The renovation of the Larrabasterra roundabout, one of the main accesses to Sopela, continues without a clear completion date. The intervention, intended to alleviate traffic in the area – which has endured heavy congestion for years as the gateway to the municipality and the route connecting to Urduliz – has presented a half-finished appearance for weeks, testing the patience of many residents. What was initially planned for completion in the first half of March has become an stalled project, now facing a two-month delay and numerous uncertainties.
Fences, idle machinery, traffic diversions, and an unfinished environment are now a common sight at the junction of Urgitxieta and Gatzarriñe streets. Meanwhile, a sense of uncertainty is growing in the neighborhood. "We're nearly two months behind, and nobody is saying anything," lamented Unai Aramburu, a local resident. Others question certain decisions, such as the construction of a new wooden walkway over the Lemotza river.
"They've built a bridge when just a few meters away there's already a pedestrian crossing on the sidewalk," criticizes Asier Larrinaga. He also recalls the fate of another structure made of the same material in the municipality, which has been closed for two years due to lack of maintenance. "We'll have to see how the new crossing is maintained and hope it doesn't suffer the same fate as the one in Lizarre," he points out. Residents also lament the loss of about ten parking spaces in the area.
The City Council has now explained that the halt is due to two issues that arose during execution. The first involves the need to draft a modification to the initial project. According to their statement, technical difficulties emerged during the work, requiring a reassessment of parts of the plan and amendments to the contract in accordance with public sector law. The second issue concerns the primary sanitation network of the Bilbao Bizkaia Water Consortium. Specifically, the height of several manholes and inspection chambers affected by the work had to be adjusted. Any action on these infrastructures requires prior authorization from the entity, leading to new procedures and longer waiting times. Municipal sources assure that an annex to the safety plan for raising these manholes has been approved and they are confident in resuming work once the consortium's mandatory communication is received. However, the Executive is currently avoiding specifying a new completion date and has not clarified the final additional cost of a project that started with an initial budget of 366,226 euros.
The project includes adding a lane to facilitate vehicle exit from Urgitxieta towards Gatzarriñe without needing to enter the roundabout, as well as improving pedestrian accessibility with the walkway over the Lemotza and the removal of the existing traffic light. It is also planned to raise part of the road surface using milled asphalt to reduce car speeds and enhance pedestrian safety in this busy area. All these measures are part of the sustainable mobility study promoted by the City Council to help decongest this access to the municipality.
