During the conference, the president of the Consell de Mallorca stated that ‘Mallorca is in the midst of a process of change and transformation in terms of mobility with an unprecedented plan, after years of neglect and paralysis’.
The president of the Consell de Mallorca, Llorenç Galmés, gave a lecture on the Mallorca Road Plan at the Círculo Financiero de Baleares on Wednesday. Llorenç Galmés explained in detail to more than a hundred attendees the unprecedented comprehensive infrastructure project being promoted by the island institution in Mallorca to increase safety, improve fluidity and move towards a more sustainable model. In this regard, President Galmés stated that ‘in Mallorca, we are in the midst of a process of change and transformation in terms of mobility, after years of neglect and paralysis’. He pointed out that ‘traffic jams are one of the main problems suffered by all the citizens of this island: they diminish our quality of life and also, of course, our competitiveness, as they have a direct and negative impact on Mallorca’s economy’. For this reason, he said, ‘the Consell de Mallorca has been working hard from the very first minute to put an end to traffic jams’.
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President Galmés unveils Mallorca’s road plan at the Círculo Financiero de Baleares (Financial Circle of the Balearic Islands)
During the conference, President Galmés explained the achievements made, such as the elimination of the 80-kilometre per hour limit on the Via de Cintura. He also detailed the Access Plan to Palma that the Consell de Mallorca has set in motion. ‘It is an ambitious plan with a very powerful investment of 164 million euros that includes 13 actions, without consuming territory, which aims to reduce the traffic jams that occur to enter and leave the metropolitan area of Palma’, according to Galmés. The president of the Consell de Mallorca stated that three actions of the Access Plan have already been completed: the improvement of the Can Valero access from the Vía de Cintura, the access to the Camino de Jesús and the construction of an additional lane linking the airport with the motorway exit and Playa de Palma. He also specified that work is currently underway to improve access to the Vía de Cintura from the airport motorway, which foresees the construction of a third lane under the Can Blau roundabout and a fourth 800-metre lane on the MA-19 motorway, taking advantage of the median. The island institution is also currently carrying out work to reinforce the road surface on the Vía de Cintura, as well as improving the accesses to the Son Hugo junction and the construction of an additional lane on the Vía de Cintura between the Inca motorway and the Valldemossa road. According to the President of the Consell de Mallorca, these actions ‘are already producing results’.
Likewise, Llorenç Galmés stressed that Section I of Palma’s second ring road will be ‘the only major infrastructure that we will carry out this term of office and that it will involve an investment of 110 million euros’. A project that, according to Galmés, is ‘fundamental for decongesting the Vía de Cintura and that promotes sustainable mobility because it foresees the construction of civic roads and a 500-space park-and-ride car park’.
The safety and quality of life of the citizens of Mallorca are the priority of the island’s institution. This was emphasised by President Galmés, who recalled that 20 million euros had been invested to reinforce the road surface and eliminate some thirty black spots on the secondary road network. He also pointed out the future improvement works to be carried out on the roads from Bunyola – Alaró, Santa Margalida – Can Picafort, Peguera – Andratx, Santa Margalida – Llubí, Alcúdia – Puerto de Pollença, and Lluc – Sa Calobra, among others. He also stressed that during this legislature the construction of bypasses has been promoted, which has been demanded by many municipalities, such as the Artà, s’Alqueria Blanca, and the Llucmajor – Algaida road, and that the Campanet and Sencelles roads are currently being studied.
On the other hand, the President of the Consell de Mallorca defended the firm commitment to sustainable mobility that is being made during this term of office. ‘Faced with the mobility challenge we face in Mallorca, sustainable mobility is undoubtedly part of the solution. By promoting public transport and other alternatives to private vehicles, we reduce road congestion and protect the environment,’ said Galmés during his speech. Along these lines, he explained the Civic Roads Plan, which has a budget of 45 million euros and will involve the construction of 60 kilometres of roads for pedestrians and bicycles that will link different towns on the island. Also the Plan for park-and-ride car parks with nearly 40 million euros and more than 7,000 parking spaces to encourage the use of public transport.
In addition to the investment to renovate or build new infrastructures, Galmés explained that the Consell de Mallorca is working to promote the conclusions of the study on road charging: regulating the entry of vehicles onto the island, giving priority to residents, limiting the maximum number of rental cars and introducing a tax on cars that are not taxed in the Balearic Islands.
Finally, he pointed out that ‘to improve mobility on the island we need quality public transport that is a real alternative to private vehicles’. During the conference, the President of the Consell de Mallorca welcomed the injection of 150 million euros to reinforce the TIB and the announcement of the future train in Llucmajor, passing through the airport, by the Government.
Improved financing
The president of the Consell de Mallorca reiterated that the institution needs more funding to be able to carry out the Road Plan to improve mobility on the island. Galmés has once again demanded the 230 million euros of the Roads Agreement from the central government. ‘It is a comparative offence that Mallorca does not receive a single euro from the State to finance infrastructures, while it allocates 6,000 million euros to Catalonia for Cercanías (commuter trains). This imbalance leaves us in an unfavourable position compared to other territories in the country and is even more blatant when the State must compensate the costs that insularity entails’, said the president.
On the other hand, he expressed his satisfaction with the extraordinary transfer of 30 million euros by the Government of the Balearic Islands to finance investments in roads to be executed in 2025. ‘In the face of Pedro Sánchez’s neglect, we have the support of the Government of Marga Prohens, who listens and attends to the needs of the people of Mallorca’, he added.