Leaving Perpignan via the A9, you pass La Jonquera, and on the old AP-7 heading towards Barcelona, there are no barriers. No ticket. Since several toll road concessions have expired, hundreds of kilometers of Spanish highways have become toll-free. The savings on a France-Andalusia trip can represent a significant portion of the fuel budget. However, you need to know which sections are actually free, how to identify them on a map, and which navigation apps manage this information correctly.
Autovías and former autopistas: read the signs before reading the map
On the ground, confusion often arises from a detail in the signage. In Spain, highways are divided into two families: autovías (prefix “A”), generally free, and autopistas de peaje (prefix “AP”), historically toll roads. When a concession expires, the AP section is reclassified as A, and the toll disappears.
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The problem is that GPS and online maps do not all update these changes at the same pace. You might see “AP-7” on an old sign still in place while the section is already free and reclassified as A-7. When driving towards Costa Brava or Valencia, it’s better to rely on the official prefix than on the GPS display.
Several former toll sections, such as the AP-7 and AP-2 in Catalonia and Aragon, have been officially reclassified as free autovías. These routes still have areas of construction and enhanced maintenance, with more frequent temporary speed limits than on historical autovías. A comprehensive guide on free highways in Spain details the affected sections and their current status.
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Navigation apps to avoid tolls in Spain: Waze, Google Maps, and miDGT
We tested the three tools that most drivers use on road trips. None are perfect, but their strengths are complementary.
Waze: the most responsive for toll-free routes
Waze allows you to check the “avoid tolls” option in the route settings. In Spain, the app effectively redirects to free autovías and reports slowdowns in real time. It is the most suitable tool for a road trip where you want to avoid tolls without sacrificing travel time.
However, Waze may suggest detours via national roads (N-340 for example) when traffic is heavy on the free autovía, which lengthens the trip. Sometimes you have to manually force the route through the A-7 by adding a way point.
Google Maps: reliable on the route, slow on alerts
Google Maps incorporates sections that have become free and displays an estimate of the cost of remaining tolls. For planning a Madrid-Barcelona or France-Andalusia route, it’s a good starting point. The “avoid tolls” option works, but Google Maps does not report mobile speed cameras or construction zones in real time as quickly as Waze.
miDGT: the official Spanish app not to be overlooked
Since summer 2024, the DGT (Dirección General de Tráfico) has explicitly recommended that drivers use the miDGT app. It allows you to check in real time the opening of service areas and temporary closures on autovías and former autopistas, especially during periods of high heat or fires. It’s not a navigation GPS, but a useful complement to anticipate surprises on the road.
France-Spain routes: three corridors mostly free
Rather than listing all the sections, we focus on the three routes that French drivers most often take, highlighting their free portions and segments that are still toll roads.
- Mediterranean corridor (Perpignan – Valencia – Alicante): the former AP-7, now mostly A-7, is free from La Jonquera to Alicante. A few sections may still have ongoing renovations, especially between Tarragona and Castellón.
- Central corridor (Toulouse/Bordeaux – Zaragoza – Madrid): passing through Somport or the Somport tunnel, you reach the A-23 then the A-2 (former AP-2 between Zaragoza and Barcelona, free). The A-2 Zaragoza-Madrid route is historically a free autovía.
- Atlantic corridor (Bayonne – Bilbao – Burgos): the AP-8 in the Spanish Basque Country remains partially tolled. From Burgos, the A-1 towards Madrid is free. This is the corridor where residual tolls weigh most heavily on the budget.
Residual tolls and the special case of the AP-9 in Galicia
Not all Spanish highways are free. Some concessions still run for several more years, and the returns vary on the actual cost depending on the type of vehicle. The AP-9, which crosses Galicia from Ferrol to Vigo, remains a toll road.
Notably, the Xunta de Galicia has implemented targeted discounts for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles on the AP-9, as part of regional air quality plans. For a driver in an EV, a mixed route combining free autovías and a short passage on the AP-9 with a discount may prove to be faster and only slightly more expensive than a completely free detour.
Other toll sections remain around Bilbao (AP-8), in Catalonia on certain suburban access roads, and on specific tunnels. Before departing, checking the complete route on Google Maps with the “avoid tolls” option enabled helps identify these segments and decide on a case-by-case basis.
Summer traffic and restrictions on former autopistas: what changes in practice
The toll-free status has mechanically increased traffic on these routes, especially the A-7 in summer. The Ministerio de Transportes y Movilidad Sostenible reports chronic traffic jams on the former AP-7 during the summer period. Leaving early in the morning or shifting your trip to weekdays remains the only realistic solution.
The conservation plan for the Red de Carreteras del Estado 2024-2026 foresees regular work on sections recently freed from tolls. In practice, you should expect lane reductions and speed limits of 80 km/h on several kilometers of sections, without long advance notice. The miDGT app and Waze report these areas more quickly than Google Maps.
For a summer road trip to Costa del Sol or Andalusia, combining the free A-7 with breaks on parallel national roads helps avoid congestion during peak hours while enjoying the toll-free network for most of the journey.