Driving small electric vehicles to be legal from age 16, announces traffic authority

YOUNG adults may soon be permitted to drive small electrically-powered vehicles capable of top speeds of 90 kilometres per hour (56mph), currently the maximum allowed on non-motorway roads, from age 16, according to Spain's General Directorate of Traffic (DGT).

Part of the ministry for public works and transport, the DGT says it is considering launching a 'B1' licence for those who are as yet too young to drive a car, in a bid to increase mobility for those living in remote rural areas and to give them a safer, less-polluting option than motorcycles.

Additionally, an AM licence for driving four-wheeled, 425-kilo vehicles – as well as for riding small motorbikes, scooters and mopeds - which are only capable of speeds up to 45 kilometres per hour (28mph), is expected to be launched for young people from age 15.

Young people who live in built-up areas, and whose school or college and friends live in the same town, often use small bikes until well into adulthood, as they are much cheaper to buy and run than a car, the test is easier to pass and lessons less expensive, plus the mild winters in the southern half of the country mean it is not uncomfortable to use open-air transport all year round.

But those who live deep in the countryside, or in villages and small towns, commutes take much longer on a bike, and these are far less safe than a small electrical vehicle – as well as much more polluting.

In Spain, the minimum age for starting to learn to drive a car is 18, and learners are only allowed behind the wheel during lessons with an approved driving school – practising in the family car with parents and L-plates is against the law, even on car parks – meaning considerable costs incurred before a test is even taken.

Once they have passed, though, like any other adult car-driver, they then have a licence for a vehicle of up to 3.5 tonnes and capable of top speeds of 120 kilometres per hour (74.6mph) – or which, even if they are able to go faster, cannot do so legally as this is the maximum on Spanish motorways.

Being able to get a licence for a small car with a limited engine size and electrically-powered means young adults will have acquired road sense and vehicle-handling experience before they start learning to drive a full-sized car, and also will get them used to non-petrol and non-diesel vehicles, encouraging their wider use once they eventually become more mainstream.

The type of vehicle the 16-plus age group would be allowed to drive would have a maximum weight of 450 kilos, or 0.4 tonnes, and a top power of 20.4CV.

Interior minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska says these types of vehicle, and licences to drive them from age 16 upwards, have been successful in 'countries like France', particularly in very rural, isolated areas.

Other countries which have been using them include Portugal, Italy, Ireland, and the UK.

This new B1 licence for small electric vehicles is part of an ongoing strategy to improve safety and sustainable mobility at national level between now and the year 2030.

Moves include encouraging airbag installation in motorbikes, with compulsory airbags for those used by test candidates trying for their category 'A' licences, applicable to larger motorcycles.

Another area set for reform is education – safe driving awareness courses will be 'reinforced' and taken one will allow a driver to recover up to two points lost from a licence due to motoring offences.

Road safety and sustainable mobility will, from the start of the next academic year, become a core subject on the school curriculum.

The DGT also wants to promote driving tests using automatic vehicles, since at present, 98% of tests are taken in cars with manual gear boxes, even though the electrically-powered cars now manufactured are automatic only.