Following months of resident complaints regarding the lack of parking in Erandio, the City Council has finally provided an official response: the temporary parking areas will remain operational for at least the next three years. With this announcement, the local government aims to send a message of calm to the neighborhood, aware that these spaces, established on plots designated for future construction, have an expiration date.

In the written statement, signed by Mayor Aitziber Oliban, the Council openly acknowledges the scale of the problem and admits that parking availability is insufficient in several parts of the municipality. «95.9% of the population perceives this difficulty». However, the institutional response does not outline immediate measures to increase the overall parking supply but rather focuses on guaranteeing the continuity of the temporary surfaces in key locations such as Altzaga, Caesa, and Axpe-Udondo.

The urban transformation of these lands, where approximately 1,500 parking spaces have been created, «is not foreseen in the short term due to the complexity of administrative procedures». It is highlighted that in the case of Tartanga (the car park at the Altzaga sports center), «for now, there is no interest from any developer». On the site of the former wire and cable factory, amidst a diversity of projects, procedures, approvals, and deadlines, «the horizon is not set for less than three years». For Axpe-Udondo, «the temporal horizon is considerably longer». This also provides information on the timelines of planned urban projects, which will increase the residential offer in the town with over a thousand new homes.

In parallel, the local Executive insists on implementing the OTA (regulated parking system) as a tool to «reorganize parking and improve mobility», emphasizing that it does not seek to penalize but to «ensure a more balanced use of public space». Of all available spots, «less than half are occupied by vehicles belonging to residents», according to a recent external study delivered to the Council. This situation is exacerbated in the periphery.

The residents' reaction has been swift. The Aparcamiento Solución Coordinator, which spearheaded the complaints, believes that the municipal announcement confirms their fears. «They do not provide any comprehensive and definitive solution», they state, while warning that the situation «already exists and will worsen over time». Residents criticize that the only response is to extend temporary solutions and implement regulatory measures that «do not address the root cause of the deficit», according to spokespersons for the collective. In this regard, the platform insists that «in 3 or 4 years, the crisis will be much worse given the lack of foresight from the local government». Therefore, they announce that they will continue their mobilizations to demand a comprehensive plan, stressing that «the current announcement does not resolve uncertainty, but merely postpones it».