Stability in the urban center and volatility in the periphery: travel patterns over time in Metropolitan Barcelona

We analyze shifts in weekday travel across the Barcelona Metropolitan Region (RMB) with particular attention to peri-urban and suburban areas that remain less studied than the core city. Using the regional travel survey EMEF for 2012, 2018 and 2023, we track trips per resident and modal shares for eight metropolitan zones. Two main dynamics emerge. First, intrazonal travel, meaning trips made within the resident’s own zone, declined from 2012 to 2018 and rebounded in 2023, although unevenly across zones. Second, modal shifts show that walking fell and car use rose until 2018, then partly reversed by 2023, with walking recovering in most zones, car use levelling or declining in several zones, and transit participation expanding. These contrasting trajectories highlight the volatility of the outer zones compared with the core’s relative stability. We close by discussing potential drivers of these reversals and propose testable hypotheses for future research.