The mayoress of Mijas, Ana Mata (PP), described on Tuesday 17th as “very worrying” the fact that the AVE high-speed train between Málaga and Madrid will not be fully operational during Easter, as stated the previous day by the president of ADIF himself. According to Mata, losses associated with the tourism and services sector in the province of Málaga “already amount to 1.3 billion euros”, also affecting “the more than 800 businesses in Mijas linked to the tourism sector and over 7,000 workers who depend on this industry”.
The mayoress of Mijas lamented that the central government has not accelerated repair work on this section of the high-speed line, knowing full well that the peak tourist season begins at Easter “and that all this will have a very negative impact on the reinforcement contracts usually made at this time of year in restaurants, cafés, shops and beach bars, amongst other establishments”.
For all these reasons, Mata urged Pedro Sánchez’s government to take responsibility “because this is a consequence of the state’s lack of investment, which has looked to other autonomous communities but, once again, has left ours until last”.
In this sense, the mayoress also joined the request made by the Málaga PP to “not apply the toll increase on the AP-7 motorway during Easter, as well as to compensate tourism sector entrepreneurs with tax relief.”
Damage to the local economy
The councillor for Tourism at the Mijas Town Hall, Francisco Jerez (Vox), also spoke out regarding the economic losses from the lack of the AVE, which could exceed 1.3 billion euros for Málaga and the Costa del Sol, “and if we take into account that Mijas concentrates nearly 10% of the province’s tourist beds, the economic impact for our municipality could be around 130 million euros”, he noted.
Jerez recalled that “the Costa del Sol is one of Europe’s leading tourist destinations and cannot afford failures in strategic infrastructure”, adding that “when the connections that sustain our economy are neglected, those who end up paying the price are our business owners, our workers, and thousands of families who live off tourism”, he concluded.
Drop in bookings
The hotel sector also expressed its concern on Tuesday following the announcement that the direct rail link will not be restored until the end of April. According to Aehcos, the reduction in bookings on the Costa del Sol ALREADY stands at 18%, rising to 25% in some of the province’s inland municipalities and to 30% in the case of Málaga city. Similarly, they point out that the road transfers between Málaga and Antequera, offered as an alternative to continue the journey by high-speed train, are increasing travel times to up to four and a half hours.
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