Claire Wilson
THE European Investment Bank (EIB) has approved a €465 million loan to support upgrades to the Spanish road network.
The funds will finance various infrastructure works including the construction of bypasses and access roads and the upgrading and widening of national roads.
The schemes financed by this loan come under Spain’s 2012 to 2014 Infrastructure, Transport & Housing Plan. Some of the roads concerned also form part of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) and will therefore also receive financing from the EU Cohesion and Structural Funds.
The EU contribution, including the EIB loan, will cover around 59% of the total investment.
This investment is badly needed, but a lot of the money needs to be spent on inland road networks. The inland roads are attrocious and Spain has no plan to fix or even repair them. Round here they use dirt to “repair” craters, all of which is washed away in the first bit of rain. It’s totally nonsensical. Spain really is third world when it comes to road repairs.
I wander how much of this money will actually find it’s way to repairing the roads and not into the pockets of corrupt politicians that run this beautiful country so badly.
Fred,
can’t agree more – the RNs’ and autoroutes are first class in comparison to a lot of other countries but that’s it.
I’ve travelled all over Spain and a tertiary road network is virtually non existent.
WhY the EU did’nt insist that this money was used to create such local roads is no surprise to me and David is spot on with his comment – brown envelopes as usual.