What does this red line that appears on the road mean?

In 2023, 1,145 people died on Spanish roads. Of them, 74% (849 people) did so in incidents that took place on conventional roads, that is, on roads outside towns that are not motorways.

Among all these secondary roads, one of the best known is in the south of the country, the one popularly called “the highway of fear”, a 10-kilometre stretch (between km 4 and 14) of the A-355, which connects Cártama and Marbella (Málaga), and it is on this section alone in 2023 that 10 people lost their lives, the equivalent of one fatality every kilometre.

To prevent these figures from continuing to escalate and with the aim of reducing incidents on the road, the Department of Development of the Government of Andalusia announced that it will highlight certain areas where there is a continuous white line by painting them with a thick red line on the road.

With this red line on the road, the organisation intends to “highlight the prohibition of overtaking” in the sections where it is not allowed, and which are indicated both by vertical signage and by continuous white lines painted on the road. In addition, to this measure is added the installation of “pedagogical radars and digital signs.”

This red line on the road is added to other measures adopted by the General Directorate of Traffic that aim to reduce road incidents, such as the green lines which were introduced some years ago painted on the sides of the road, and the more recent dragon’s teeth or the broken lines on the roads.

Andalucia is not the only region to adopt measures where road markings emphasise the danger. Road markings like this are often tested in areas before being rolled out nationally.

Overtaking

Overtaking when there is a continuous line is prohibited according to the General Traffic Regulations and, in fact, doing so can imply a fine of 400 euro and the loss of four points from the licence, in addition to the danger and added risk that it implies. However, there are five cases in which overtaking with a solid line is allowed:

• Overtaking cyclists.
• Overtaking mopeds.
• Overtake pedestrians, animals and animal-drawn vehicles.
• Overtaking a vehicle immobilised on the road.
• Overcome obstacles and other elements of the road.

In any case, to carry out these overtaking manoeuvres you must first observe your surroundings and analyse whether it is safe to proceed in each circumstance and, of course, before carrying it out, signal your intention with the indicators. If traffic is approaching from the opposite direction, it would not be safe to proceed to cross the solid white or red lines.