Again, I will try to tell you about the roads of my Spain, This is a daunting task, but always wanted to write something about it. As you have been reading my blog , you know I love the road, the car is my second home! Road warrior all the way or we used to say in my good old Daytona Beach, put your pedal to the metal and rock !!!
I have moved about the globetrotter in me and been around to so many countries, (81), and cities I lost count ! Well in my dear Spain, I started out not driving at all , too young! but then did it for a brief moment in Madrid back in 1982 just renting after my University graduation back in Florida , and I have never stop afterward ! Some new pictures found in my vault that should be in my blog, This is my new take on the roads of my Spain, part I !!! Hope you enjoy it as I
The first would be passing the memorable Calatayud, in the province of Zaragoza in the autonomous community of Aragon on the banks of the Jalon river. There are many roads crossing here such as the A2 and the N234 and old N IIa (which we still preferred to take more in town, see post on gas station), There is the now wonderful A23,
The Autovia Mudéjar highway or A-23, from Sagunto to the French border through Somport or, according to some indications of the road, the highway from Valencia to France through Aragón or the Sagunto-Somport highway, will be, once it is completely finished, (ongoing almost done) an important connection axis between the Valencian Community, Aragon, the Basque Country area and France through the Somport tunnel. he A-23 also is part of the European Route E7, which connects Pau, in the south of France, with Zaragoza. In the French section, the road is called RN134, which links Pau with Oloron-Sainte-Marie direction Zaragoza, and Spain. the Z-40 beltway, completely bypasses Zaragoza, and allows the articulation of the metropolitan area and the distribution of national, regional and urban transits. Do take it marvelous ! The three Aragonese capitals have been linked by dual carriageway, with the commissioning of the last section of the A-23 that was pending to be opened. The highway between Zaragoza and Teruel extends to Huesca and is expected to reach the French border, but the route also connects from Zaragoza with the Cantabrian Sea on the A-68, and in the future with the north of Navarre and the Basque Country by the A-21 and with Lérida on the A-22.
The N330 national road, goes to Alicante, Almansa, Requena,Utiel, Teruel, Zaragoza, Huesca, Jaca, and the French border at Somport tunnel (see post) ,Shortly before reaching Villanueva de Gállego, the doubled N-330 joins the A-23; and it is in Villanueva de Gállego where the N-330 separates from the A-23 as a single carriageway. The N-330
crosses, in addition to Villanueva, the towns of Zuera and Almudévar and Alto de las Canteras, to reach Huesca. Currently with the conversion of Monrepós into a dual carriageway, the N-330 ends its route in Nueno. After Monrepós, the road came to Sabiñánigo, an industrial town in the Huesca Pyrenees, and from there to Jaca where it separated from the N-240. Through Avda. de Francia or de la Variante, it enters the Valle del Aragón and, after crossing Castiello de Jaca, Villanúa ,and Canfranc, it takes the first ramps of the Somport pass, or underground
tunnel ending at the French border at an altitude of 1,640 meters. My road for many years and love can’t wait to be back eventually !! . Our most nostalgic memorable trips have been over or under Somport (see post) We take it from France under Somport tunnel with the N134 France and then come out with the N330 Spain to direction Huesca, Zaragoza taken the panels for Jaca. The N330 is now a super highway, when I first started driving by here in 1990 most was dirt road under construction funding by the EU !
I have done the driving from Madrid , but the last time was from Cuenca on the A40 (autovía de la Meseta Sur) direction Toledo/Madrid before getting off on the N400 for Toledo. From the A-40 motorway to Tarancón, where it connects with the A- 3 (Madrid-Valencia) and from there to Cuenca, the highway has been designed as a variant of the current N-400, which has remained a service road for most of its length. This N400 is the old road I took to see relatives near Toledo it has become a secondary road today as the A40 has taken over,
The A 2 from Madrid to France as Madrid, Zaragoza, Lleida, Barcelona, Girona and French border. The A-2 , also known as the Autovia del Noreste or northeast highway, is one of six radial highways in Spain that connects Madrid to Barcelona. The A-2 begins to the east of Madrid (M-30 beltway) where it extends the great Avenida de America. It crosses the eastern part of the City conurbation (doubled by the newer M-21) and bypasses the Adolfo Suarez Barajas International Airport from the south. It continues its path to the northeast where it serves the towns of Torrejón de Ardoz, Alcalá de Henares and Guadalaraja which it runs along to the south and from where it is joined by the R-2. The A-2 is connected with A-15, and it extends northeast following the Jalón Valley, serves Calatayud, then arrives in Zaragoza serving Europe’s largest logistics platform Pla-Za before connecting to the Zaragoza ring road (Z-40).
The Direccion General de Trafico (DGT) on trafic in Spain: https://www.dgt.es/conoce-el-estado-del-trafico/informacion-e-incidencias-de-trafico/
The Real Automóvil Club de España (RACE) info on trafic and radars : https://www.race.es/mapas-de-carreteras
The Guia Repsol guides on itineraries and route maps,( the Spanish Michelin) : https://www.guiarepsol.com/es/rutas/
And when on the road, you need to know about the weather from official weather service of Spain (AEMET) : https://www.guiarepsol.com/es/rutas/
There you go folks, a grandeur of freedom on the roads and to know more corners than you would like to believe, get on the road see all of Spain ! Take from this world traveler , the best way to travel ,and in Spain you are in heaven, Do read my other posts on the roads of Spain,and you will be fine, Again, hope you enjoy this post on the roads of my Spain, part I !!! as I
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 