While the work of the TAV is delayed and regressed, the decisions on the road to be joined by Navarre and the Basque Y do not seem to have a certain time limit. This has been suggested by the Secretary of State for Sustainable Transport of the Government of Spain, José Antonio Santano.

So far, there were two alternatives on the table to make that connection: Vitoria and Ezanabol -Itsaso. Both the autonomous governments and the MEPs were divided in favour of one or the other, but the Spanish Government which has to decide a long time ago has already said that it likes Vitoria more. He pointed out, however, that a "third way", which does not correspond to the current one, is currently being considered.

In particular, this third road would be the same as the alternative that goes from Pamplona to Vitoria to Bakaiku, from where it would head towards Ezdox-Itsaso. In this way, he would have a "common path" in the initial section, while in the one of Ezdox-Itsaso, according to Santano, Aralar would not cause "so much damage", as we have read in the Diario de Navarra: Instead of a 21-kilometre tunnel, a section of the natural park and the Altzania Mountains would be affected by 18.5 kilometres.

This third alternative is not new. As early as 20218, the Government of Navarra and the Basque Government raised something similar in the appeals for an informative study by the Spanish Ministry of Transport.

Once again, this alternative would ask the promoters of the TAV the possibility of continuing with the works on that "common road" that goes from Pamplona at least to Bakaiku. On the contrary, deciding on the route from there is still going to take a long time, as Santano himself has recognized that the connection with Ezdox-Itsaso remains "problematic" with many owners.