Barcelona has temporarily stopped granting new licences for 24-hour supermarkets and self-service grocery shops across much of the city while new rules are prepared. The suspension is already in force and will last at least a year. The measure mainly affects smaller stores and convenience shops under 300 square metres that previously operated with very extended opening hours. The city council says the rapid growth of these businesses has increased tensions in residential neighbourhoods, particularly in areas shaped by tourism and nightlife. Residents report noise, crowds, and constant late-night activity, including groups standing outside, loud conversations under apartment windows, and ongoing street movement that reduces the sense of calm at night.
"The issue for many neighbours was never really about people buying milk at 1am. It was everything happening around the shops afterwards. Groups standing outside drinking. People talking loudly under apartment windows. Constant movement in streets that used to calm down much earlier at night. In some neighbourhoods, residents say the atmosphere changed completely over the last few years as more late night"
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