A new road in the rugged area where Jay Slater was last seen in Tenerife was built just a year ago, according to a local.

Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, the Tenerife native, who chose to remain anonymous, said: “This whole road was built only around a year ago. It was built to make the area safer, to make it easier for people to get in and out of.”

The resident added that “there are many tourists and many walkers and hikers” in the area, adding: “The road was supposed to make it safer for them, but here we are.”

Calle Turon, the road up to Masca and beyond to Hilda, separates those crossing it from its steep edges with bollards. It is known for its challenging drive marked by blind hairpin turns, steep climbs and drops.

Jay, the 19-year-old apprentice bricklayer from Lancashire who had travelled to Tenerife in mid-June to attend a music festival, was last heard from his friend Lucy at 8.30am on June 17, after he had spent a few hours at a holiday rental in the area with two unnamed British men.

The teenager, who seemingly decided to walk his way back from the Masca area to Los Cristianos where he was staying, told his friend his phone battery was nearly out of charge, he was without water and had cut his leg with a cactus.

Spanish police called off the search on June 30, but continue to investigate Jay’s disappearance.