By the end of 2022, the central government approved an additional 200 million euros for the province of Alicante to compensate for the shortfall it faced in the 2023 General State Budgets. On 5 December 2022, the ministries then responsible for Transport, Mobility and the Urban Agenda and the Valencian regional administration’s Department of Territorial Policy, Public Works and Mobility signed an agreement whereby the central administration would finance infrastructure in the Valencian Community, chosen by the Consell.
As part of that agreement, 77 million was earmarked for Alicante to fund safe and sustainable mobility and road improvements, while 40 million was allocated to transport initiatives, with most of that funding directed at the central station of the TRAM Alicante, increasing the share in that area from 35 million. Now the Mazón government asks the Sánchez administration for an additional 76.5 million to compensate for the province’s prior underfunding, based on updated cost estimates for these interventions. In the first category, safe and sustainable mobility and road reinforcement, the allocation rises from 77 to 89.7 million, while in the transport category it climbs from 40 to 103.8 million, with the largest portion again going to the TRAM central station, rising from 35 to 102 million. Putting the two sections together, the total moves from 117 to 193.5 million, meaning the Consell of Mazón is seeking a 76.5 million increase.
Demand
This latest demand marks another twist in the story of this agreement. In early July it was reported that the regional government proposed transferring 15 million of Alicante works to Valencia, a move the Mazón administration defended as necessary because the projects previously agreed with the Botànic and the ministry were deemed unrealizable given the December 2025 deadline. In that earlier revision, the conselleria then led by Salomé Pradas conveyed to the ministry the removal of Alicante activities valued at 21.6 million in exchange for other interventions worth 6.1 million. In that scenario the province would lose about 15.5 million. Now, in the latest revision, the balance has shifted and the Consell demands 76.5 million more for Alicante based on updated cost estimates for the originally agreed works, while also requesting more time to complete the projects.
Looking at the project details, aside from the major change in the cost of the central TRAM station upgrade, several other works have been revised upward. The CV-70 project rises from 1 to 1.1 million, the CV-804 from 1.1 to 1.2 million, the CV-83 from 900,000 to 1 million, the CV-913 from 400,000 to 500,000, the CV-800 from 3.6 to 4.1 million, the CV-710, CV-790 and CV-70 from 2.4 to 5.3 million, the CV-941, CV-940 and CV-949 from 2 to 6.3 million, the CV-920 from 600,000 to 800,000, the CV-836 from 575,000 to 872,000 and the CV-700 from 2.1 to 8.4 million.
Other works also saw increases in the estimated cost. The Southwest Ring of Pinoso climbs from 4.3 to 4.4 million, the North Ring of the CV-840 near Algueña from 6 to 7.5 million, the Southwest Ring of Villena from 3.9 to 5.2 million, and the Southwest Ring of Pinoso from 78,500 to 200,000 euros.
Altogether, more than a dozen Alicante projects have been revised upward in the Mazón government’s request to the Sánchez administration. In the broader package of interventions agreed between the central government and the Sánchez administration, more than thirty projects were planned for the province.
Another notable line of funding, amounting to 300 million euros, was approved toward the end of 2022 by the Council of Ministers to support the Valencian Community through two agreements. Two-thirds of that amount was destined for Alicante, with the then president of the Generalitat, Ximo Puig, highlighting improvements to roads and rail as the primary beneficiaries. This injection arrived after the province had faced the perceived injustice in the 2023 budgets, which were still under extension. The first agreement allocated 100 million for mobility solutions in public transport, while the second carried 200 million for road and rail projects. Puig welcomed the decision as highly positive, whereas the PP described it as a smoke screen.
The plans included aims such as acquiring tram rolling stock and deploying on-demand public transport or tariff policies. They also provided for the purchase of 16 new trams from the 4500 series, with an option to add twelve more, to be integrated into the TRAM Alicante fleet to replace older units, support planned expansions, and strengthen the current service. In addition, funding covered on-demand discretionary transport using nine-seat vehicles, including the driver, for rural areas with low traffic, functioning as a complement to the regular transport network. The package also included tariff integration for the Alicante metropolitan area through the promotion of multi-modal tickets that could be used across different transport modes.