Tenerife will develop a "Mobility Pact" to address transportation problems.

A large-scale "Mobility Pact" is planned to be created in Tenerife. Representatives from the University of La Laguna, various professional unions, entrepreneurs, politicians, and even delegates from 31 municipalities of the island will be involved in the work on it. They say they want to take into account different points of view so that the decision is balanced and supported by everyone. This was reported by the Tenerife Island Council after the seventh meeting on mobility issues.

According to government officials, this "Mobility Pact" should determine how the island will move into the future – towards more convenient, environmentally friendly, and coordinated transport. The created working group will become the main platform for discussions and development of this important document.

The island's councilor for mobility, Eulalia García, said that two commissions will also be created: one for highways and one for mobility. The first will monitor the progress of repair work, and the second will deal with traffic management in protected areas, such as Anaga. Ms. García emphasized the need to strengthen parking control in places like Anaga, Masca, or Teide, so that people do not violate the rules. "If people do not respect the rules, we will have to introduce stricter restrictions," she said.

The meeting also discussed current projects, including the construction of a railway. "For us, this is an important step towards more environmentally friendly and convenient public transport," said Eulalia García. She called this project "a small but important step," but added that a relevant agreement must be signed to finance it.

In addition to Eulalia García, the meeting was attended by the head of the island council, Rosa Dávila, her deputy, Lope Afonso, the councilor for highways, Dámaso Arteaga, the deputy councilor for infrastructure of the Canary Islands government, Francis González, as well as representatives of business, public organizations, the Civil Guard, and professional unions.

"Mobility is a major challenge for Tenerife," said Rosa Dávila. "Together, we are starting work on creating a large pact for sustainable mobility. We want it to be a historic agreement that will help solve the problem of traffic jams that thousands of people suffer from every day, protect our nature, and reduce emissions of harmful substances." Ms. Dávila added that the basis for this process will be the Tenerife Island Sustainable Mobility Plan – a strategy that will determine how the island's transport system will develop in the coming years.

According to the Tenerife Council, meeting participants supported the Island Sustainable Mobility Plan, the signing of an agreement on the construction of the railway, changes in the schedule of classes at the University of La Laguna, as well as improvements to public transport in Masca and Anaga.

The Tenerife Island Sustainable Mobility Plan (Pimsit) is planned to be approved in the near future. According to government officials, this is the largest transport development strategy in the island's history, involving investments of over €5 billion between 2025 and 2035. The plan includes the construction of new roads (including lane expansion on the TF-1 and TF-5), the reorganization of public transport, the construction of railway lines in the north and south of the island, as well as the introduction of "smart" lanes for buses and cars with multiple passengers. After a 45-day public consultation period, the plan will be finally approved along with an assessment of its environmental impact.

The head of the island announced an important step in the development of rail transport in Tenerife – the signing of an agreement that will allow the construction of the Southern Railway to begin. "The priority is the construction of the San Isidro - Adeje section, costing €950 million, 28 kilometers long, which will be used by about 65,000 people every day," she added. Thanks to this railway, the travel time between these two points will be reduced to 15 minutes, and convenient connections to Tenerife South Airport, the Port of Los Cristianos, Las Chafiras, and El Mojón Hospital will be provided. It is expected that this will reduce the number of cars on the roads by 800,000 per day.

The Island Council also announced a tender for the maintenance of 2,251 bus stops on the island, with an investment of €3.7 million. This includes cleaning, inspections, replacement of canopies, and repairs. In addition, it is planned to expand the "transport on demand" service to five new districts (Tacoronte-El Sauzal, Santa Úrsula-La Victoria-La Matanza, Los Silos-El Tanque-Garachico-Icod, La Guancha-San Juan de la Rambla, and Güímar-Arafo), but the tender has been suspended due to appeals.

The Vice-Rector of the University of La Laguna, Marta Domínguez, said that the schedule of classes has been changed in three faculties of the university. This is expected to reduce the number of cars on the roads during peak hours by 500 units per day, or 110,800 trips per year. These calculations were made based on a survey of students conducted by the university. The goal of these changes is to reduce congestion on the northern highway (TF-5) in the morning.