The Gipuzkoa Provincial Council does not intend to expand the AP-8 highway to three lanes in Irun, despite a request from the local council. Instead, the focus will be on the comprehensive mobility plan for the Bidasoa region, aimed at improving internal traffic flow in Irun and Hondarribia, as well as completing the southern ring road.
The return journey from August holidays faces critical days with daily significant traffic jams on the AP-8 in Irun, causing chaos in the city streets. Institutions are seeking solutions to this mobility issue affecting thousands.
The mayor of Irun, Cristina Laborda, has asked the Provincial Council to consider building a third lane on the highway between Ventas and Behobia towards France. Currently, these seven kilometers are an exception, as the French A-63 highway features 67 kilometers of three lanes.
The Council has not officially responded to the proposal, but its plans are directed elsewhere. A similar project was discarded a decade ago as "neither prudent nor proportional" due to the bottleneck at the French border. Despite having a construction project drafted, traffic analyses and future projections led to the decision to shelve the work in the medium term.
The cause of the traffic jams, both in 2016 and now, are French border controls. France increased security after the Paris and Nice attacks, and now following the Ceuta crisis. Maribel Vaquero, spokesperson for the PNV in Congress, called the mayor's request "demagoguery," stating that "the problem is not a lack of roads in Irun."
The Council's mobility commitment is the Integral Plan for Bidasoaldea, presented by Deputy General Eider Mendoza, Provincial Minister for Road Infrastructure Felix Urkola, Mayor of Irun Cristina Laborda, and Mayor of Hondarribia Igor Enparan. The budget exceeds 50 million euros and aims to "improve the fluidity of internal traffic."
The flagship project impacting the AP-8 will be the completion of the southern ring road, connecting Larreaundi and Arbes. Construction is expected to begin in late 2027, and it is estimated to divert around 9,000 daily vehicles from the GI-636 to the AP-8, addressing the lack of an internal bypass for southern neighborhoods.
However, the City Council disagrees on the timeline, requesting that work on the GI-636 in Amutalde be postponed until the southern ring road is fully operational. "Intervening in the main mobility axis without a prior alternative could cause serious traffic problems. The southern ring road must be built and operational before acting in Amutalde."
