GRAN VÍA

Description

Essentials about Gran Vía in brief

It is Madrid’s most famous, busiest and perhaps most magnificent street: Gran Vía. There is something going on here at any time of the day or night. A multitude of stores, bars, restaurants, cinemas and theaters attract Madrileneans and tourists alike to Gran Vía during the day and evening. No wonder this street that never sleeps is called the Spanish Broadway.

The history of Gran Vía

Gran Vía begins at the Plaza de España and runs for about 1.5 kilometers to Calle de Alcalá. The construction of this boulevard took several decades. As early as the 1860s, the first plans existed to relieve the city center with its jumble of small alleys by a new main traffic artery. After years of disputes over the exact route, it was not until 1899 that the plans of architects José López Salaberry and Francisco Octavio Palacios for the construction of Gran Vía were approved. The construction of the road required the demolition of 300 buildings and 50 streets. Accordingly, the construction of the road dragged on until 1929.

The names of Gran Vía

By the way, Gran Vía was not always called that. The street changed its name several times in the course of Spain’s eventful history. Before the Spanish Civil War, the sections of Gran Vía were named after politicians (Calle del Conde de Peñalver, Calle de Francisco Pi i Margall and Calle Eduardo Dato Iradier). During the Spanish Civil War, “revolutionary” names were in demand, so the street was renamed Avenida de Rusia and Avenida de la Unión Soviética, respectively. After the victory of the fascists, Gran Vía was renamed Avenida de José Antonio during the Franco dictatorship in honor of the founder of the fascist party. Since 1981, Gran Vía has borne its current name.