In Alcântara, the PS-led Junta de Freguesia is contesting the replacement of two parking spaces with a GIRA station with 14 docks. In neighboring Ajuda, the expansion of the bike-sharing network at the expense of car space is also generating dissent from the Junta, which is also socialist.
The Alcântara and Ajuda councils, both chaired by the PS, are against the location of two GIRA stations - one in each parish - because they were placed in parking spaces instead of pedestrian areas, for example. The two socialist councils criticize the Lisbon City Council, saying that they were not involved in these decisions.
“We don't agree with the removal of parking spaces”
Through the social networks Facebook and Instagram, the Alcântara Parish Council says that “has been gathering” with the City Council to discuss the location of GIRA stations in the parish. “From the outset, we made it clear that we don't agree with the removal of parking spaces without proper planning”, points out. “We are in favor of sustainable mobility, but we argue that it should be done with balance and respect for the needs of those who live and work in Alcântara.”
There are already two GIRA stations in Alcântara, one next to the Lisbon Congress Center and the other on Rua de Cascais, near the well-known “Alcântara junction”; both occupy former parking spaces. But the station that has now been placed on Rua Dom João de Castro, near Largo do Rio Seco, This is a different case: it's in a residential area whose buildings don't have garages, so there's a lot of parking pressure on the streets.
The GIRA station was recently installed “without any warning or consultation”, says the Junta, and it's still in the early stages of assembly, Therefore, relocating the station to a nearby location, although it would delay the process, would not be too problematic at the moment. At the moment, the station only has the foundations on which 14 docks for electric bicycles are to be built. In order to place the station, two car parking spaces have been removed, which, according to the council, are “essential for residents and traders”.
However, the location chosen for this station does not seem to be the consensus of the people heard by LPP. On the doorstep of’The Grill, A regular customer of this grill says without hesitation that he doesn't agree with the removal of the two parking spaces because it's already difficult to find a place for a car in that area. Looking at Largo do Rio Seco, where a pedestrian square was recently created, one wonders why the bicycle docks weren't installed there. This question was raised by other people heard by LPP.
However, there are those who think otherwise and argue that GIRA stations should take up space for cars, not pedestrians, and therefore agree to the removal of the two seats. Others question the placement of the GIRA in an area like Rio Seco, where there is no safe and comfortable cycling infrastructure to support the use of the GIRA there.
Expansion underway in the west
In any case, when it is up and running, this GIRA station in Rio Seco will offer those who live, work or visit this part of the city a new mobility option - alternative to the car and public transport. On the other hand, will be a strategic point for GIRA's expansion in the western part of the city. Currently concentrated on the riverside strip, the network is about to reach the Pólo Universitário da Ajuda, so a Rio Seco station will help to ensure that don't leave a complete gap between these two areas.
What is certain is that, while the installation of this station on Rua Dom João de Castro is completed or suspended, the dock bases are used for parking or quick stops. There are those who, in the daily hustle and bustle of loading and unloading, don't even notice what's on the ground and park their van on top of the future GIRA station, while unloading the fresh fish to The Grill. Others play along: “those things, are they worth anything?”, says another distributor, as if alluding to a possible side business.
Parking pressure in parishes such as Alcântara and neighboring Ajuda is notorious on the streets and sidewalks. Many sidewalks are occupied day and night by cars, which we also see stopped on curves, crosswalks and wherever there is space. Without EMEL to organize and regulate public space and parking, providing badges and creating exclusive pockets for residents, the chaos continues in these parishes, particularly in the areas furthest from the river - which are also the ones that don't have heavy public transport, and therefore rely on buses.
In Aid, the same arguments
At the Pólo Universitário da Ajuda, in the parish of that name, the placement of a GIRA station in a parking area has also outraged the local council. “In February 2024, we presented a proposal that safeguarded existing car parking spaces. To date, there has been no response to that proposal”, writes on social media. The Ajuda parish council says that it also “not involved” in the process and says that he has already requested “formally” to the Lisbon City Council for clarification on the location of a station at the University Pole, next to the ISCSP, asking for a “participatory management” of the territory “that truly responds to the needs of our population”.
At the Ajuda University Campus three GIRA stations are being set up, However, next to the ISCSP, a station with 27 docks has replaced six to eight parking spaces. Places that are only occupied by students and teachers, and which are empty at night or during school vacations. Unlike Rio Seco, here there are no houses without garages, creating parking pressure on the streets. Also unlike Rio Seco, the station criticized by the Junta da Ajuda is practically finished and the electrical installations are already underway, making any relocation practically unfeasible at this stage.
In the comments to the Ajuda Parish Council's publication, several people came out in defense of the location, saying, for example, that “There's no shortage of parking at the Polo da Ajuda”, which “the idea is to create alternatives to the car”, or that it is necessary to “balancing active modes of mobility with others, without harming pedestrians”. Always very active in its responses, the Junta clarified its position.
“We have been publicly calling for the Gira system to be implemented in Ajuda, we protested that we were the last parish to receive it and we proposed that the Boa-Hora area be included in the network, as it is a commercial area of reference”, He also said that GIRA is needed at the University Campus. “We all agree with the GIRA system, what we question is whether we shouldn't evaluate its expansion with local elected representatives and the population.”
As in Rio Seco, there is also a lack of dedicated cycling infrastructure at the Ajuda University Campus. As this campus is at the top of the parish, with Monsanto on one side and a long climb from the river on the other, access by bicycle to the campus can be difficult, especially for less experienced users. Without safe cycle lanes and traffic calming measures, the expansion of GIRA in this area could face some challenges.
In any case, the opposition of parish councils to the expansion of the GIRA network continues. After the Junta de Belém, led by the PSD, having delayed the opening of four stations for more than two years, This shows that there is widespread resistance to reducing the amount of space dedicated to cars in favor of sustainable mobility alternatives. This scenario reveals the difficulty of reconciling the interests of different political groups and the management of urban space in the city's various parishes.
