The western section of the EN125 upgrade will be finished this coming Friday, January 12th 2018. Thus spake Rui Sousa, the man in charge of Rotas do Algarve Litoral.
Claiming that everything will be ready, signage in place, sidewalks completed, roundabouts in action and new road surfaces laid, Sousa is convinced that all will be completed in the next three days, come rain or shine, 100% definite.
The introduction of tolls on the Via do Infante in December 2011 saw the start of a sharp drop in traffic volume to 50% of peak - drivers were opting to use the free-to-use EN125 alternative.
The Passos Coelho government bought-off the anti-toll Algarve’s mayors by promising that over €200 million would be spent on upgrading the EN125 to make it a 'viable alternative' to the motorway.
That was over seven years ago and the first part of the upgrade may, or may not be finished later this week.
The eastern part of the EN125, from Olhão to the border town of Vila Real de Santo António, has had seven years of close-to-zero investment, resulting in its deplorable state despite this being the first section of road that tens of thousands of tourists drive on each year.
There is no expenditure in the 2018 State Budget for the eastern section of the EN125 - planned expenditure on the Algarve’s infrastructure has reched an historic and inexplicable low, despite the region providing over 40% of the country’s tourism revenue. Of the 2018 budget, the Social Democratic opposition party commented that the Government "has money to spend, just not in the Algarve."
On the nearly-completed western section of the EN125, motorists have been incensed at the ‘traffic calming’ measure introduced in a seemingly deliberate plan to make journeys as frustrating as possible.
Slowing traffic to a crawl for long stretches, all vehicles adhering to the speed of the slowest caravan or tractor, does not help the region’s flow of goods or people.
An example, sent in by a dear reader, is the removal of the traffic lights at the International School near Lagoa where drivers now have to go several kilometres to the roundabout at Fatacil just to be able to head east again.
Many long stretches of road, where overtaking had been allowed, now are dotted with long lines of plastic bollards to force drivers to sit in frustration as vehicles creep along the highway in single file.
Whatever drivers’ pet hates, the EN125 is slower and arguably more frustrating, the Via do Infante is expensive compared to other of Portugal’s toll roads, work on one section of the EN125 has taken seven years and the eastern section has no start date.
This endless roadworks programme has caused disruption, loss of business efficiency, ridicule, exasperation and a valid observation that when it comes to infrastructure investment in the Algarve, plans are haphazard, delayed, poorly communiated and deliberately disruptive.
Via do Infante road surface near Tavira - 'Welcome to Portugal'