Madrid will invest €61 million to finish the M-203, whose construction stopped almost 20 years ago. The completed road is expected to benefit about 35,000 residents in the Henares Corridor, though its management model remains undecided.
About 12 kilometres of the M-203 had already been paved when work stopped nearly two decades ago. The Community of Madrid now plans to spend an estimated €61 million to complete more than 12 kilometres of road, creating a new connection between the A-2 and R-3. Regional authorities expect the project to benefit around 35,000 residents in the Henares Corridor, particularly in Alcalá de Henares, Torrejón de Ardoz, Mejorada del Campo, Loeches and Velilla de San Antonio.
The project, originally known as MP-203, was conceived as a toll motorway linking the Alcalá de Henares area with the R-3 and easing pressure on the A-2. Construction began in 2005, with the road due to open in 2008, but work stopped in 2007 amid the economic crisis, problems obtaining the necessary permits and a lack of agreement on the final connection to the R-3. The unfinished road later became a setting for film shoots and car races.
Regional officials say the decision to resume construction reflects growing demand from residents. They also cite the substantial work already completed. After almost two decades out of use, the unfinished infrastructure has deteriorated. The permits that previously held up construction have now been obtained, according to the regional government. Once complete, the road is intended to provide an alternative route between eastern municipalities and improve connections between the Henares Corridor and the southeast of the Madrid region.
One practical detail remains open: the regional government has not defined how the completed road will be managed. Wider transport policy has also included proposals from the vehicle trade, covered in a recent report.
The regional government is also working on a southeast motorway of more than 41 kilometres, linking the M-503 with the M-407. The route is intended to strengthen connections between western and southern Madrid and provide links to the A-5, A-6 and A-4. More than 100,000 residents are expected to benefit.
The planned route would serve Valdemorillo and Villanueva de la Cañada, as well as Brunete and Sevilla la Nueva. Navalcarnero and El Álamo are also named, alongside Batres, Serranillos del Valle and Griñón.
For the M-501, the regional transport department has set up a technical team to work on the environmental aspects of a proposed widening announced by Isabel Díaz Ayuso during the Debate on the State of the Region. Transport minister Jorge Rodrigo has said that specific contracts are being prepared for an economic and financial study and an environmental impact assessment. The road is already a dual carriageway for its first 48 kilometres, up to Navas del Rey, carrying close to 70,000 vehicles a day. Beyond that point, towards the Castilla y León border, it becomes a conventional road with one lane in each direction and around 15,000 vehicles daily.
The regional plan is to extend the dual carriageway from Navas del Rey to the end of the route. The estimated cost is €416 million. The first phase of the study will examine a new alignment to Pelayos de la Presa; a later phase would cover the remaining 22 kilometres, passing through San Martín de Valdeiglesias. Separately, the regional government approved €4.9 million for urgent repairs to roads damaged by fire and traffic across 13 municipalities, including the M-501. Those works are part of the road-repair programme following the Sierra Oeste wildfire.
