can probably put a number to the benefits of Ironman, but can someone, somewhere put a number to its downsides?
Putting up with road closures for a day is something that can be accepted, but when one road closure creates the chaos that it has for as long as it has, then it is right that questions are being asked. The inconvenience manifests itself in different ways. For bars and restaurants, as an example, they can suffer because deliveries cannot be effected. Or because they are delayed considerably. And for all the claims of benefits to tourism, what about ordinary tourists?
Because of the problems with getting into Puerto Alcúdia, especially on the day of the event, what do you suppose happens to tourists who might be coming or going? Saturday is, after all, a fairly heavy change-round day. One thing that happens is that tourists can be expected to have to get off transfer coaches and then make their own way. Not just across a road but a considerable distance. These are tourists with luggage. Those who may have small children. Those who have been up since early in the morning.
It isn't only tourists in Puerto Alcúdia. In Puerto Pollensa, where involvement in Ironman is only minimal because the cycling leg passes through it, tourists have been told that they would have to leave for the airport seven hours before their flights. Seven hours!
There seems to be precious little concern being shown for those who are affected by Ironman. Alcúdia town hall will doubtless reiterate the benefits, declare the event a great success and look forward to next year's. But the town hall's credibility is taking a heavy knock. The laying of the blue asphalt over the stones on the beach path (used for the running stage) has been met with what has bordered on outrage. There is no other reason for the blue path, so most people believe, other than to meet demands of Ironman. The town hall claim differently, but this just compounds the degree to which its credibility is being shaken. It is surely no coincidence that a blue path along the beach, one that will be filmed and look nice for certain promotions (by Ironman), looks very similar to the blue matting for the triathlon transition area. Colour co-ordination.
Ironman may well bring benefits, but pandering to its every need and wish and the thumbing of the nose to those who are put out is not what might have been expected three years ago. The event needs re-thinking.
Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
The Long And Whining Road
Is there a campaign of sending a barrage of letters to "The Bulletin" in protest at the pedestrianisation in Puerto Pollensa? If so, one wonders whether it will do much good, unless, that is, "The Bulletin" were to join with the good people of Gotmar and Pinaret in storming the Calvari steps and the town hall's defences and proclaiming a people's revolution of the non-pedestrian. Perhaps Gotmar should declare independence. What a splendid wheeze that would be.
Following a lengthy epistle from Garry Bonsall to the editorial in-tray, yesterday there was a further expression of objection to the pedestrianisation scheme. Among other things, it invokes European law in respect of both consultation and the environment in arguing against. Ah yes, consultation and the environment. Gone are the good old days when a road could be laid with nary a word in the ear of the local peasant as he saw his small holding flattened; gone are the days when a more wealthy inhabitant with a peseta or two to his name could go out to work one day and come home to find a demolition ball hammering into his living room. Gone also are the days when a whole ocean of tarmac and concrete could be deposited on virgin land, burying endangered flora and fauna in the process. It didn't matter because there were always some more somewhere else until they too were bulldozed into oblivion.
You might think that citing the law, albeit European law, was a reasonable line of defence, but law here is a matter of some considerable alternative interpretation, be it European or Spanish. Just to refer back to the driving-licence malarkey. Not only did I speak to my gestor, I also spoke to my lawyer. He told me his Hungarian girlfriend is still driving around with a Hungarian licence; first he'd heard of the need to change it to a Spanish one. What chance is there for the rest of us or for the protesting cadre of Gotmar?
The pedestrianisation fiasco is now a cause célèbre in Puerto Pollensa. Little though I understand the point of it, the new road's very existence has to be the main impetus behind it. But the Elcano-Paris compromise, as I referred to before, nullifies this to a large extent. I'm now no longer sure what the objection is, other than a still-simmering objection to the new road having carved its way through the quiet enclaves of Gotmar and Pinaret and an increase in traffic along the Avenida Paris. And as for that new road, don't let's forget that a plan for it was first set out as long ago as 1967; it's not as if there was no forewarning.
Maybe though a once-and-for-all physical pedestrianisation would form part of the town hall's annual job-creation scheme in winter, whereby roads are ripped up, huge holes are made and eventually get filled in. If so, it's not as if there aren't other such schemes that could be contemplated, such as tackling the state of those roads that are not - yet - subject to pedestrianisation; like, well, all of them in Puerto Pollensa. However, one should not lose sight of the fact that the compromise is itself still only a trial.
I am sympathetic to those living in Pinaret (and the compromise appears to affect them and not Gotmar residents) and to anyone else who fails to see the sense of the pedestrianisation. But there is one point, and that is that this has been on the cards for a number of years. That it may have finally come about with a lack of full consultation is one thing, but one wonders whether some proactive lobbying against the idea might not have been adopted in the past to prevent it ever having come about. The protests, however, can be seen in a wider context of concerns at the way the town hall appears to ride roughshod over people's wishes and their neighbourhoods. Nevertheless, I would challenge anyone to say that the status quo of the road infrastructure in the town could have been allowed to, and be allowed to remain. The resort simply can't cope, and it hasn't been able to for years.
And so to different roads, the side roads that are to be found the length of the Carretera Artà from Puerto Alcúdia to Can Picafort. Note the word "roads"; it is not unimportant. When the weather is as rubbish as it is at the moment, the poor old tourist is left with little else to do than wander along these side roads in a daze of disappointment as another shower breaks out. They are also prone to a drenching as some mobile dance club throbs by at great speed and splashes them with a tsunami of disturbed puddle. But bear in mind again that word "roads". These side roads are, surprising it may be to those of a pedestrian inclination, not pavements. Unlike some, I do not take these roads as though I were hacking along the Mulsanne Straight. I take them sedately, I don't even hit the horn as I know I am likely to be accused of manslaughter because of the heart attack it will cause. I just wait for the pedestrians of these non-pedestrianised "roads" to become aware that there's a whacking great bit of steel in motion nearly touching their rear ends. Yesterday, going along the side road past the Eden Alcúdia, there was a youth in the middle of the road with his back to me. His t-shirt bore the legend "The Miracle Boy". What if I were to put my foot down? I was sorely tempted, believe me. Thus, we would both have discovered if he truly was a miracle boy or indeed the miracle boy.
QUIZ
Yesterday's title - "Creep", Radiohead (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxpblnsJEWM). Today's title - "whining" is harsh, but it fits as a variant on this.
(PLEASE REPLY TO andrew@thealcudiaguide.com AND NOT VIA THE COMMENTS THINGY HERE.)
Following a lengthy epistle from Garry Bonsall to the editorial in-tray, yesterday there was a further expression of objection to the pedestrianisation scheme. Among other things, it invokes European law in respect of both consultation and the environment in arguing against. Ah yes, consultation and the environment. Gone are the good old days when a road could be laid with nary a word in the ear of the local peasant as he saw his small holding flattened; gone are the days when a more wealthy inhabitant with a peseta or two to his name could go out to work one day and come home to find a demolition ball hammering into his living room. Gone also are the days when a whole ocean of tarmac and concrete could be deposited on virgin land, burying endangered flora and fauna in the process. It didn't matter because there were always some more somewhere else until they too were bulldozed into oblivion.
You might think that citing the law, albeit European law, was a reasonable line of defence, but law here is a matter of some considerable alternative interpretation, be it European or Spanish. Just to refer back to the driving-licence malarkey. Not only did I speak to my gestor, I also spoke to my lawyer. He told me his Hungarian girlfriend is still driving around with a Hungarian licence; first he'd heard of the need to change it to a Spanish one. What chance is there for the rest of us or for the protesting cadre of Gotmar?
The pedestrianisation fiasco is now a cause célèbre in Puerto Pollensa. Little though I understand the point of it, the new road's very existence has to be the main impetus behind it. But the Elcano-Paris compromise, as I referred to before, nullifies this to a large extent. I'm now no longer sure what the objection is, other than a still-simmering objection to the new road having carved its way through the quiet enclaves of Gotmar and Pinaret and an increase in traffic along the Avenida Paris. And as for that new road, don't let's forget that a plan for it was first set out as long ago as 1967; it's not as if there was no forewarning.
Maybe though a once-and-for-all physical pedestrianisation would form part of the town hall's annual job-creation scheme in winter, whereby roads are ripped up, huge holes are made and eventually get filled in. If so, it's not as if there aren't other such schemes that could be contemplated, such as tackling the state of those roads that are not - yet - subject to pedestrianisation; like, well, all of them in Puerto Pollensa. However, one should not lose sight of the fact that the compromise is itself still only a trial.
I am sympathetic to those living in Pinaret (and the compromise appears to affect them and not Gotmar residents) and to anyone else who fails to see the sense of the pedestrianisation. But there is one point, and that is that this has been on the cards for a number of years. That it may have finally come about with a lack of full consultation is one thing, but one wonders whether some proactive lobbying against the idea might not have been adopted in the past to prevent it ever having come about. The protests, however, can be seen in a wider context of concerns at the way the town hall appears to ride roughshod over people's wishes and their neighbourhoods. Nevertheless, I would challenge anyone to say that the status quo of the road infrastructure in the town could have been allowed to, and be allowed to remain. The resort simply can't cope, and it hasn't been able to for years.
And so to different roads, the side roads that are to be found the length of the Carretera Artà from Puerto Alcúdia to Can Picafort. Note the word "roads"; it is not unimportant. When the weather is as rubbish as it is at the moment, the poor old tourist is left with little else to do than wander along these side roads in a daze of disappointment as another shower breaks out. They are also prone to a drenching as some mobile dance club throbs by at great speed and splashes them with a tsunami of disturbed puddle. But bear in mind again that word "roads". These side roads are, surprising it may be to those of a pedestrian inclination, not pavements. Unlike some, I do not take these roads as though I were hacking along the Mulsanne Straight. I take them sedately, I don't even hit the horn as I know I am likely to be accused of manslaughter because of the heart attack it will cause. I just wait for the pedestrians of these non-pedestrianised "roads" to become aware that there's a whacking great bit of steel in motion nearly touching their rear ends. Yesterday, going along the side road past the Eden Alcúdia, there was a youth in the middle of the road with his back to me. His t-shirt bore the legend "The Miracle Boy". What if I were to put my foot down? I was sorely tempted, believe me. Thus, we would both have discovered if he truly was a miracle boy or indeed the miracle boy.
QUIZ
Yesterday's title - "Creep", Radiohead (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxpblnsJEWM). Today's title - "whining" is harsh, but it fits as a variant on this.
(PLEASE REPLY TO andrew@thealcudiaguide.com AND NOT VIA THE COMMENTS THINGY HERE.)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)