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A substantial facelift is on the way for one of the key highways linking Murcia with Andalucía, as Spain’s Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility confirms a €2.36 million makeover for the old N-342 road. This route stretches all the way from Jerez de la Frontera in Cádiz province to Puerto Lumbreras, on the Andalucía-Murcia border, passing through important agricultural and rural districts such as Zarzalico and Henares, in the municipality of Lorca.

 

The new project will upgrade 15.7km of the N-342, from kilometre point 83 up to the Lorca-Almería border. Every day, the highway sees around 80 heavy vehicles, mainly moving farm and livestock products, alongside local traffic. With its links to the A-91 and the Mediterranean Highway (A-7), it is a crucial connection for both residents and businesses travelling between the Levante coast and Andalucía.

 

Residents can look forward to a new road surface made using recycled materials and more sustainable asphalt. The Ministry says the changes are “a direct contribution to decarbonisation and modernisation of the Spanish road network, ensuring safer and more environmentally friendly mobility in the long term.” This project is part of the EFAPAVES programme, which combines safer road surfaces with sustainability goals and circular economy principles. “It’s not just about fixing potholes, it’s about creating roads that last longer and shrink their carbon footprint,” as the Ministry puts it.

 

These improvements come after the last fatal accident on this road, a head-on collision in June 2023 that left one person dead and two others injured close to Puerto Lumbreras.

 

Once work begins in the coming weeks, the N-342 will be transformed using modern techniques, such as on-site material reuse, that help reduce both emissions and costs, while giving better grip and greater durability. The process is expected to be finished by the first half of 2026.

 

This news follows recent plans to upgrade other regional routes, such as the N-345, and forms part of an ongoing drive to improve Murcia’s and Andalucía’s main transport links.

 

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