These are the roads that will become toll-free in 2020

The national road network is adopting two motorways that have until now been tolled and that will become toll-free in 2020, so we tell you which stretches are affected

2020 arrives with news up its sleeve, and one of them will be the opening of some toll roads so that they become completely free of charge. It will be from next 1 January when these toll roads lift their barriers to once again become part of the State.

These new toll-free roads will be the two stretches of the AP-7 between Tarragona and Alicante and the AP-4 linking Seville and Cádiz. This procedure is not new: in December 2018 the first to do so was the AP-1 between Burgos and Armiñón. The main reason these roads have returned to state responsibility was the government’s decision not to extend the concession contracts on these roads.

The new toll-free roads carry a great deal of daily traffic

This decision will be very well received by the 25,200 drivers who use the AP-4 every day. It will also be for the 23,469 users who travel the AP-7 between Tarragona and Valencia and for the 20,844 who do so between Valencia and Alicante.

Of course, the maintenance costs of these roads become the responsibility of the State, something that Abertis had until now taken care of. The Government has already made its move, so the Ministry of Public Works intends to allocate 153 million euros to the upkeep of these roads. This seems essential, since vehicles travelling on roads in poor condition generate more polluting emissions.

These moves are a consequence of the will to create a new road funding model in Spain, since it is necessary to properly address the maintenance of the roads. Moreover, this new budget would help take measures against the most dangerous roads in Spain.

Abertis loses two major assets

Abertis has been the main loser from this new arrangement, since losing the AP-4 and the AP-7 means giving up two of its main sources of revenue. However, the most important Spanish concessionaire has already made its moves to offset this, having recently bought a Mexican motorway company to gain a presence in South America.

Traffic on the State Road Network’s toll roads increased by 4.5% between January and November 2019, with an average of 20,760 vehicles using them each day. Not only has there been an increase in the number of passenger cars, but the traffic of heavy vehicles has been the one that has experienced the greatest growth during this year, specifically 12.1%.

The opposite will happen on the AP-9, the toll motorway crossing Galicia, since its price will rise to 22.10 euros. Not only this, but the roads that remain toll roads in 2020 will increase their prices by 0.84%.