All these streets in the center of Madrid will be closed on Saturday and Sunday: there will be two demonstrations with thousands of people.

This weekend, getting around downtown Madrid is once again going to be a difficult task. City Hall and the Transport Consortium have warned of major traffic closures on Saturday, May 24th and Sunday, May 25th due to two large demonstrations expected to bring thousands of people to the capital's busiest streets.

The first major mobilization will begin on Saturday morning. Between 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., drivers will need to be patient as there will be intermittent road closures at key locations such as Plaza de España, Gran Vía, Alcalá, Cibeles, Paseo del Prado, Neptuno, and Plaza de las Cortes .

This won't just affect private traffic: more than 30 bus lines —including heavily used routes 1, 2, 3, 5, 27, 34, 46, 146, and the Airport Express—will experience detours and delays during these hours. The Transport Consortium has already announced that bus service will be limited or modified depending on the progress of the march.

On Sunday, the situation does not improve. Starting at 12:00 noon, Madrid will host a mass demonstration in defense of public healthcare . Organized by the Neighbors of Neighborhoods and Towns of Madrid platform, it will feature the participation of thousands of citizens and the support of well-known figures such as Jesús Cintora, Javier Aroca, and Sergio Pazos .

The highlight of this protest is its format: it will depart from four different points in the city —Callao, Atocha, Doctor Marañón, and La Princesa Hospital—and converge on Plaza de Cibeles , where the main event is scheduled.

This deployment will involve extensive traffic closures for much of Sunday :

• From 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. , the area around Plaza de Cibeles will be restricted to traffic, affecting both private vehicles and public transport.
• Between 11:30 and 15:00 , there will be incidents on streets such as Tirso de Molina, Colegiata, Tintoreros, Mayor and Antón Martín .
• In addition, Gran Vía and Plaza de España will be affected again from 11:45 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. , repeating the outages already experienced on Saturday.

Buses are not spared this time either. The Consortium has confirmed that at least 20 lines will again change their routes on Sunday, including lines 001, 002, 25, 44, 75, 138, and C2.

Given this situation, the City Council recommends prioritizing the use of the Madrid Metro , which will not be affected by the closures and will maintain its usual frequency. It also recommends avoiding the use of cars for trips to the city center, especially during the designated time slots.

The Municipal Police will deploy additional officers to coordinate detours, facilitate the passage of emergency services, and guide inattentive drivers. If you have plans in the city center this weekend, it's a good idea to check the official City Hall or Transport Consortium channels in advance for updated traffic and public transportation status.