Castelldefels

Castelldefels (Catalan pronunciation: [kəsˌteʎdəˈfɛls]) is a municipality in the Baix Llobregat comarca, in the province of Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain, and part of the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona. Its population is 65,954 (IDESCAT, 2017).[4]

Castelldefels
Municipality
Castelldefels
Flag
Coat of arms
Castelldefels
Location in the Province of Barcelona
Castelldefels
Location in Catalonia
Castelldefels
Location of Spain
Coordinates: 41.286°N 1.982°E / 41.286; 1.982
Country Spain
Autonomous community Catalonia
ProvinceBarcelona
ComarcaBaix Llobregat
Government
 • MayorMaria Miranda Cuervas (2017)[1] (PSC)
Area
 • Total12.9 km2 (5.0 sq mi)
Elevation
3 m (10 ft)
Population
 (2018)[3]
 • Total66,375
 • Density5,100/km2 (13,000/sq mi)
Demonym(s)castelldefelenc, castelldefelenca (Ca)
castelldefelense, castelldefelensa (Es)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal code
08860
Official language(s)Catalan and Spanish
Websitecastelldefels.cat

Geography and location
Castle of Castelldefels

It is located about 20 km (12 mi) southwest of Barcelona, just to the north of the massís del Garraf and is the last town on the coast before the comarca of Garraf. The town is famous for its long beach (more than 5 km), for being the place of residence of many famous sportsmen, such as Lionel Messi,[5] Luis Suárez, Philippe Coutinho, or formerly Ronaldinho; and for being the city which inspired the creation of the character "El Neng de Castefa" who used to appear on the late night show called "BFN" hosted by the showman and presenter Andreu Buenafuente. During the summer, many people from Barcelona and the countryside visit it. Nearby towns include Gavà, Viladecans, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Sitges and el Prat de Llobregat. Castelldefels borders the coast of the Mediterranean Sea between Sitges and Gavà.

The Olympic canal, called Canal Olímpic de Catalunya, built for the 1992 Summer Olympic Games of Barcelona is in the town.

The main-belt asteroid 72037 Castelldefels, discovered in 2000, is named after the town.[6]

Demography and governance
Population
1900 1930 1950 1970 1986 2005
289 797 2039 13,219 27,932 56,718

Between 1979 and 2011, the town was governed by the Socialists' Party of Catalonia (PSC). The first democratic mayor after Constitution was Agustín Marina Pérez. In 2011, the conservative People's Party (PP) won a plurality of seats for the first time, and Manuel Reyes of the PP was elected mayor of the town.[7] In 2015, the eco-socialist Candela López of the ICV was elected mayor by a leftist government coalition.

Summary of council election results
19791983198719911995199920032007201120152019
Socialists' Party of Catalonia (PSC)81512119989746
Initiative for Catalonia Greens (ICV)5 (a)231233
United and Alternative Left (EUiA)1 (b)1 (b)1
Movem Castelldefels (with ICV-EUiA)44
Union of the Democratic Centre (UCD)4
Independents/Residents groups21222
Convergence and Union (CiU)1356443452
Together for Castelldefels (PDeCAT)1
Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC)11134
People's Party (PP)2 (c)1 (c)35555888
Democratic and Social Centre (CDS)1
Citizens – Party of the Citizenry (C's)122
Castelldefels Si Pot (CSPOT)2
Total number of seats[8]2121212121212125252525

(a) results for the Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia
(b) results for the Party of the Communists of Catalonia
(c) results for the People's Alliance

Education

Castelldefels School of Technology provides higher education in aeronautics and telecommunications technology.

The town is also the location of the Castelldefels and Nexus (sixth form college) campuses of the British School of Barcelona (BSB).[9]

There are ten public primary schools and three public secondary schools.

Transport
Main article: Transport in Castelldefels

Transport links include two stations (Castelldefels and Platja de Castelldefels) on RENFE line R2 from Sant Vicenç de Calders to Maçanet-Massanes via Barcelona, bus routes to Barcelona (L94, L95, L97), Barcelona Airport (L99) and Sant Boi de Llobregat (L96), as well as an urban bus route connecting the rest of the town (CF1), the C-32 motorway and the C-31 and C-245 dual carriageways. A second railway line is due to be constructed from Cornellà de Llobregat to Castelldefels.

2010 accident
Main article: Castelldefels train accident

On 23 June 2010, 12 young people were killed, and 14 injured, when they were hit by an express train as they crossed the tracks in the railway station at Platja de Castelldefels, while on their way to a summer solstice bonfire party on the beach.[10]

gollark: I'm pretty sure I did it before I even had significant autocrafting capacity.
gollark: Ugh, your lack of a fusion reactor is CAUSING me to have BAD INTERNET CONNECTIVITY via an UNKNOWN MECHANISM.
gollark: We initiated Contingency 86G, so actually it isn't.
gollark: I'm sure it is.
gollark: Oh, my internet connection randomly dropped in speed by 30%, that is probably it.

References
  1. "Ajuntament de Castelldefels". Generalitat of Catalonia. Retrieved 2015-11-13.
  2. "El municipi en xifres: Castelldefels". Statistical Institute of Catalonia. Retrieved 2015-11-23.
  3. Municipal Register of Spain 2018. National Statistics Institute.
  4. "The municipality in figures". Statistical Institute of Catalonia. 2017.
  5. "Lionel Messi admits he sees 'weird things happening' at Barcelona". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 February 2020.
  6. 72037 Castelldefels
  7. "El PP promet austeritat a Castelldefels després de conquerir la històrica alcaldia socialista", ara.cat, 11 June 2011
  8. Eleccions municipals 1979–2011, Ciutats catalanes de més de 25.000 habitants, Historiaelectoral.com, accessed 4 September 2011
  9. "Contact Us". British School of Barcelona. Retrieved 2020-05-25. The British School of Barcelona Castelldefels Carrer Ginesta, 26 08860 Castelldefels Barcelona, Spain[...]BSB Nexus Carrer Ginesta, 2-10 08860 Castelldefels Barcelona, Spain - This is visible by clicking the contact address information tabs at the footer of the page.
  10. "Twelve Spanish Teenagers Killed by Express Train", The Guardian, 24 June 2010. Retrieved 24 June 2010
  • Panareda Clopés, Josep Maria; Rios Calvet, Jaume; Rabella Vives, Josep Maria (1989). Guia de Catalunya, Barcelona: Caixa de Catalunya. ISBN 84-87135-01-3 (Spanish). ISBN 84-87135-02-1 (Catalan).
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