Protest Against Tolls On A22 Editorial Photo

Struggling against a huge budget deficit, the Portuguese government decided to charge toll fees on all previously unpaid portuguese motorways (SCUTs). The A22, connecting Lagos to the Spanish border, is an international motorway. half of its length is paved with concrete, bumpy, curvy and very slippery when it rains. it was built in the early 90's to decrease fatalities on the heavily congestioned EN125, Algarve's most used road. The toll fees are to be electronically charged, causing no impact on employment - Algarve is currently the portuguese region with the highest unemployment rate. It is expected that the tourism and the local cross-border commerce will decline, further impoverishing the region, as the toll money won't be reinvested locally. in this mid-August demonstration, a protester stood in the middle of the EN125 flashing a sign reading abaixo a vigarice - enough with the scam on the A22. toll charges are to be charged from December 8th 2011 on.