Three years bring a lot, especially if the setting is one of the most unique buildings in Spain, the bridge designed by Iranian architect Zaha Hadid. An icon of the Expo Zaragoza 2008, this curved and serene space has housed since February 2023 Mobility City, the first technological museum of mobility in the 21st century in our country and one of the main Spanish spaces dedicated to thinking —and experiencing— how we will move in the cities of the future.
The results are eloquent. More than half a million visitors and nearly 400 activities held since 2023. Alongside the data, the recent celebration of its third birthday has highlighted that the commitment of Fundación Ibercaja has resonated among citizens, tourists, companies, and institutions. The anniversary also coincides with the 150th anniversary of Fundación Ibercaja, so the recent commemorative events have had an additional historical dimension: the light show ‘Latencia’, a concert by the group Ars Symphony, and the presentation of the book Mobility City.
The project was born with the aim of uniting technological innovation, dissemination, and citizen participation. Today, as explained by its director, Jaime Armengol, the goal is to consolidate a true “ecosystem” around mobility. “We want everyone to find their space,” he says. From technical meetings on energy efficiency or infrastructure to open exhibitions for the general public, the programming aims to attract both specialized professionals and curious visitors. “There is an advanced audience that comes to generate knowledge and another that we engage to understand the changes that are coming,” he summarizes.
Jaime Armengol: «The true revolution will come from the connectivity between vehicles, infrastructures, and urban services.»
A bridge between innovation and citizenship
The model of Mobility City revolves around two clearly differentiated audiences. On one hand, the professional: a meeting point for companies, researchers, administrations, and institutions that analyze the major challenges of sustainable transport, debate, and establish alliances. On the other, the general public, which the center attracts through entertainment and dissemination with interactive exhibitions, driving experiences, and a museum environment that invites understanding of how the city of the future will be.
This duality defines the model of Mobility City. The strategy responds to a clear conviction: mobility is no longer just a technological issue, but a social one. Legislative changes, new urban models, or shared transportation methods directly affect the daily lives of citizens.
“The challenge is to explain what is happening even before society is fully aware,” points out Armengol, who summarizes the project’s spirit with the paradox of continuous learning. In his words, one can sense the ambition of a space that knows it is inexhaustible: sustainable mobility is so transversal that a new niche always emerges, and within that, another, and yet another.
The mobility of the future: data, connectivity, and zero emissions
After three years of activity, the team has identified the major vectors that will mark the future of the sector: sustainability, connectivity, safety, and accessibility. The motto that unites them is as specific as it is revealing: zero accidents, zero emissions, and zero stress.
Connectivity, data, and artificial intelligence will shape the mobility of the future.
Cultural celebration and a look to the future
Among the major events that have taken place at the Zaha Hadid bridge are the last three editions of the Premios Impulso—organized alongside Anfac, Sernauto, and Faconauto—the International Conference on Motorcycle Road Safety, and the Spain Innovation Summit. In 2025, Mobility City took its proposal to FITUR within the Pavilion of Aragón, confirming its national projection.
For 2026, Mobility City faces a calendar filled with projects and realities: a new edition of the Premios Impulso, the Sustainable Mobility Observatory, the Innovation Days, and the Mobility Week, in addition to two exhibitions that will open in March: one dedicated to Mercedes-Benz and another featuring motorcycles from the Dakar Rally. The center will also participate in the event The Wave, where it will present an exhibition on data centers as infrastructure for the new digital economy.
«Although it may seem incredible, after 400 activities, there are still things to be done,» highlights Armengol.
The challenge, Armengol acknowledges, is no longer to grow in the number of activities but to become a place that citizens naturally attend. “We want that when someone thinks of mobility and innovation, they automatically think of Mobility City,” he states. This ambitious goal aims to transform an old architectural icon into more than just a museum: a living space where one can imagine what it will be like to move —and live— in the cities of tomorrow.
A cultural space more in Zaragoza, as integrated into the life of the city as its museums or squares. That is, at its core, the real ambition of Mobility City: to not only be a sector reference but a place where citizens come naturally, whether with or without a car, with or without prior interest in technology. Three years after its opening, the dream —that very real dream that titles the commemorative book— continues to take shape over the waters of the Ebro River.
