Algarve mayors have vowed to complete Ecovia do Litoral, the region’s main cycling route, by “2020 or 2021”.
Jorge Botelho, president of AMAL, the municipalities association, told Correio da Manhã tabloid that investments will be made soon to ensure the route is completed once and for all.
“There are works already underway and tenders to be finalised,” he told CM.
Botelho admitted that there is “still a lot of work to do in terms of the pavement, redefining the route and signage”.
It was around a year ago that Público newspaper published a damning report about the state of the 214km cycling route.
After over a decade, it is still unfinished and, in some sections, cyclists are forced onto the EN125 road, putting them at jeopardy.
José Manuel Caetano, president of the Portuguese federation of bicycle tourism and cyclists (FPCUV), said at the time there were many “deficiencies” in the way the region’s mobility policies are handled.
However, authorities in the Algarve have made it their goal to make the region a better destination for cyclists.
Last year, the region joined the ‘Atlantic on Bike’ project, which aims to turn the international Eurovelo1 route into a popular attraction for tourists. The route is a 9,100km network along the European western borders, including “the majestic fjords of Norway, the wild Irish coastline and the sun-kissed beaches of Portugal”.
Jorge Botelho says that nature and sports tourism is becoming a larger niche every day and that the Algarve must do more to increase the region’s visibility and attract more holidaymakers.
