A new petition opposing the A22 tolls and containing 13,000 signatures was due to be handed in to the Portuguese Parliament by the Via do Infante Users’ Commission (CUVI) on Wednesday, after the Algarve Resident went to press.
In January this year, a month after the tolls were introduced on the A22, the CUVI handed a 14,000-signature petition in Parliament calling for the immediate suspension of the measure.
Now it is hoped that the 27,000 signatures garnered in the two petitions will make a difference.
In a statement, the commission described how the lives of the Algarve people “became hell” after the tolls were introduced, a move aggravated further by the suspension of toll exemptions for residents on September 30, leading to increased traffic on the already congested EN125.
The CUVI has also criticised the renegotiation of the contract between national road authority Estradas de Portugal and sub-concession Rotas do Algarve Litoral (see article on this page), responsible for the redevelopment of the EN125.
“This is like giving the Euromillions top prize to Rotas do Algarve Litoral: this company does not comply with its obligations and now the largest part of the maintenance work (93km of road) is the responsibility of the public company! This is scandalous,” said the CUVI.
“In our opinion, the government should suspend the tolls and then resign,” it concluded.
