Minister's Visit Starts the Countdown to the End of Arroyo Exit Woes
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FREE COPY THE NEWSPAPER FOR SPECIAL SOUTHERN SPAIN Don’t miss the Official market leader SUR in English Audited by PGD/OJD July 7th to 13th 2017 summer www.surinenglish.com magazine PICK UP Ideas for the YOUR FREE News 2 What To Do 46 COPY AT OUR Comment 24 My Home 51 summer season Lifestyle 26 Sport 56 in Andalucía MAIN Health & Beauty 39 Classified 62 DISTRIBUTION in English Food & Drink 45 Pastimes 70 POINTS During a visit to Malaga Serna, visited this traffic black spot on Thursday Íñigo de la to lay the symbolic first stone of Minister’s visit starts the works that, through the con- Serna also paved the struction of a large roundabout, way for city port aim to solve the congestion prob- lems at this junction. The minis- development ter admitted that residents had had the countdown to the to wait “perhaps too long” for the Drivers who regularly use the Ar- scheme. During his visit he also royo de la Miel exit on the A-7 signed documents that will allow motorway could soon see an end part of the city’s port to be devel- end of Arroyo exit woes to the tailback misery they suffer oped, a necessary step for the high daily. On Thursday Spain’s minis- rise hotel project to go ahead. ter for Public Works, Íñigo de la P2&3 It’s been a busy week for Malaga CF who welcome PADEL MOVES INTO MIJAS PUEBLO Borja Bastón and Roberto as Sandro and Kameni The iconic white town lends its main square to sport, as donkeys head the other way P58&59 step aside to make room for the World Padel Tour P61 British Ambassador speaks of the relationship between the UK and the Costa at SUR forum P14-16 Local player Carolina Navarro, in the stands that will be packed this weekend with fans of this popular racquet sport. :: FERNANDO GONZÁLEZ 22222222 July 7th to 13th 2017 NEWS SUR IN ENGLISH Minister lays symbolic first stone for the works on the long-awaited Arroyo A-7 exit The project, expected This project, he admitted, had taken “a long time” to get off the ground, to cost more than ten “perhaps too long”. million euros, involves The ceremony on Thursday was at- tended by the central government’s the construction of a representative in Malaga, Miguel Brio- large roundabout and nes; MPs Celia Villalobos and Caro- lina España; the president of the pro- seven new structures vincial government, Elías Bendodo; the president of the Mancomunidad :: ALBERTO GÓMEZ of the Western Costa del Sol, Marga- BENALMÁDENA. Spain’s govern- rita del Cid; and deputy mayors of ment minister at the helm of Fo- Benalmádena and Torremolinos, Ja- mento (the ministry of Public Works), vier Marín and Maribel Tocón, respec- Íñigo de la Serna, was on the Costa tively, as well as local councillors and del Sol on Thursday where one of his business owners. jobs was to lay the first stone of the The works would mean “improve- works to build a new junction in ments in the quality of life of resi- Benalmádena. dents” said the minister and pointed The Arroyo de la Miel exit on the out that this was the first project that A-7, at kilometre point 222, is the provincial officials told him about main route into Benalmádena from when he became minister. the motorway and the scene of long After the official ceremony the tailbacks. Drivers travelling west who minister approached a small group want to exit at this junction find of demonstrators who had been hold- themselves in long queues on the ing a banner demanding a fast solu- hard shoulder at the busiest times of tion. He asked them for patience af- day, a situation that has been aggra- ter they explained their concerns vated by the summer holiday traffic. The minister helps unveil a plaque that marks the minister’s visit to initiate the works. :: ALBERTO GÓMEZ about the delays in the scheme. The works that officially began on Thursday aim to solve the problem with a new two-lane slip road and a large roundabout, similar to the one More lanes and will be changed without altering at Plaza Mayor in Malaga. longer slip roads - its functionality. With a budget of more than ten In future, traffic joining and million euros, the works are expected what drivers can look leaving the A-7 at Arroyo de la to take around two years to complete. forward to in Arroyo Miel- Benalmádena will do so via De la Serna announced on Thursday, a large new roundabout. Filter however, that the firm contracted to lanes will also be created on the carry out the work, Ferrovial, would It was built almost thirty years motorway between the access try to reduce the time. ago for a fraction of the traffic lev- road and the Arroyo de la Miel While this week has seen the sym- els it sees today but finally the A-7 service station, between kilome- bolic start of the project, activity this exit at Arroyo de la Miel looks set tres 223 and 224. summer will involve preliminary to be upgraded to cope with the Several new structures will works, and the construction itself 15,000 vehicles a day that use it. have to be built, including two will get under way in October. According to the plans, the new underpasses, four walls and “It’s not a complex situation tech- length of the new stretch of road, the widening of the existing un- nically-speaking, because there are including slip roads, is approxi- derpass. Some 876 metres of many junctions of this kind on our mately 2.3 kilometres and the noise barriers will also be in- roads, but the volume of traffic com- present layout for the junction stalled. Technical drawing of the new intersection. :: SUR plicates the work,” said the minister. July 7th to 13th 2017 3 SUR IN ENGLISH NEWS De la Serna offers scant Criminal gang arrested over news on Marbella railway plan 17-million-euro timeshare scam :: SUR the Costa del Sol hospital. Which- MALAGA The minister for Public ever option is chosen, it will be an Works used his visit to Malaga to up- extension to the existing Cercanías date on progress on a variety of pro- local railway with journey times of jects planned on the Costa del Sol. an hour and fifteen minutes to Mar- The news he gave on the long- bella from Malaga, and so not pro- talked-about extension to the vide much competition for the 45- coastal railway line from Fuengi- minute journey by car. rola to Marbella and Estepona De la Serna said that in Septem- wasn’t significant however. ber or October he hoped initial scale According to De la Serna, the plans of the three possible options ministry is still working on a study would be available for people to see. of three alternative routes; under An environmental impact study the A-7 coastal road for 53 kilome- would follow in 2018. tres, which he feels will face tech- The minister also confirmed that nical difficulties as it will have to the contract to build the new north- run almost all underground; a mixed ern road access to Malaga airport option running on the surface more; from the A-7 outer ring road and Al- and a third option, similar to the haurín de la Torre would be put out second, but with an extra stop at to tender in the autumn. Police officers count cash found during the raids. :: SUR Thirty-six local arrests lowing them to buy another holi- The scam was first reported in Oc- have been made, day package instead of their time- tober last year by a Benalmádena- share. Victims were said to have based lawyer, who is representing including the alleged handed over between 600 and 3,000 33 of the alleged victims. “Opera- British ringleader, over euros each as commission but never tion Manta”, as it has been called fraud involving holiday received anything back in return. by police, has seen five searches so The offences allegedly took place far; three in private homes, one in ownership resale between 2009 and 2013. a law firm and one in a Vélez-Málaga- In addition to the Costa-based based company. :: JUAN CANO British man, they say the man’s wife, National police chiefs in Malaga MALAGA. A gang accused of being son and daughter-in-law were also are saying that the detentions ha- behind conning 500 British people at the heart of the operation, as well ven’t finished yet as “arrests in dif- out of money for timeshare resales as a Malaga-based firm of lawyers ferent parts of the collaboration has been detained on the Costa del that allegedly helped launder the chain in other areas, mainly in the De la Serna (centre) with politicians at the gates to Malaga port. :: S. S. Sol. The alleged ringleader of those money that was being collected. Balearics and Canary Islands” are arrested is also from the UK. Of the 17 million euros collected pending. National Police arrested 36 peo- from the timeshare owners, some They said that it has been a “very Sign off from minister lic land, and what parts can be in- ple in connection with the fraud 12 million euros were net profit to complicated” eight-month investi- tegrated more fully into the that is thought to have brought in the gang, say investigators, once gation, adding that the alleged head on city’s port land- nearby city centre and so attract over 17 million euros.