Playa Blanca: Avenida de Femés reopens to traffic after €1.3m upgrade

The Avenida de Femés — the road most people know as the Femés-side entrance to Playa Blanca — reopened to traffic in both directions on Wednesday afternoon. The section now back in use runs between the Plabacón roundabout and the Marcastell development, in the south of Lanzarote.

Yaiza's town hall put €1.3 million of its municipal budget into the works, which covered strengthening the road surface, widening the carriageway, resurfacing, and building a central reservation and a cycle lane. Mayor Óscar Noda said the contractor must move straight on to the second phase, funded from the same budget: street lighting along the new central reservation and the opening of the cycle lane already visible along one side of the road.

Ángel Lago, councillor for public works, gave two reasons for the project: road safety on a stretch worn down by heavy use — every vehicle entering or leaving Playa Blanca via the Femés road passes through it — and a tidier appearance for one of the resort's two main entrances.

The same contractor, Hermanos Tavío Santana, is meanwhile working on the full refurbishment of Avenida Papagayo, Playa Blanca's main artery, where the council is investing a further €2.6 million. The mayor and the councillor visited the second-phase section on Wednesday, where pavements are being replaced and step barriers removed, and asked the company to speed up the finishing work.

Driving and walking in Playa Blanca while works continue

The reopening eases access from the north, but the site is not finished. Complementary work on lighting continues along Avenida de Femés, and the cycle lane, though built, is not yet open — cyclists should stick to their usual routes until it is. On Avenida Papagayo the second phase is still under way, with pavement sections closed and pedestrian detours in place. If you are driving to or from the ferry port at peak times, allow extra minutes and follow the temporary signage rather than improvising a shortcut through the side streets.