An initiative by the Navarra professor Francisco Javier Ibáñez, the installation of the Mortaldel·lo i Filemó traffic lights has received ample social support as a result of people’s affection for these comic characters and their creator.

Each traffic light shows the character of Filemó through the red light and Mortadel·lo through the green one. The rest of the design is the same as the current model in the city: yellow, with polycarbonate LEDs and an aluminium nucleus highly resistant to winds and collisions caused by vehicles, equipped with sound devices for the blind too.

The location was chosen for its proximity to the Biblioteca Gabriel García Márquez, which holds a collection devoted to Ibáñez’s work as he was a local resident and attended the inauguration of the library. The building was recently recognised as the best public library for 2023 and has gained the FAD Architecture Award.

Three more locations

Three more sets of these traffic lights are set to be installed at different points in the city before the end of the year:

• The junction between Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes and C/ Bac de Roda, near the artist’s home.
• The junction between C/ Comte d’Urgell and C/ Manso, because of its proximity to the Sunday book market in Sant Antoni.
• The junction between Ronda Sant Pere and Passeig de Gràcia, a central point in the city.

The locations were proposed by three organisations: the Associació de Veïns i Veïnes de Sant Martí de Provençals, the Associació Professional del Mercat Dominical del Llibre de Sant Antoni, and the Colla Trabucaire de Sant Martí de Provençals.

The traffic lights are intended as another tribute to Francisco Ibañez and his work, after the ceremony in October to posthumously award the artist the Gold Medal for Cultural Merit.