The twelfth BBK Live will be held from 12 to 14 July in the Cobeta Mountain Park in Bilbao. The neighborhood association Todos indicated that the macro-event causes discomfort in the surrounding neighborhoods and jeopardizes the safety of the neighbors, and reported that in recent years the neighbors of the Altamira-Arestizabala neighborhood and the City Council have collaborated in the search for solutions. Although there is much to do, the neighbors say that there is an intention to continue working to improve the situation on the part of the City Council. With one exception, the Department of Mobility and Sustainability, headed by the Councilor of the PSE, Alfonso Gil, has shown that it does not intend to do so.

“It’s been almost a year since the first meeting where Gil promised that everything would be solved for the 2018 edition, but now that BBK Live is just a few days away, it intends to keep the same situation as in previous years, eating the promise given”, they denounce. They add that he has promised the same thing this year, but since he did not want to speak in writing, the neighbors interpret that he will not comply with what he said.

Among the collateral damage caused by the festival in nearby neighborhoods, neighbors have identified two black spots that are within Gil’s jurisdiction: Taxi stop established in the neighborhood of Altamira and the collapse of lines 28 and 58 of the Bilbobus service. As for the taxi stop, they warn that the only access to the Altamira neighborhood collapses. Regardless of the inconveniences that this causes, they have shown responsibility for the problems that would arise if there were a need for emergency services. In connection with the Bilbobus service, many residents have mentioned the problems they face in getting to their homes and the fact that buses exceed passenger capacity, which they consider dangerous.

According to the neighbors, Gil was now given viable proposals to improve the situation a year ago, even though he did not intervene. The Department of Mobility and Sustainability has said they have been working “on extensions” and denouncing the “unpleasant” treatment given to some neighbors who have tried to connect the appointments. “Even though they’ve been proposed, they don’t have the courage to come to the neighborhood and show their position, leaving people alone in the face of danger.”