Infrastructure

Work begins on Chilches to Benajarafe footpath after years of waiting

The project will be carried out between La Rincona and La Esperanza residential areas between the eastern Costa del Sol villages and will include pavements at least two metres wide, car parks, street lighting, storm drains and green spaces

Signing ceremony to mark the start of construction work in Benajarafe. (SUR)

SUR

17/09/2026 a las 10:04h.

Vélez-Málaga town hall on the eastern Costa del Sol has given the green light to work on the so-called ‘Acerado Norte’ between Chilches ... Costa and Benajarafe, a long-awaited project to improve safety for pedestrians along the old N-340 coastal road. The signing of the site layout agreement with the company Transportes Antelo means that work can now begin on the section between the La Rincona and La Esperanza residential areas.

The work will be carried out on the northern side of the CN-340a and will include a pavement at least two metres wide. The project also includes new parking spaces, the renewal of utility networks and street lighting, drainage work, green spaces and the construction of a small viewing point in the Paraíso del Sol area.

The mayor, Jesús Lupiáñez, attended the signing alongside the deputy mayor of Benajarafe and Chilches, Rocío Ruiz and the councillor for infrastructure, Jesús María Claros. “Today we are leaving the projects and the red tape behind and taking the most important step: the machinery is about to roll in and a long-standing demand from our residents is beginning to become a reality,” said the mayor.

The new pavement will link La Rincona and La Esperanza; it will be at least two metres wide and will feature improvements to safety, utilities and parking facilities

In addition to the pavement, a verge of at least 60 centimetres will be set aside and new ducting and cabling for street lighting will be installed. The project also includes a new stormwater drainage network connected to the existing infrastructure to improve water drainage.

Residents have been calling for a footpath to link the two villages since August 2018, when the council debated a proposal from this group to build a pavement on the north-hand side from Chilches Costa to Benajarafe. That initiative highlighted the fact that pedestrians were forced to walk along the hard shoulder of the old N-340. The matter was then left pending so that reports from the town planning and infrastructure departments could be incorporated before it was debated again.

Tender

The current contract was put out to tender in May with a base budget of 741,971 euros, including VAT. Following a call for tenders in which three companies took part, the contract was awarded on 1 September to Transportes Antelo for €578,063 plus VAT, bringing the final amount to €699,456 and representing a cost saving of 5.73 per cent compared with the initial budget.

What the area will look like once the work is complete. (SUR)

The town hall has said that it is working on further initiatives to ensure the gradual continuation of transport improvements along the old N-340 coastal road.

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