€123 million upgrade planned for the TF-1 motorway between Erques and Santiago del Teide
A major improvement to Tenerife’s road network is moving ahead, with a €123 million plan to widen a 14-kilometre stretch of the TF-1 between Erques and Santiago del Teide. The upgrade will turn this single-lane section into a full dual carriageway and is seen as a key step towards completing the island’s Insular Ring, which will allow drivers to travel around Tenerife more easily.
The Canary Islands Government has already approved the technical plans, and the project is now open to public consultation for 30 days. The works will take place between the end of the Erques tunnel and the entrance to the Bicho tunnel.
The road will be widened towards the sea, creating five lanes in total: three heading towards Santiago del Teide and two towards Adeje. The redesigned route will have a planned speed limit of 80 km/h.
The project also includes improvements to slip roads, local access routes, farm tracks, bridges, underpasses, and drainage systems. New road surfaces and updated safety barriers will be installed, along with landscaping and environmental restoration works.
Only limited land expropriation will be needed. Because the TF-1 is a regional motorway, the compulsory purchase limit extends eight metres from the edge of the road. Much of the required land was already acquired during earlier works on the Adeje–Santiago del Teide section, meaning only a few new plots will be affected. No public land belonging to Guía de Isora or Santiago del Teide is included.
Eight small plots will be used temporarily during construction for storage areas and access to viaduct works. These will not affect any buildings, and the temporary use will last between 12 months and the full 5-year construction period.
Traffic forecasts up to 2048 show that this stretch needs greater capacity, especially ahead of the planned 2027 opening of the new Erjos tunnel. Once completed, the tunnel, together with the TF-1 upgrade, will help complete Tenerife’s motorway loop, making journeys from the south to Puerto de la Cruz quicker and more efficient.
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