Increased Frequency for Key University Corridor

Starting 7 September, the e3 interurban bus line connecting Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès and the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) will run 14 additional daily services. The Department of Territory, Housing, and Ecological Transition is expanding the route to improve public transport on one of the metropolitan area’s busiest university corridors. On UAB school days, the line will offer 218 daily trips, with buses arriving every five to ten minutes during peak hours. Of these, 200 services will stop in Cerdanyola del Vallès, an increase of 60 daily stops in the municipality. The changes are part of the second Interurban Bus Shock Plan, aimed at expanding public road transport across Catalonia.

The e3 is one of Catalonia’s most heavily used interurban lines, carrying over two million passengers annually.

Express Services Maintained, Capacity Improved

Despite the reorganisation, express services between central Barcelona and the UAB campus will continue during peak periods. Ten outbound and eight inbound express trips will remain in operation to ensure fast access for commuters. The line, operated by Sarbus (part of the Moventis group), recorded 2,030,835 passengers in 2025, according to official data. The service had already been expanded in September 2025, but rising demand, particularly from users shifting from rail to bus, has prompted further investment. The Catalan government will allocate €304,157 annually to fund the reinforcement. The move forms part of a wider mobility strategy that includes upgrades to 13 interurban bus lines between September and October, supported by €7.8 million in initial funding from a €21.4 million total budget.

"We are increasing frequency on this line and ensuring a bus every five or ten minutes at Cerdanyola stops," said Susi López, General Director of Transport and Mobility at the Generalitat.

Improved transport access is especially significant for nearby municipalities like Badia del Vallès, which has fewer than 13,200 residents. The town is undergoing urban transformation as its 5,200 subsidised housing units (VPO) are progressively liberalised. Mayor Josep Martínez highlighted the municipality’s collaboration with the Generalitat to strengthen links with the UAB. "We have worked hard with the Government to have a connection with the UAB," he said, noting ambitions to position Badia as a student-focused district and attract younger residents. The UAB campus is officially classified by the Generalitat as a "major intermodal hub", with car use halved since 2016 due to improved public transport and internal campus mobility.

Primary sources: govern.cat. Reported by UAB - Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, cerdanyola.cat, elperiodico.com, metropoliabierta.elespanol.com, 20minutos, diaricatalunya.cat, David Expósito J, Metrópoli Abierta - Urban Life, cronicaglobal.elespanol.com, El País, fecav.es, totsantcugat.cat, El Periódico Barcelona.