There has been a lot said about the cost of some tolls on the AP7 – especially the stretch from Los Montesinos to La Zenia, Costa Blanca South. If like myself you find yourself wanting to avoid some of the traffic on the N332 at certain times of year the AP7 seems an attractive option. The problem I find is that when driving from Benijofar to La Zenia where you will find the Zeniaboulevard shopping centre you are hit by 2 tolls, yes 2 tolls within 10 minutes!! In the winter months the toll is a little over 2 EUR but in the summer months it jumps to over 4 EUR per toll! A round trip from Benijofar to La Zenia will cost me over 16 EUR in the summer season – just in tolls!
Recent data has shown that the monthly traffic on this stretch is around 2,000 vehicles against the initial 30,000 projection. It doesn’t take a genius to see that the cost of the tolls deters people from using the motorway on this particular route – surely a reduction in the tolls would increase traffic and in the long term be more profitable! Needless to say that the toll companies are almost bankrupt and there has been an announcement to say the government will take control of the road, but not until 2019! The good news is that the tolls are to be scrapped which will mean more drivers will use the AP7 and take some of the pressure off the N332 coats road and of course save drivers like me some money!
Other driving matters in Spain:
Spain will be introducing its new traffic law in April of this year. Expected changes to take place are:
For further information on driving in Spain you can visit the official DGT Website
If your looking at buying or selling a property in Spain then speak to Casas Manuel – your professional family-run estate agent based in Benijofar.