Perhaps because of the routine of everyday life, you use public transport in the city without knowing what the letters that identify the bus lines in Barcelona mean. You may not have noticed or perhaps you may have wondered and still don’t know the answer to this.
In any case, it is useful to know the meaning so that you can use the buses in a better way.
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Over time, public transport in Barcelona has undergone major changes. Initially, the old tramway lines were followed, thus covering the transportation needs of the neighborhoods.
But due to the growth of the city, as of 2012 what is now the current bus network better known as the orthogonal began to operate.
The city’s bus network
Since 2012 the new network created a more efficient line system that crosses the city in straight lines. That is, in vertical, horizontal and diagonal lines.
The aim was to increase the speed of the vehicles, which in fact already have the appropriate lanes to travel faster.
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In addition, they help the user to better understand the network as it becomes a square grid with many meeting points in which buses follow more predictable routes.
This is how the letters that accompany the numbers of the lines came about.
- The “V” identifies buses that cross the city vertically.
- The “H” identifies buses that travel horizontally.
- The “D”, those who do it diagonally.
A simple example is, for example, an H12 on Gran Vía. This letter means that the vehicle travels along the entire Gran Vía horizontally without deviating. But if you want to head towards the sea and you are going in this direction, you must get off at an intersection with a bus with a “V” (vertical line) going down.
During the years of orthogonal operation, transportation has improved significantly in the city.
Bus lines in Barcelona and its transportation network
In the Catalan capital, people have a complete transportation network that allows them to cross the city and its vast distances.
There is a complete transportation network, starting with the subway lines.
But the best complement is the city’s bus network, the second largest in the country.
Transportes Metropolitanos de Barcelona, TMB, is made up of a group of public companies that are part of the network. TMB was founded on October 5, 1924. And nowadays, through its website, you can plan your trip with stops and lines that can guide you according to your destination.
