New motorway linking Murcia and Valencia via Jumilla and Yecla now open
This stretch of road from Yecla will shorten the journey by almost half an hour
Road travellers will see almost half an hour shaved off journeys between Murcia and Valencia with the opening this week of a new stretch of motorway between the Region of Murcia and the Valencian Community. The section of the A-33 road connecting Yecla and Caudete (Albacete) with Fuente La Higuera (Valencia) was officially opened by the Ministry of Transport at 11.00 on Thursday January 11, completing the inland A-33 route as a quicker alternative to the coastal A-7, which is also 46 kilometres longer. This means that drivers will save around 25 minutes per one-way trip.
According to the Ministry, the stretch between Yecla and the Valencian Community measures 212 kilometres in length compared to the 258 of the A-7, so motorists choosing the new road will reduce both fuel consumption and harmful emissions.
Ahead of the grand opening, a government spokesperson said that “this highway will offer an alternative of better quality and shorter distance for transport between Valencia and Murcia than the existing one along the A-7 corridor in the province of Alicante.”
The ‘better quality’ the minister speaks of is due to a revolutionary type of road surfacing using reinforced concrete pavement on the stretch between Yecla and Caudete. This double layering technique has also been used on the border of the Region with the provinces of Albacete and Valencia and drastically reduces wear and tear and maintenance costs.
The new 16-kilometre stretch includes four viaducts, five overpasses, 11 underpasses and a wildlife crossing. The road itself is made up of a two-lane carriageway in each direction, an external hard shoulder of 2.5 metres and an internal shoulder of one metre.
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