Spain’s Free Highways: Economic Boon or Hidden Cost to Taxpayers?

The subject is controversial in Spain. By deciding not to renew the motorway concessions signed half a century ago, the country has allowed 80% of the major highways to become free again. When asked whether such a measure is truly the right solution, one of the Spaniards interviewed by France 2 indicated that "it’s very good for the poorest and for people who work".

In reality, the French television channel explains, at the end of the Franco dictatorship in the 1970s, Spain entrusted the construction of these motorways to the private sector, with the prospect of extending the free measure to all roads. However, France 2 notes that at the end of the concessions, it is the state that is now responsible for the annual maintenance of the roads. No small task, and its management is already leading the government to consider the creation of a vignette, as well as a tax increase.

Faced with this situation, France 2 wonders whether the Spaniards are really the winners?