Following a preparation period, allowing local authorities time to adapt the infrastructure in towns and cities, new generic speed limits will soon come into force throughout Spain.
The new limits are as follows:
On roads with no height difference between the road and the sidewalk (single platform), the limit will be 20 kilometres per hour.
On roads with a single lane in each direction, 30 kilometres per hour.
On roads with two or more lanes in each direction, 50 kilometres per hour.
The aim of these changes is to move towards a new city model, improve coexistence between the different road users and reduce the number of deaths that occur in urban areas.
According to experts, reducing city speed from 50 kilometres per hour to 30 kilometres per hour reduces the risk of dying due to being hit by five times.
According to data from the DGT’s National Road Safety Observatory, in 2019, the accident rate on interurban roads fell by approximately 6%. This same percentage is the one that increased on urban roads, especially among vulnerable groups (pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists).
Specifically, last year, 519 people died in a traffic accident on an urban road. Of these, 427 were vulnerable, which represents 82% of the total (247 pedestrians, 32 cyclists, 22 were on a moped and 126 were motorcyclists).
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