The rental vehicle parking areas, previously concentrated on the airport road margins or in distant agricultural plots, are now located in the immediate vicinity of Torrellano. This situation affects pedestrian and cyclist routes connecting the urban center with the Elche Business Park.
The Vial Aeropuerto Elche Association warns that the expansion of the car rental service has exceeded its initial area and is encroaching on daily use zones for residents. A spokesperson for the neighborhood entity points out that this situation was foreseeable if action was not taken sooner, and that the problem has ceased to be localized, becoming a territorial conflict with a direct impact on residents' daily lives.
“"Six years ago, at the Torrellano Social Center, in a meeting of all associations, I predicted the situation: the lots would reach the town."
Companies in the sector have relocated as the land closest to the airport became saturated. This movement has brought the facilities closer to the center of Torrellano and the connection points with the Business Park. An example is a lot located next to the corridor linking Torrellano with the Business Park, which includes a bike and pedestrian path that is also a cattle trail.
The transformation of former agricultural plots into massive parking areas has completely altered the use of rural roads and accesses. Where there were once occasional farm entrances, there are now constant movements of rental vehicles, car transporters, and heavy machinery. The infrastructure was not designed to support this volume of traffic, which is deteriorating the bike path and compromising the safety of its users.
Neighborhood concern is not limited to Torrellano, as the same pattern is beginning to reproduce in El Altet and has multiplied in Arenales del Sol, always under the same business logic of proximity to the airport. The association fears that this expansion will alter mobility and the environment if there is no urban planning that defines where these activities can be implemented.
The complaint about the arrival of the lots in the core of Torrellano comes after the District Board approved by majority to submit the Vial Aeropuerto Elche Association's report to the Elche City Council. This document analyzes over 20 years of expansion of car rental activities around the airport and warns of a progressive transformation of rural land, with urban, environmental, mobility, and safety consequences.
