Girona hospitality sector pushes for AP-7 tolls, seeks Catalan staff

The Catalan Language Service campaign “El català et serveix”, run by the Consorci de Normalització Lingüística, has visited around 70 bars, restaurants and hotels across the Empordà area – including Llafranc, Calella de Palafrugell, Tamariu, L’Estartit, Platja d’Aro and Sant Antoni de Calonge. Its aim is to help establishments provide menus, signage and customer service in Catalan and to train seasonal workers in the language. Organisers report difficulty finding temporary staff with sufficient Catalan proficiency and have introduced flexible short‑course training and workplace language pairings. Hotel Bell Repòs in Platja d’Aro took part, with CEO Sònia Joanals calling the initiative a useful tool for linguistic integration.

Separately, the Federació d'Hostaleria i Turisme de les Comarques de Girona has called for the reinstatement of tolls on the AP‑7 highway, which were removed in September 2021. The federation argues that traffic volume has risen 40 % and heavy‑vehicle traffic 80 % since the tolls were abolished, leading to a permanent state of congestion, a 40 % increase in accidents with victims, and more thefts targeting drivers. It proposes a fair‑priced, concession‑managed toll system to improve safety, fund maintenance and control traffic, especially from tourists.