Shantytowns on the Ebro: Zaragoza's housing crisis deepens

How long before the Ebro shacks become a permanent fixture in Zaragoza?

The banks of the Ebro in Zaragoza have become the stage for a phenomenon that is growing while authorities seem unable to stop it. Dozens of tents and makeshift shacks dot the riverbed, from the area around Delicias Station to the wastelands near La Aljafería. This is not a problem exclusive to the Aragonese capital: similar settlements are proliferating in Barcelona, Bilbao, and Madrid in parks, under bridges, and alongside railway tracks.

The map of residential exclusion spreads

If anything, the debate shows that shantytowns are not a local anomaly but a symptom of a worsening housing crisis. In Bilbao, along the stretch from Sagrado Corazón to Plaza Circular, up to 18 people have been counted sleeping rough in just over a kilometre. In Barcelona, between Sants station and Aragón street, dozens of tents are visible. In Madrid, settlements under the M30 and next to Espacio Delicias have been consolidated for years. The pogre is clear: what began as a marginal phenomenon in big cities has become normalised.

Cause or consequence? The immigration debate

Positions clash head-on. One current holds that the root lies in irregular immigration and mass regularisation policies, which would generate a "pull effect" and saturate public resources. From this perspective, the settlements are the inevitable result of failing to control borders or enforce the law. Against this, another analysis points to real estate speculation, the lack of social housing, and a precarious labour market that pushes out the most vulnerable, whether migrants or nationals. "The blame lies with speculation and stigma," summarises one of the interventions.

The river paradox and institutional silence

The truth is that, while the debate rages on social media, local authorities seem to look the other way. Zaragoza City Council, immersed in river park projects, has offered no public response to the growth of the camps. The irony is not lost on anyone: the shacks with "river views" are advertised as a real estate joke on Idealista, while residents warn that the historic Ebro floods will sweep away the settlements when the autumn rains arrive. Or perhaps not, if NGOs rehouse them in hotels before temperatures drop.

Time is running out. February, with its frosts, is just around the corner. And the tents, for now, are still there.