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Fix finally in sight for crumbling RM-1 dual carriageway linking Murcia to the Mar Menor
Years of potholes on the San Javier dual carriageway could soon be a thing of the past
Drivers who use the RM-1, the dual carriageway linking the city of Murcia with the Mar Menor lagoon via San Javier, have put up with potholes and sinking road surfaces for years. Now there's finally some good news, with a new agreement between the Regional Government and the Zeneta Joint Venture, the firm that originally built the road, paving the way for proper, long-lasting repairs.
For anyone not familiar with the route, the RM-1 runs out from Murcia towards the coast, passing through Zeneta on its way to San Javier, and it's meant to be the go-to alternative to the older Puerto de la Cadena pass. The plan has always been for it to stretch all the way to Santomera too, but that final stretch, known locally as the "bancal highway," still hasn't been built.
The good news is that this isn't just another quick patch-up job. According to the department led by Mr García Montoro, the agreement is aimed at properly fixing the damage once and for all. We don't yet know how much it'll cost or how long it'll take, since that depends on the project still being drawn up, but we do know where the worst of the damage is. It's concentrated between kilometre markers 17 and 27, an area that's tricky ground to build on and prone to flooding too.
The road only opened back in 2009, but it wasn't long before cracks and dips started appearing in the surface. Things got bad enough that the speed limit had to be dropped to 80km/h in several spots, with extra safety measures brought in as well.
Now, the regional government will draw up the final repair plan and oversee the whole job, including sorting out the drainage, while Zeneta Joint Venture has agreed to repair every layer of the road surface itself.
The agreement still needs to be signed off by a judge, having been reached through the Murcia Court of Justice's mediation unit. Once that happens, the process of choosing who'll actually design the repair project can get under way.
The Region is also pushing the Ministry of Transport in Madrid to finally fund the missing final third of the route, the stretch that would eventually connect San Javier through to Santomera. According to officials, as well as improving journeys between Alquerías, Beniel, El Raal and Santomera, the work could also help finally clear the long-running bottleneck around Murcia's Western Ring Road and the Espinardo junction, completing a full ring road around the city.
Progress so far has been slow. With the state funding received to date, the regional government has completed the geotechnical studies, bought up all the land needed and drawn up plans for the first two sections, at a cost of €15.2 million, which is still the only funding it's had.
Image: CARM
