The Córdoba Bus Terminal, first removed and then modified the seats located in the interior due to the increase in the number of homeless people who spent the night there.
The decision, which affects both the old and the new building, responds to the merchant complaints premises and aims to recondition the space to wait for the bus.
According to information from the terminal management, the benches were reconditioned with armrests dividers to prevent people from lying on them. This measure seeks to prevent people from using these spaces as a place to sleep.
The change seeks to allow proper use of banks for all users. “Many times homeless people lie down, occupy the entire bench and let the other users sit too,” he explained to Chain 3Federico Salvi, local merchant.
“The people from social development come, interview them, want to transfer them to the shelters, to the hotels they have. And they give up, they want to stay here in the terminal for reasons that here people often give them money, give them food,” he mentioned.
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See also
Tragic morning in Córdoba
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By this Thursday the banks were already reconditioned. Gastón, another of the merchants, said that although the situation of people seeking refuge from the cold in the terminal is understandable, “they cannot find shelter.” “There were people who committed crimes and took advantage of tourists,” he warned.
For her part, the Undersecretary of Emergency and Social Intervention of Córdoba, Mariana del Campo, in dialogue with Chain 3said that they cannot comment on the measures taken by the Terminal because “the works or modifications inside depend on private concessions.”
However, he noted that they noticed an increase in people spending the night on public roads and on bridges. “The terminals are always a place to take advantage of the cold situation,” she said. And he clarified that no complete families have been found living on the streets during his day and night tours.
When addressing the topic of the alternatives offered by the State for these people, Del Campo explained: “What is sought is to investigate the personal and individual situation. A much more in-depth analysis is done through interdisciplinary teams.” The measures taken vary from accommodation to helping them return to their place of origin.
Regarding the places where these people are housed, Del Campo explained that they are looking for boarding houses in the neighborhoods or to reconnect them with their families.
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Finally, the official reported that to date they have 283 people under an assistance program in Córdoba and around 210 people who do not wish to receive assistance. “40 people have been put under the program in less than five or six days due to the cold,” she concluded.
Report by Lucía González and Gonzalo Carrasquera. Interview by Luis Fernández Echegaray.
