Do the Arrecife road works affect Tenerife too?

No. Arrecife is the capital of Lanzarote. For holidaymakers in the south of Tenerife, the works change nothing.

Which road should drivers in Arrecife avoid?

Since 18 August 2026 the town has advised drivers to avoid the Vía Medular and use the Arrecife ring road. The Valterra roundabout and the junctions with the Calle Pérez Galdós and the Carretera a Los Mármoles are also affected.

When will the Calle Jacinto Borges be resurfaced?

According to the council, in the second half of November, between the junctions of Las Cuatro Esquinas and Paz Peraza. The town gave no exact date.

When will the works in Arrecife be finished?

The town has not published an end date. In April 2026 it said the works should run until next winter.

Arrecife (Lanzarote): 3,000-tonne rain tank on Vía Medular

Q: How big will the new rainwater tank on the Vía Medular be?

It will be 50 metres long and should hold more than 3,000 tonnes of water, about three million litres. The council says that equals roughly 300 tanker lorries.

What changes now for visitors and residents?

Arrecife’s town council (Ayuntamiento) says it will resurface the affected stretches of the Vía Medular. First, crews must close the trenches and finish fitting the new drains (imbornales).

The Calle Jacinto Borges should get its new surface in the second half of November. According to the council, the stretch runs between the junctions of Las Cuatro Esquinas and Paz Peraza.

Arrecife is the capital of Lanzarote, not a town on Tenerife. Anyone on holiday in the south of Tenerife need change no plans.

Since 18 August 2026 the town has advised drivers on Lanzarote to avoid the Vía Medular and use the Arrecife ring road. Signs and barriers mark the alternative routes, but the town has not said when the diversions will end.

Mayor Yonathan de León asks residents for understanding and drivers for cooperation. He also runs the public works department himself.

What is being built on the Vía Medular?

A large main pipe already crosses the Vía Medular from Los Alonso to near the quay of Puerto de Naos. The contractor is now fitting the drains that channel rainwater into it.

The first drains sit at the junction of the Vía Medular with the Calle Pérez Galdós and the Carretera a Los Mármoles. Underground work continues near the fishermen’s guild (Cofradía de Pescadores) and the National Police station.

The centrepiece will be an underground rainwater tank in the central reservation of the Vía Medular, 50 metres long. The council says it should hold more than 3,000 tonnes of water, about three million litres.

The new network runs from the roundabout by the Valterra health centre to the access road to Puerto de Naos, next to the San Ginés fishermen’s guild. The tank is meant to hold rainwater temporarily and so reduce flooding in this part of town.

Why does the water gather right there?

The site lies on land reclaimed from the sea when the port area was built. The council therefore counts the zone among the points most at risk of flooding.

On top of that, the town says many Arrecife streets have no rainwater network. The water therefore runs into the sewers.

On 12 April 2025, 61 litres per square metre fell on the Calle Tenderete in Argana between 13:00 and 15:00, according to the Consorcio de Seguridad y Emergencias (the safety and emergency consortium). The Canary Islands emergency directorate declared the emergency over on 13 April at around 07:00.

Emergency services logged 222 incidents, and five people suffered minor injuries. In Arrecife, garages, cellars, flats and a youth centre flooded.

What does it cost and who pays?

The council awarded the contract on 24 April 2025 for €1,378,430.94. The reports do not say whether VAT is included or which firm is building it.

The town funds the project with support from the public works department of the Cabildo (island government) of Lanzarote, whose councillor is Jacobo Medina. How the cost is split between town and Cabildo has not been published.

Together with the Cuatro Esquinas and Charco de San Ginés phase, the town cites just under 3 million euros from island plans. All rainwater works of this term of office add up to almost 5 million euros, the council says.

Almost 800,000 euros is planned for extending the drains in Maneje, Argana Alta and Titerroy, covering about 20 streets. The money comes from a Canary Islands government grant and goes to the Consejo Insular de Aguas (island water council), which puts the works out to tender.

The mayor says the big floods come from ravines north of Argana Alta. In his words, the island water council is responsible for those, not the town.

What is still open?

The town has given no completion date for the Vía Medular. In April 2026 it said only that the works should run “until next winter”.

The start was originally announced for May 2025, but was only reported on 27 April 2026. The reports do not explain why it took about a year longer.

A phase at Las Cuatro Esquinas, with new drains and pumping stations below sea level, also remains open. It lies at the junction with the Calles Cienfuegos and Jacinto Borges.

Tenders for trenches and pipes around Cuatro Esquinas had been expected for the second half of 2026. Whether they have gone out is not confirmed.