Tolls decided today?
Updated: 04-Nov-2011
| -[57018].res.jpg "Photo: Paulo Silvestre – THE RESIDENT GROUP.")
Photo: Paulo Silvestre – THE RESIDENT GROUP.
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Today (Friday) the Portuguese Parliament will meet again to decide when the new tolls are to be implemented on the A22-Via do Infante.
The intended start date was to be the end of October but no further information has been forthcoming leaving the companies in charge of managing customer information, such as Via Verde and local post offices, in the dark.
The information available online for foreign residents and visitors in English is limited and confusing with many different options.
On visiting the post office in Lagoa for more information on Monday, the Algarve Resident was greeted with the apologies that they do not have the electronic ID devices yet for private customers, they are still to arrive from Via Verde and apart from getting them online, there is no written information available on prices.
On the Via Verde’s customer helpline (707 500 900), the Algarve Resident was informed that they have one shop in Faro where drivers can buy the electronic tag (Dispositivo Electrónico or DE) in person.
If the tolls are to be implemented at the end of October then the Algarve is woefully underprepared for them.
For a small car such as a Volkswagen Polo, the charge for an electronic ID is €27.50 (€25 if you buy online). To get the device, you need to submit your car registration details, your fiscal number and have a valid Portuguese bank account to which future payments will be linked.
After that you can top up your payment using an ATM, post office or Payshop. Using the CTT website you can find information in English (www.ctt.pt) and once registered you can check your payments using a dedicated login area.
For those who have foreign registered cars or are only visiting the area, it is a little more complicated and rather like being a tourist in London. You are presented with the option of three and five day passes.
A three-day pass costs €20.62 for light vehicles and includes unlimited trips within the three days. A five-day pass for the same class of vehicle starts at €10.62 but is limited to the deposit amount you pay which can be topped up like a bus pass within that period.
Finally there is also the option of renting an electronic ID which is valid for up to 90 days; the tag costs €27.50 and is refundable minus administration fees and is topped up in the same way as the five-day pass. You can also renew your rental of this pass making this the best option for foreign registered cars.
When hiring a car, the customer will have to pay the extra costs themselves if they use the A22 adding an inconvenience to their journey.
If they fail to pay the fees then inevitably the car hire companies are left to chase the debts themselves. There will also not be the option of manual tolls such as ones in Spain and France.
The Algarve Resident spoke to several car hire companies who agree it will be a “huge inconvenience” and so far they have not had any further news of when the tolls will begin to be charged so they are unable to inform their customers.
Left-wing politician João Vasconcelos, who set up the Comissão de Utentes da A22 (A22 users’ commission) told the Algarve Resident:“There is no starting date for tolls yet and today (Friday) we will discuss in Parliament the petition signed by more than 13,000 users of the A22 who do not want tolls on that road. “
Residents and businesses alike fear that these charges will be detrimental to the growth of Algarve tourism and the local economy.
The hesitant lack of information has been a clear indication in showing how little support there is for this initiative in an area that already has stretched resources and will be hit with further taxation next year when, for instance, restaurants are to be charged higher VAT at 23% (currently at 13%).
João Vasconcelos added: “Regardless of when tolls begin to be collected, we will continue our fight. Tolls will be a catastrophe for the region and an ‘announced death’ of the tourism sector in the region.”
Do you have a view on this story? Please email Editor Inês Lopes at ines.lopes@theresidentgroup.com
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