• The Group, together with its Foundation, has opened applications for the Safe Road Operations Challenge, a new open innovation call aimed at technology startups and SMEs from around the world.
• According to the Spanish Directorate-General for Traffic's National Registry of Traffic Accident Victims, 154 accidents related to road maintenance and conservation work were recorded on Spanish roads in 2025, with speed being the main risk factor.
• The challenge addresses a risk common to road operations worldwide: the direct interaction between road workers, live traffic and changing operating conditions.
• The winning proposal will receive a €40,000 prize to develop a pilotproject in an Abertis business unit and contribute to the Zero Accidents vision.
Barcelona, 22 September 2026.- Abertis, a world leader in mobility transformation and high-capacity road management, is launching a new edition of the Abertis Global Challenge. The initiative, promoted by the Abertis Foundation as part of Beyond Roads, the Group's innovation hub, seeks solutions that can be applied to real-life operations to improve the safety and efficiency of road infrastructure, with a particular focus on protecting professionals who work alongside live traffic.
Road conservation, maintenance, assistance, inspection and operational work poses acommon challenge across all markets: proximity to live traffic, changing traffic conditions and the need to act quickly. In Spain, according to data from the National Registry of Traffic Accident Victims published by the Directorate-General for Traffic, 154 accidents related to road maintenance and conservation work were recorded in 2025. Most involved workers being struck by vehicles not involved in the roadworks, withspeed identified as the main risk factor.
"Abertis professionals work every day in live traffic environments in more than 15 countries. With this challenge, we aim to anticipate risks and reduce their exposure through technological solutions that can be applied to real-life operations," says Antonio Durán, Global Head of Innovation at Abertis.
The Abertis Foundation plays a key role in this edition by channelling the Group's social commitment and promoting international collaboration on innovation and road safety in the countries where Abertis operates.
Elena Salgado, President of the Abertis Foundation, says: "Road safety is a shared responsibility and must protect everyone. In this edition, we are paying particular attention to those who work on roads and motorways, a group that is especially exposed. Promoting innovative solutions is essential to preventing risks and avoiding irreversible consequences."
From innovation to the field
The Safe Road Operations Challenge is open to technology startups and SMEs from anycountry with innovative, scalable solutions that can be applied to real-life road operations.
Interested companies may submit their applications until 16 November 2026 through beyondroads.abertis.com. A committee of experts with representatives from different countries of the Abertis Group will evaluate the proposals for their potential impact, feasibility, integration capacity and scalability.
The winning proposal will receive a €40,000 prize to develop a pilot project in an Abertis business unit. The programme will enable the solution to be validated under real-life conditions and its potential rollout to other markets to be assessed. The winning proposal will be announced on 23 February 2027.
Technology to stay ahead of risk
The call is structured around three lines of action: detecting and predicting hazardous situations before exposure occurs; reducing or eliminating the presence of professionals in high-risk environments through safer, automated or remote solutions; and preventing unauthorised access and dangerous behaviour by road users near work zones.
To advance these objectives, Abertis invites startups from around the world to submit proposals incorporating technologies such as artificial intelligence, computer vision, robotics, connected vehicles, the Internet of Things (IoT), wearable devices, digital twins and predictive analytics, among other emerging technologies. Solutions should be able to combine different data sources to anticipate risk scenarios before teams are exposed to them.
With this third edition, Abertis and the Abertis Foundation are strengthening their collaboration with the entrepreneurial ecosystem to identify, test and scale technologies that contribute to safer and more efficient road operations.
About Beyond Roads:
Beyond Roads is Abertis' innovation hub dedicated to exploring and promoting the transformation of high capacity roads. Its aim is to develop intelligent infrastructure solutions that enable safer and more efficient mobility.
About Abertis
Abertis is a leading international operator in the management of high-capacity motorways and roads and in intelligent mobility solutions. The Group manages nearly 8,000 kilometres of infrastructure across 15 countries in Europe, the Americas and Asia.
With more than 60 years of experience, Abertis promotes an efficient, innovative and sustainable mobility model, integrating technology and expertise to address the mobility challenges of the future. Road safety is Abertis' top priority. The company continuously invests in technology, maintenance and advanced engineering to provide users with safe, comfortable and efficient journeys across its motorway network.
About the Abertis Foundation
The Abertis Foundation was established in 1999 as a non-profit organisation to contribute to the sustainable development of the territories in which the Abertis Group operates. To this end, the Foundation prioritises initiatives related to road safety, the environment, and social and cultural action.
The Abertis Foundation carries out initiatives aimed at improving road safety and reducing accident rates.These initiatives focus on road safety education for children, awareness-raising among young people andprevention programmes for older drivers.
It also promotes social initiatives supporting vulnerable groups and incorporates them into its work on roadsafety, sustainability and the environment.
In addition, it complements the activities of the Abertis Group in the countries where it operates, including Spain, France, Puerto Rico, Chile, Argentina, Brazil and Mexico, and contributes to the development of the International Network of Abertis Chairs.
Press Contacts
APPLE TREE – abertis@appletree.agency – 933 184 669
Àngels Garriga – ang@appletree.agency
Carla Solanellas – car@appletree.agency
15 June 2026
• This is one of the main findings of a study conducted by Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) in collaboration with the TRANSyT Transport Research Centre, and promoted by the Abertis Foundation as part of its international Chairs programme, analysing mobility habits, infrastructure assessments and future expectations.
• 77% of users believe toll roads have better pavement conditions than non-toll roads, and 67% say they feel safer driving on them.
• 85% call for real-time information on accidents and roadworks to be available directly in vehicles, while 75% support expanding barrier-free payment systems.
• 74% say they would use motorways more if they had access to a free electronic payment device, and seven out of ten already use mobile apps to plan their journeys.
8 May 2026
•The Group —owned by ACS and Mundys— reaches an agreement with the Government of Mexico to invest €1.2 billion in a strategic infrastructure improvement plan.
•This agreement will more than double the concession life of its subsidiary in the country, Red de Carreteras de Occidente (RCO), from 22 years to over 41 years, strengthening the long-term stability of the asset.
•José Aljaro, CEO of Abertis, stated: “This new project in Mexico demonstrates our ability to work alongside public administrations as a long-term industrial and financial partner, combining investment, service enhancement and value creation in a country where we already operate close to 900 kilometres of highways.”