The Operation Crossings of the Strait (OPE) 2025 ends this Monday, September 15, after three months of continuous operations to facilitate the transit of Maghreb residents between Europe and North Africa. With consolidated data until this Sunday, September 14, the return phase records 1,762,582 passengers and 420,495 vehicles moved in 5,337 rotations. In year-on-year terms, passengers grow by 2.9% and vehicles by 2.5%, while the number of ship trips decreases by 9.6%.
The line scheme confirms the centrality of the Strait in the return phase. The Tangier Med–Algeciras connection handles 46.5% of the total by vehicles, followed by the Ceuta–Algeciras link, with 14.3%. The Nador–Almería route reaches 13.2% and ranks as the third option for return, ahead of Tangier Ville–Tarifa, which accounts for around 12% of road traffic. Overall, traffic with origin or destination in Algeciras exceeds 60% of the total return.
The rest of the lines are distributed with greater dispersion. Among those with lower demand in vehicles are Ghazaouet–Almería (0.3%), Tangier Med–Motril (0.4%), Oran–Almería (0.5%) and Algiers–Alicante (0.6%). Although their relative weight is reduced, these connections maintain their function of territorial capillarity in the distribution of flows between the southern peninsular facade and the ports of the Maghreb.
The operational balance of September 14 illustrates the pulse of the final stretch. That day, 62 rotations were recorded, with 15,577 passengers and 4,106 vehicles boarded in the entirety of the operation. By lines, Tangier Med–Algeciras operated 29 trips (5,471 passengers and 1,900 vehicles), Tangier Ville–Tarifa 11 (2,988 passengers and 346 vehicles) and Nador–Almería 2 (2,062 passengers and 578 vehicles). The distribution of the remaining rotations completed the offer to absorb the staggered returns of the last week.
The OPE 2025 was activated on June 15 with the opening of the departure phase, aimed at channeling the highest demand for shipments to Moroccan and Algerian ports. The return phase began on July 15 and has concluded this Monday, according to the usual schedule. During this period, shipping companies have adjusted frequencies and ship sizes based on occupancy and demand peaks, with special attention to weekends and the critical days previously identified in the coordination plan.
The operation integrates the port authorities and public services on land, with Ceuta and Melilla as relevant nodes in the Strait scheme. In the assistance area, there are 1,808 social care cases in Ceuta during the return phase and a total of 79 health interventions, of which 64 were recorded in Ceuta and 15 in Melilla. These actions are framed within ordinary services of information, family assistance, and first response health care accompanying the transit.
The closure of figures confirms the upward behavior of the demand for passengers and vehicles compared to the previous edition, in parallel with a lower number of rotations thanks to the program adjustment and the use of units with greater capacity on the trunk lines. In terms of traffic structure, Tangier Med–Algeciras remains the main return corridor and accounts for almost half of the vehicles, while Ceuta–Algeciras provides a significant share as a proximity link in the Strait. Nador–Almería strengthens its role as the third return route, and Tangier Ville–Tarifa consolidates as a fast option, complementing the offer from the southern peninsular arc.