HIGH-SPEED rail services between Spain's largest two cities and France have been snapped up by half a million passengers in less than nine months, reveals the transport board.
Road traffic law overhaul now in force: Your guide to what's changed
22/03/2022
CHANGES have come into force in Spain's road traffic legislation, imposing tougher penalties for the most common offences.
The points-based licence in Spain starts with a full quota of 12, and these are deducted for breaking the law, with a loss of all 12 leading to an automatic ban.
Most of the amendments to the highways law, which came into effect on Monday (March 21), involve higher numbers of points deducted for the more 'typical' breaches, such as speeding.
What are the most frequent fines for?
According to Formaster, the overwhelming majority of driving offences which see motorists fined on Spanish roads relate to speeding – in fact, 65% of fines dished out in 2021 were for breaking the limit.
Of these, seven in 10 fines were the result of speeding cars being caught on camera, or radar.
Driving too fast is by far the most common breach of road traffic laws, a long way ahead of the second-most frequent – that of using a vehicle with an out-of-date or failed ITV.
The ITV is Spain's equivalent of the MOT test in the UK, or a compulsory State-conducted regular inspection; generally, cars under four years old do not have to take one, unless they are former hire cars or courtesy vehicles, in which case the owner will receive a letter instructing them to arrange a test at the nearest accredited centre in their home region; cars between four and 10 years old require them every two years, and at 10 years old and over, every year.
The pass sticker must be displayed prominently at the top of the windscreen, and will show the date of expiry.
Failing a test means the owner has 30 days to get the faults resulting in an unsuccessful result fixed and to put the vehicle through the ITV again – during that time, the car cannot be driven except to a workshop for repairs, or to the test centre.
This restriction on use applies even if the existing ITV has not yet expired but the car has failed, and even if the required repairs have been carried out and the ITV is still in date – a fail is logged on a central system and is enough to make a car unroadworthy in the eyes of the law.
Fortunately, once the necessary repairs are carried out, the retest only costs 50% of the original ITV, or typically about €20 to €25.
A total of 11% of road traffic fines handed out in Spain are for cars being driven with a failed ITV, or an overdue one.
In the past few years, the number of vehicles not taken for their ITV has risen to up to 40%, although this does not necessarily mean that only six in 10 you share the road with have not been tested – owners cannot be fined if their parked car is spotted with an expired ITV certificate, so it could mean that many of those who have not taken their vehicle for a test in time have not been using it, and intend to do so as soon as they know they will need to start driving again.
Another common fine is for tyres being in a poor condition – on average, around 27,000 drivers are hit with a ticket for this reason every year.
Surprisingly, only 2.15% of fines are for using mobile phones or other devices whilst driving, although this may only be the tip of the iceberg – it is far easier to spot a car travelling too fast than a person inside sending text messages from a phone on their lap, although helicopters out of immediate sight, and roadside radars, can home in on what a motorist is doing in much finer detail than a traffic police officer at a roadblock.
Possibly for these reasons, the number of fines for not wearing a seatbelt is also low – 2.15% - a figure that includes motorcyclists not wearing a helmet, or their hard-hat not being fastened.
This said, distraction – and mobile phone use counts as this – has been the main cause of death in road crashes continually since 2016.
More points taken off
Based upon these figures, Spain's General Directorate of Traffic (DGT), part of the ministry of transport and public works, has tightened up on the most-fined-for offences and increased the number of points that are taken off a driver's licence for committing them.
Spanish licences are automatically points-based, and anyone who is resident in the country is required to have one, on pain of a very large fine; non-residents will still be fined for offences, whether or not points are involved, and licensing authorities are now connected worldwide, meaning drivers can be traced.
Using mobile phones or other devices whilst driving will now involve a loss of six licence points – 50%, so being caught twice with a phone at the wheel means a complete ban – rather than the previous three points.
Not wearing a seatbelt now attracts a four-point loss, rather than three – according to the DGT, one in four people who die in car crashes was not wearing a seatbelt at the time, and although figures vary annually, an average of 60% of fatalities could have been prevented if the victim had been strapped in.
Speeding attracts the same number of points loss and fines, the level depending upon how serious the offence is – but the main change here is that the previous margin of 20 kilometres per hour for overtaking has been scrapped.
Until March 21, passing someone on a non-motorway road in a safe, legal place – with full visibility and a broken white line – meant you could legitimately drive at up to 20 kilometres per hour over the speed limit to enable you to get back into the right-hand lane quicker. Now, this has been axed, so if you cannot overtake without going beyond the limit, you are required to stay behind.
The DGT says that two in every three fatal crashes happen on B-roads – secondary highways – and, in 2019, a typical year, a total of 239 people were killed in head-on crashes on single-carriageway roads, which is why the law change seeks to discourage drivers from trying to get past vehicles in front of them where they cannot safely do so within the speed limit.
Drink-driving limits for under-18s have now reduced to zero.
In practice, under-18s are not legally allowed to drink alcohol in Spain, and you cannot start learning to drive until you are 18; parents or older, experienced drivers taking a learner out to 'practise' is illegal, even on a car park or industrial estate, as a person who has not yet passed their test is only permitted to get behind the wheel with an authorised instructor from a State-run driving school premises.
This said, under-18s do ride mopeds and small motorbikes, and pushbikes and electric skateboards, all of which are subject to drink-driving laws – for adults, the alcohol limit when using these is the same for driving a car, but for teenagers, no drinking at all, not even a drop, is permitted.
Fines for drink-driving start at €500.
Passing cyclists requires the driver leave a minimum distance of 1.5 metres (4'11”) between their vehicle and the bike, and as long as it is safe to do so, motorists are allowed to cross an unbroken white line when overtaking them. If it is not safe, or the road is too narrow to leave at least a 1.5-metre distance, drivers must stay behind the cyclists until they have enough space to pass them.
On narrow roads, cyclists are not allowed to ride two abreast, except during official competition.
From March 21, failing to respect the minimum distance when passing cyclists has leapt from a four-point loss to six points off a driver's licence.
Also, it remains forbidden to park on a cycle lane.
A longer wait before regaining lost points means you can now no longer even start working on recovering your 'balance' until you have gone at least two years without committing a single points-loss offence.
In the past, the minimum timeframe differed according to the severity of the law breach, but is now two years across the board.
Getting your points back is not automatic after a set time – they never become 'spent' automatically. Undertaking a course on safe and efficient driving – at your own expense, naturally – via an approved driving school premises gets you two points back.
But the DGT stresses you do not have to be guilty of a traffic offence to join one of these courses; they are recommended periodically for anyone who wants to improve their driving skills, given that hardly anyone on the road has ever taken a driving lesson since passing their test.
Throwing anything out of the window, from empty paper cups to cigarette ends, or rubbish in general, now attracts a fine and loss of points. Any item that could cause an accident by being hurled onto the road or the roadside, or which may cause a forest fire, or which is a general pollutant – such as plastic – will net you a €500 fine and cost you six licence points.
Motorcyclists are allowed to used approved wireless devices attached to their helmets which 'aid communication or navigation', according to the DGT, 'provided they do not affect driving safety'.
Low-emissions zones, now frequently found in city centres including Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia, are restricted to residents-only, authorised public transport, loading and unloading at set times, and zero-emissions vehicles such as electrically-powered cars. Before the beginning of 2023, all towns and cities in Spain with 50,000 or more inhabitants are required by law to have set aside low-emissions zones, known as Zonas de Bajas Emisiones or ZBEs.
Anyone caught entering a ZBE in their car or other non-authorised vehicle, where they are not covered by exemptions (being resident, unloading, accessing a car park or other exceptions applied by the town or city council), will face a fine starting from €200.
Driving test fraud, where someone pretends to be you to sit your practical or theory test for you, or where you sneak devices into the exam room to look up the answers, now counts as a 'serious offence'; this description also includes any type of fraud or misrepresentation involving a licence points recovery course.
Fines are applied from €500, and the offender may be banned from taking the test or course for a minimum of six months.
'Alcolock' devices, which block the ignition and prevent the vehicle from starting where the driver is over the alcohol limit, will not become compulsory for private cars just yet, but from July 6 this year, all road passenger transport which has the required interface must have one fitted.
The required interface will only be present on newer vehicles, but this means that as coaches, buses, taxis and minibuses are gradually replaced, a situation will eventually arise whereby all of these commercial vehicles on the road will have a compulsory 'alcoholock' or 'alco-lock'.
According to European Union Regulation number 2019/2144, all commercial passenger transport vehicles which use the roads must have one of these by July 6, 2022, and all newly-registered vehicles across the board are to be automatically fitted with an 'alco-lock' from July 6, 2024.
Related Topics
CHANGES have come into force in Spain's road traffic legislation, imposing tougher penalties for the most common offences.
The points-based licence in Spain starts with a full quota of 12, and these are deducted for breaking the law, with a loss of all 12 leading to an automatic ban.
Most of the amendments to the highways law, which came into effect on Monday (March 21), involve higher numbers of points deducted for the more 'typical' breaches, such as speeding.
What are the most frequent fines for?
According to Formaster, the overwhelming majority of driving offences which see motorists fined on Spanish roads relate to speeding – in fact, 65% of fines dished out in 2021 were for breaking the limit.
Of these, seven in 10 fines were the result of speeding cars being caught on camera, or radar.
Driving too fast is by far the most common breach of road traffic laws, a long way ahead of the second-most frequent – that of using a vehicle with an out-of-date or failed ITV.
The ITV is Spain's equivalent of the MOT test in the UK, or a compulsory State-conducted regular inspection; generally, cars under four years old do not have to take one, unless they are former hire cars or courtesy vehicles, in which case the owner will receive a letter instructing them to arrange a test at the nearest accredited centre in their home region; cars between four and 10 years old require them every two years, and at 10 years old and over, every year.
The pass sticker must be displayed prominently at the top of the windscreen, and will show the date of expiry.
Failing a test means the owner has 30 days to get the faults resulting in an unsuccessful result fixed and to put the vehicle through the ITV again – during that time, the car cannot be driven except to a workshop for repairs, or to the test centre.
This restriction on use applies even if the existing ITV has not yet expired but the car has failed, and even if the required repairs have been carried out and the ITV is still in date – a fail is logged on a central system and is enough to make a car unroadworthy in the eyes of the law.
Fortunately, once the necessary repairs are carried out, the retest only costs 50% of the original ITV, or typically about €20 to €25.
A total of 11% of road traffic fines handed out in Spain are for cars being driven with a failed ITV, or an overdue one.
In the past few years, the number of vehicles not taken for their ITV has risen to up to 40%, although this does not necessarily mean that only six in 10 you share the road with have not been tested – owners cannot be fined if their parked car is spotted with an expired ITV certificate, so it could mean that many of those who have not taken their vehicle for a test in time have not been using it, and intend to do so as soon as they know they will need to start driving again.
Another common fine is for tyres being in a poor condition – on average, around 27,000 drivers are hit with a ticket for this reason every year.
Surprisingly, only 2.15% of fines are for using mobile phones or other devices whilst driving, although this may only be the tip of the iceberg – it is far easier to spot a car travelling too fast than a person inside sending text messages from a phone on their lap, although helicopters out of immediate sight, and roadside radars, can home in on what a motorist is doing in much finer detail than a traffic police officer at a roadblock.
Possibly for these reasons, the number of fines for not wearing a seatbelt is also low – 2.15% - a figure that includes motorcyclists not wearing a helmet, or their hard-hat not being fastened.
This said, distraction – and mobile phone use counts as this – has been the main cause of death in road crashes continually since 2016.
More points taken off
Based upon these figures, Spain's General Directorate of Traffic (DGT), part of the ministry of transport and public works, has tightened up on the most-fined-for offences and increased the number of points that are taken off a driver's licence for committing them.
Spanish licences are automatically points-based, and anyone who is resident in the country is required to have one, on pain of a very large fine; non-residents will still be fined for offences, whether or not points are involved, and licensing authorities are now connected worldwide, meaning drivers can be traced.
Using mobile phones or other devices whilst driving will now involve a loss of six licence points – 50%, so being caught twice with a phone at the wheel means a complete ban – rather than the previous three points.
Not wearing a seatbelt now attracts a four-point loss, rather than three – according to the DGT, one in four people who die in car crashes was not wearing a seatbelt at the time, and although figures vary annually, an average of 60% of fatalities could have been prevented if the victim had been strapped in.
Speeding attracts the same number of points loss and fines, the level depending upon how serious the offence is – but the main change here is that the previous margin of 20 kilometres per hour for overtaking has been scrapped.
Until March 21, passing someone on a non-motorway road in a safe, legal place – with full visibility and a broken white line – meant you could legitimately drive at up to 20 kilometres per hour over the speed limit to enable you to get back into the right-hand lane quicker. Now, this has been axed, so if you cannot overtake without going beyond the limit, you are required to stay behind.
The DGT says that two in every three fatal crashes happen on B-roads – secondary highways – and, in 2019, a typical year, a total of 239 people were killed in head-on crashes on single-carriageway roads, which is why the law change seeks to discourage drivers from trying to get past vehicles in front of them where they cannot safely do so within the speed limit.
Drink-driving limits for under-18s have now reduced to zero.
In practice, under-18s are not legally allowed to drink alcohol in Spain, and you cannot start learning to drive until you are 18; parents or older, experienced drivers taking a learner out to 'practise' is illegal, even on a car park or industrial estate, as a person who has not yet passed their test is only permitted to get behind the wheel with an authorised instructor from a State-run driving school premises.
This said, under-18s do ride mopeds and small motorbikes, and pushbikes and electric skateboards, all of which are subject to drink-driving laws – for adults, the alcohol limit when using these is the same for driving a car, but for teenagers, no drinking at all, not even a drop, is permitted.
Fines for drink-driving start at €500.
Passing cyclists requires the driver leave a minimum distance of 1.5 metres (4'11”) between their vehicle and the bike, and as long as it is safe to do so, motorists are allowed to cross an unbroken white line when overtaking them. If it is not safe, or the road is too narrow to leave at least a 1.5-metre distance, drivers must stay behind the cyclists until they have enough space to pass them.
On narrow roads, cyclists are not allowed to ride two abreast, except during official competition.
From March 21, failing to respect the minimum distance when passing cyclists has leapt from a four-point loss to six points off a driver's licence.
Also, it remains forbidden to park on a cycle lane.
A longer wait before regaining lost points means you can now no longer even start working on recovering your 'balance' until you have gone at least two years without committing a single points-loss offence.
In the past, the minimum timeframe differed according to the severity of the law breach, but is now two years across the board.
Getting your points back is not automatic after a set time – they never become 'spent' automatically. Undertaking a course on safe and efficient driving – at your own expense, naturally – via an approved driving school premises gets you two points back.
But the DGT stresses you do not have to be guilty of a traffic offence to join one of these courses; they are recommended periodically for anyone who wants to improve their driving skills, given that hardly anyone on the road has ever taken a driving lesson since passing their test.
Throwing anything out of the window, from empty paper cups to cigarette ends, or rubbish in general, now attracts a fine and loss of points. Any item that could cause an accident by being hurled onto the road or the roadside, or which may cause a forest fire, or which is a general pollutant – such as plastic – will net you a €500 fine and cost you six licence points.
Motorcyclists are allowed to used approved wireless devices attached to their helmets which 'aid communication or navigation', according to the DGT, 'provided they do not affect driving safety'.
Low-emissions zones, now frequently found in city centres including Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia, are restricted to residents-only, authorised public transport, loading and unloading at set times, and zero-emissions vehicles such as electrically-powered cars. Before the beginning of 2023, all towns and cities in Spain with 50,000 or more inhabitants are required by law to have set aside low-emissions zones, known as Zonas de Bajas Emisiones or ZBEs.
Anyone caught entering a ZBE in their car or other non-authorised vehicle, where they are not covered by exemptions (being resident, unloading, accessing a car park or other exceptions applied by the town or city council), will face a fine starting from €200.
Driving test fraud, where someone pretends to be you to sit your practical or theory test for you, or where you sneak devices into the exam room to look up the answers, now counts as a 'serious offence'; this description also includes any type of fraud or misrepresentation involving a licence points recovery course.
Fines are applied from €500, and the offender may be banned from taking the test or course for a minimum of six months.
'Alcolock' devices, which block the ignition and prevent the vehicle from starting where the driver is over the alcohol limit, will not become compulsory for private cars just yet, but from July 6 this year, all road passenger transport which has the required interface must have one fitted.
The required interface will only be present on newer vehicles, but this means that as coaches, buses, taxis and minibuses are gradually replaced, a situation will eventually arise whereby all of these commercial vehicles on the road will have a compulsory 'alcoholock' or 'alco-lock'.
According to European Union Regulation number 2019/2144, all commercial passenger transport vehicles which use the roads must have one of these by July 6, 2022, and all newly-registered vehicles across the board are to be automatically fitted with an 'alco-lock' from July 6, 2024.
Related Topics
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