Toll protestors to target holiday homes of our glorious leaders

Paul 31 July 2014

vasconcelos Prime Minister Passos Coelho and Portugal’s President Cavaco Silva soon will be on holiday, not together but at the same time, as they both enjoy Algarve breaks.

Enter the redoubtable João Vasconcelos (pictured) from the Committee of Users of the Via do Infante (CUVI) who has sanctioned new protests outside the holiday homes of the perpetrators of the tolls system and will be demanding some answers on the whole question of the Algarve’s pernicious motorway tolls.

Subject to confirmation at a meeting that will take place in Loulé on Friday evening, there will be a vigil 20.00 on August 09 at Aldeia da Coelha near the vacation home of the President of the Republic, Cavaco Silva, and from 10.00 the next day in Manta Rota in front of the house where the Prime Minister, Pedro Passos Coelho, often has been known to spend a relaxing time in the region he has been inspirational in bringing to its financial knees.

João Vasconcelos said today that the goal is to talk to the President and the Prime Minister to "hold them accountable for the consequences of the introduction of tolls on the Via do Infante" which ranks as a "major disaster" for the Algarve, without the EN125 as a viable alternative.

Vasconcelos added that CUVI also will protest at the Festa do Pontal political gathering and dinner that Passos Coelho will address, as the guests are made up from his party faithful.

"As if it’s not enough to have frequent cuts in wages and pensions, we have the destruction of dignity and life through the policies of the PSD/CDS government which insists on harming lives in the Algarve with the extortion of money from tolls to enrich private concessionaires," reads CUVI’s statement.

The protest group's management added, "Those who torment the lives of all of us, do not deserve to spend a restful vacation. Unless they stop ruining the lives of Portuguese they are not entitled to a decent break."

Comments

0 #5 michael ferrada 2014-08-01 19:58

I agree with the comments of Ed.... quoting Will! May I say that, we must realise that 2/3 of the A22 was build with EEC funds back to the year 1992!! What they have done...is kidnapp the A22 from the Algarvean people and residents!! They are killing the Algarve!!! :(!!! ..."Not so, otherwise there would be far less fuss and complaint. The majority of the funds for the A22, I recall a figure in excess of 75%, came from the EC to help develop the Algarve region and join communities together, aid tourism travel and trade. Then the government hijacked this 'free for the people' EC funded road and started charging an extortionate rate for it, plus paying the concession holder an EXTRA €40 million a year in support payments as the traffic volume collapsed. This is the gripe, in addition to crippling the EN125 and many Algarve businesses dependent on fast distribution by road."

+4 #4 RCK 2014-08-01 12:47

Well said Ed! (in response to Will). I think it's great what Joao Vasconceios is doing, but unfortunately, the great & the good rarely listen to the little people (like Joao & me) and just carry on regardless - which is easy to do when you have skin like a Rhinoceros. Unfortunately, I can't see the removal of the illegal, loss making tolls any time soon. Experience tells me that this would be far too simple a solution for some of the idiots that run this country. In the meantime Joao, carry on regardless. Sainthood beckons perhaps!!

+3 #3 Paul 2014-08-01 11:34

Quoting Will:

As far as I am aware, the 22 was constructed under a PPP contract where the company (and their banks) are paid back the construction and maintenance costs over a concession period (I don't know the length but could be up to 40 years). The payback can be based on a shadow toll (usually the estimated rad usage over time). Converting to an actual toll is simply a different way of paying off the "mortgage"( or extracting tax from users!). During the concession period the contractor is obliged to maintain the motorway within the payment structure.

Not so, otherwise there would be far less fuss and complaint. The majority of the funds for the A22, I recall a figure in excess of 75%, came from the EC to help develop the Algarve region and join communities together, aid tourism travel and trade. Then the government hijacked this 'free for the people' EC funded road and started charging an extortionate rate for it, plus paying the concession holder an EXTRA €40 million a year in support payments as the traffic volume collapsed. This is the gripe, in addition to crippling the EN125 and many Algarve businesses dependent on fast distribution by road.
Ed.

+1 #2 Will 2014-08-01 11:20

As far as I am aware, the 22 was constructed under a PPP contract where the company (and their banks) are paid back the construction and maintenance costs over a concession period (I don't know the length but could be up to 40 years). The payback can be based on a shadow toll (usually the estimated rad usage over time). Converting to an actual toll is simply a different way of paying off the "mortgage"( or extracting tax from users!). During the concession period the contractor is obliged to maintain the motorway within the payment structure.

+5 #1 algarveandroid 2014-08-01 01:41

He really should be talking to the eu about the fraud committed by the politiicians , the grant to make the 22 was for a non toll road!

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