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The bridge linking Cádiz with Puerto Real and the rest of the bay is now officially called the Rafael Alberti Bridge.

 

New signage was installed on Tuesday October 6, completing the change from José León de Carranza Bridge. The former name honoured a Francoist mayor who played an active role in the 1936 coup. It has now been removed under Spain’s Democratic Memory Law.

 

The name change follows the decision announced in July to replace Carranza’s name with that of Rafael Alberti, the poet and playwright from El Puerto de Santa María.

 

Sumar, the political party behind the initiative, said the new signs marked the final stage of the process. “With the installation of the new signage, the final step of the process is completed and the infrastructure leaves behind forever the name of José León de Carranza, the Francoist mayor for 21 years,” it said.

 

The Transport and Sustainable Mobility Ministry began the formal renaming process in June. The municipalities involved and the Carranza family were invited to contribute, although the family did not respond to the request, according to Sumar.

 

Esther Gil de Reboleño, Cádiz’s Sumar representative and the driving force behind the campaign, said the city had settled a long-standing debt.

 

“Today Cádiz is settling a debt with Rafael Alberti and with democracy,” she said. “From today onward, everyone who crosses the bay will do so via the Alberti Bridge: the poet of freedom.”

 

The initiative began in May 2025, when Sumar wrote to Transport Minister Óscar Puente requesting the change. Almost 4,000 residents signed in support, while the Ayuntamientos of Puerto Real and El Puerto de Santa María and the Provincial Council of Cádiz backed a non-binding resolution registered in Congress.

 

“There have been silences, delays, and pressure to prevent this from changing. But the law is meant to be obeyed, and today, finally, it is,” Gil de Reboleño said.

 

The change is part of the application of the Democratic Memory Law, which requires the removal of public names and honours that glorify people linked to the coup, the Civil War or Franco’s dictatorship.

 

The bridge opened in 1969, as a tribute to Carranza, and stretches for 1,400 metres. It consists of 29 concrete spans and one movable metal section. Its structure remains unchanged, although the Ministry has allocated €4.02 million for emergency repairs to replace beams in one span and keep the important Bay of Cádiz route operating safely.

 

The city’s football stadium has already undergone a similar change, dropping Carranza from its name and becoming Nuevo Mirandilla after a public consultation.

 

 

Images: wikicommons