{"id":875824,"date":"2026-09-01T05:00:12","date_gmt":"2026-09-01T05:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/875824\/"},"modified":"2026-09-01T05:00:12","modified_gmt":"2026-09-01T05:00:12","slug":"madrid-residents-brace-for-noise-and-disruption-from-new-f1-circuit-spain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/875824\/","title":{"rendered":"Madrid residents brace for noise and disruption from new F1 circuit | Spain"},"content":{"rendered":"

Opponents of Madrid\u2019s newly constructed Formula One circuit have accused the regional authorities of putting profit before people\u2019s wellbeing after tests for the inaugural Spanish Grand Prix at the track<\/a> later this month yielded noise levels that were almost twice the legal decibel limit.<\/p>\n

The regional government of Madrid and the city council are hoping that the 5.4km-long (3.3 miles) Madring circuit \u2013 which has been built in the north-east of the Spanish capital at a cost of \u20ac83m (\u00a371m) \u2013 will attract visitors, boost the local economy and put the city firmly on the motor racing map. The Madring bills itself as \u201ca perfectly connected circuit: just 20 minutes from the city centre\u201d.<\/p>\n

But recent track tests using Formula Three cars have worried local people who are taking legal action over the construction of the circuit and the noise it is expected to generate. The Stop F1 Madrid platform, which was formed a year ago, said neighbours had recorded average noise levels of 102.7 decibels during the tests, with peaks of between 107.7 and 109.1 decibels. The maximum noise level permitted in residential areas is 55 decibels.<\/p>\n

Those opposed to the Madring being built say its construction will add to the urban heat island effect during the summer. Photograph: Aaron Heredia\/NurPhoto\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not just about the dust and the noise,\u201d said Antonio Ib\u00e1\u00f1ez, a spokesperson. He said there had been complaints from people who argued it was impossible for them to work remotely during the tests, adding: \u201cWe\u2019ve also spoken to people who have children with autism and they had to get them out of the area because of [all the distress].\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the group\u2019s biggest worries is the huge numbers of people expected to descend on the area for the grand prix itself, putting an enormous strain on public transport and the local area. \u201cAn urban Formula One<\/a> circuit is just a bad idea,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a nonsense idea.\u201d<\/p>\n

Regional and city authorities have sought to reassure residents and are attempting to stress the economic benefits of the track. Borja Carabante, Madrid\u2019s city councillor for urban planning, mobility and the environment, said measures, such as acoustic panels, would be put in place to minimise noise during the grand prix on 11-13 September.<\/p>\n

He also said that the Formula Three cars used to test the track \u201cmake and emit more noise than Formula One cars, so there\u2019ll be less noise on 13 September than there was during the tests\u201d.<\/p>\n

Carabante said the city council would work to ensure traffic disruption was kept to a minimum. But he called on the people of Madrid to celebrate the arrival of Formula One in the city: \u201cWe should be congratulating ourselves that Madrid is hosting such an important and significant event that will put us at the epicentre of great sporting events. It\u2019s amazing news for all the people of Madrid and it\u2019s putting Madrid on the map.\u201d<\/p>\n

The regional minister for housing, transport, and infrastructure, Jorge Rodrigo, said the event would be of huge economic benefit for Madrid, and well worth one weekend\u2019s disruption. \u201cIt\u2019s worth a little bit of sacrifice from all of us \u2026 given the profitability of this event for the Madrid region and the city of Madrid, and, above all, given how it\u2019ll position us internationally.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Spanish Grand Prix will take place at the Madring for the first time later this month. Photograph: Aaron Heredia\/NurPhoto\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the Madring said it was taking \u201call measures within our reach to minimise the disruption caused by the construction work and the event\u201d, adding: \u201cProtecting the wellbeing of local residents and reducing the environmental impact are a priority for the organisers, and we are therefore working continuously with the relevant authorities and various stakeholders to implement mitigation and improvement measures.\u201d<\/p>\n

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But environmental groups have questioned the wisdom of building a grand prix circuit in a city where summer temperatures can exceed 40C (104F). According to Stop F1 Madrid , more than 700 trees have been felled or moved to make way for the track, while Mar\u00eda \u00c1ngeles Nieto, a spokesperson for the Madrid Environmentalist platform, said a seasonal wetland that was home to amphibian species had been destroyed.<\/p>\n

\u201cMadrid is a city with significant temperature increases during the summer months \u2013 the entire city is a heat island,\u201d said Nieto. \u201cWe\u2019ve pointed out that this just exacerbates that heat island effect.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nieto said was \u201cno justification whatsoever\u201d for a track that would subject residents to \u201ca living hell\u201d for the duration of the grand prix and other possible events there.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe people in charge of the city are prioritising the economic interests of Formula One over the wellbeing of the citizens in such an absolutely absurd and unnecessary way,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Opponents of Madrid\u2019s newly constructed Formula One circuit have accused the regional authorities of putting profit before people\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":875825,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[572],"tags":[64,63,806,805,803,804,85],"class_list":["post-875824","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-motosport","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-motor","tag-motor-sports","tag-motosport","tag-motosports","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/875824","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=875824"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/875824\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/875825"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=875824"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=875824"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=875824"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}