Almeria motorway work to resume soon

The long-awaited work to complete the new motorway in the Almanzora Valley could start in May.

Ever since construction ground to a halt on the Almanzora motorway, back in January 2011, many voices have been raised demanding its completion.

The latest in a long line has been the Secretary General of the PSOE, Jose Luis Sanchez Teruel, who has asked the Junta to ‘pull their finger out’ and expedite proceedings with the EU, which declared the motorway a ‘Great Project’.

The delegate for Development in Almeria, Encarna Caparros, said the fact that they had not been able to meet the deadlines set by the department and start the work was due to the problems they were experiencing with the original construction company.

The UTE company was created by investors for the motorway project.

“We are working to find solutions so it is not put out to tender, which, of course, would greatly lengthen the time,” said Caparros.

Caparros believes there will soon be a solution and that work, although she preferred not to give deadlines, could begin after Easter.

In fact, according to Caparros, during this time the department has continued working on the project and during 2013 spent €8 million on expropriations for different sections of the highway.

The delegate also commented that “we have a very complex situation and many acquired commitments, which we are fulfilling as we can.”

Caparros made it clear that the priority for the department was to finish the Albox by-pass and finalise the Cucador-La Concepcion to A7 sections.

“This way, we would have a continuous stretch from Fines to the Mediterranean motorway, the A-7, which is precisely the section that has more density of traffic in this area,” said Caparros.