Mayors of Estepona, Marbella, Fuengirola and Mijas demand money back for A-7 lighting

THE mayors of Estepona, Marbella, Fuengirola and Mijas have demanded that the Ministry for Public Works pay for lighting on stretches of the A-7 which run through the town.

The mayors complain that they have been paying a cost which should be paid by the Ministry for at least 20 years, and demand the €11m they estimate to have paid over the past 15 because they are no longer able to pay such amounts.

The have also requested that the company which provides lighting for the dual carriageway send their bills to the central government from November.

The mayor of Estepona, Jose Maria Garcia Urbano, said they sent letters to the General Roads Department this summer but received no answer.

Marbella mayor Angeles Muñoz pointed out that the town hall spends €1.5 million per year to pay the lighting on the dual carriageway and €2 m to light the toll motorway, because the company which runs the road has not paid it, despite charging users. In this case, she said, they would be demanding the money from them.

They all rejected the idea that the lighting on the dual carriageway could disappear completely with this pressure on the central government, as it is the Ministry of Public Works’ responsibility to keep the road safe.