The Government considers recovering tolls on the AP-7

BarcelonaThe Generalitat is considering reintroducing barriers on the AP-7 to limit access and thus reduce the volume of vehicles that this major artery handles, especially since the tolls were eliminated, 5 years ago. This was confirmed this Friday by the Minister of Territory, Sílvia Paneque, after the debate on the recovery of tolls has reopened strongly in Catalonia in the last two days.

The President of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, made it clear on Wednesday, during the control session in Parliament: "Perhaps we were wrong when, cheerfully, we all asked for the tolls to be removed", the president valued. Illa said this in response to the president of the Comuns, Jéssica Albiach, who had reproached him shortly before for the mobility and accident problems that this route is suffering from.

The Secretary of Mobility and Infrastructure of the Government, Manel Nadal, continued to add arguments in favor of tolls yesterday, Thursday, on Catalunya Ràdio, where he assured that this infrastructure can no longer absorb more truck traffic. Nadal's statements came shortly after up to four new serious accidents were registered on the AP-7: a fatal accident in the early hours of the morning – in which a 17-year-old minor died – and three more accidents in the early morning, with trucks involved. The accidents complicated mobility greatly in several areas, especially in Tarragonès and also in Martorell. For this reason, Nadal also stressed that in addition to reopening the debate on access barriers, it is also necessary to improve the capacity of alternative routes or allow trucks to circulate on the old N-340 or N-II.

Payment for use

This Friday, the Minister of Territory, Sílvia Paneque, made it clear again: "We are thinking of making a proposal linked to usage and, above all, linked to the use of heavy-duty transport and also linked to emissions," the minister detailed. The Government is therefore proposing a new payment method based on the use of the AP-7, "in the style of what was known as the vignette," Paneque admitted.

Both Nadal and Paneque, however, recall that the measure "must be agreed with the Ministry" and, therefore, would require parliamentary processing at the state level. "We must recover tolls, with the formula we want," assured Secretary Nadal yesterday, while emphasizing the need to do so in a consensual manner with the State. "We cannot have a border in Ulldecona and another in Seròs, and have truckers travel freely throughout Spain and pay here," he said.

Two or three years ahead (if there is an agreement)

However, if there is political will, the Department of Territory considers that the tolls could be recovered in two or three years. When asked about this issue, the Ministry of Transport did not wish to add any comments, nor did it detail whether the proposal had already been put on the table in Madrid.

"At the moment, the Ministry of the Interior is working to see how traffic can be reduced or reorganized because, effectively, since the tolls were freed, the use [of the AP-7] is very intense and, beyond the maintenance of the road, there is a very high accident rate," admitted the Minister of Territory, who added that her department is also working to secure the resources to expand lanes where necessary, especially in Vallès and Penedès, with a fourth lane; in Terres de l'Ebre, with a third lane; and also to improve safety at the entrances to the southern section of Girona.