Driving Safely in Spain
by
David Hudson of Torrevieja´s classic and specialist car
club
DRIVING IN SPAIN IS NOT VERY DIFFERENT THAN IN UK.
Travelling all over England I have found different driving
ways in different parts of England and everyone thought it
was the correct way especially at roundabouts. Here you
have an additional problem with many different foreigners
all with their own way of doing things plus for the Spanish
in this part of Spain roundabouts have only appeared in the
last 10 years.
IT IS BETTER TO DRIVE SAFELY (THAN TO THE LAW SAYS!)
IF
THERE IS AN ACCIDENT in an out of the
way place
by
LAW YOU SHOULD STOP TO LEND ASSITANCE.
DO NOT MOVE THE PERSON BUT CALL 112. If you do move
the person or do major first aid then you will be
responsible for anything that happens to the person,
whether it is your fault or not
EMERGENCY NUMBER is
112 and can be
obtained on any type of telephone and the operator will be
able to speak your language
NEW LAWS from 2007 to 2010
there are many
new laws which have been changed. Many of the previous laws
have been altered and strengthened including some which are
now criminal offenses, and others that are different from
UK law and directives demanded by the EU. It it 'your'
responsibility to know these changes in the law. Ignorance
of changes is not a valid argument in court.
ROUNDABOUTS
– position
yourself and indicate
all the time, keep
looking for where the cars are around you. Don’t just rely
on your mirrors. Even British cars have done stupid things
in trying to get in front of me. It is safer to go straight
ahead by positioning yourself in the right hand lane. These
are one of the most dangerous junctions in Spain and causes
of accidents, especially with motorcycles and
scooters.
TURNING LEFT CAN BE A PROBLEM
– The original
system which still exists on some main roads was that you
turn into a slip road on the right and then cross the main
road at right angles. If you fail to do this, you may be
driven into, as the car behind will expect you to continue
straight on!
These junctions have mostly been replaced by Roundabouts
but NOT in central and Northern Spain.
But a variation
of this on main roads such as in Alicante and Torrevieja is
that Traffic Lights control this type of junction and at
first you think you should go to the junction and then turn
left. But you should turn off right as above and then wait
for the lights to cross the junction and not filter as in
the UK! Again the Spanish driver will not understand what
you have done. Please don't expect the same situation to
occur on even the same stretch of road. There can be a
different action required at every junction where you wish
to turn left.
Be advised that 'legally' you can NOT turn left unless
there are broken lines in the middle of the road.
SUNDAY
DRIVING: even now, if you
go away from the main tourist areas on a
Sunday,
you will find that Petrol Stations may not be open.
Therefore, as a Spanish friend told me, always fill your
tank up before you leave and be aware that Sunday Drivers
in Spain can be as bad as, or worse, than those in the UK
or Ireland!
ROUNDABOUTS
ARE CALLED ROTUNDAS BUT IN SOME
PARTS OF SPAIN THEY ARE CALLED
GLORIETAS. Therefore if
you see a large sign PELIGROSA GLORIETA (dangerous
roundabout) then this is a Roundabout that may have been
changed from a cross roads with a different priority which
may mean a slow moving tractor driving across you as you
round the bend at high speed!
GLORIETA can mean a main
point of road junctions in a City or large Town which can
be round or rectangle but will be a place of note.
TRAFFIC LIGHTS THAT ARE FLASHING THEN CHANGE TO RED
mean
to
proceed with caution as traffic may
come from your side and then
red normally means
a
vehicle is coming.
BLUE LINES mean
LIMITED PARKING and you will
have to pay using either a machine or an attendant.
BLACK LINES mean
THAT THE COUNCIL HAS CHANGED ITS MIND.
YELLOW LINES mean
NO PARKING or Restricted
Parking BUT ON
SUNDAYS or outside of
normal hours you can normally ignore
this.
IF YOU PARK ILLEGALLY your vehicle may
be towed away by a GRUA to a pound which is usually out of
Town. There should be a sticker on the pavement kerb with
either a telephone number or an address. You will have a
fine and either a long walk or a taxi ride to pay for as
well.
BUT YELLOW LINES ON A MAIN ROAD mean that
the road is being
repaired or altered by the National or Regional Province
and will only be returned to white lines when it is
finished and handed back to the local authority.
So drive with care because of
sudden traffic control, changes of direction or
construction vehicles moving across you.
CYCLISTS
CAN LEGALLY RIDE IN TWOs and racing clubs
should be treated with respect –
the Police will not understand if you injure a cyclist.
ROAD SURFACE: The tarmac in
Spain is designed to cope with heat and not melt as
in Britain but unlike Britain it does not have
good gripping power in the wet. So take care
when driving in heavy rain.
SOS Telephones on the Motorways
are approximately 1 to 2 kilometres apart. Press the Green
Button ask for help and leave details of your location and
problem. They have 4 languages to help you.
OMIC is similar to UK
Trading Standards and deals with helping consumers. If you
have a problem that cannot be resolved then put in a
complaint with the local OMIC in the Town of firm. OMIC
will try to resolve the problem for you. If this is not
successful you can take it
to the Alicante Tribunal. All this is FREE.
BE
CAREFUL OF ROAD RAGE. Do not get out
of your car if in doubt of the person approaching you and
if necessary lock the doors.
Pedestrians are very
vulnerable here and increasingly accidents are happening
with vehicles knocking down pedestrians. Tell your visitors
when they are walking or crossing dangerous roads to wear
reflective arm and ankle bands. This will catch the
driver’s eye and may prevent being hit by a vehicle
–
save a life.
Finally
your first contact with the Law will probably be
the Policia Local or the Guardia Trafico or Policia
Nacional. In other words the Bobby and as this is not your
country and you probably do not speak or understand the
Spanish Culture very well be polite, patient and helpful.
This may be a Spaniard that does not like foreigners and
has had a bad day and will not listen to you or be
understanding.
Some
Spanish words that might help.
Rotunda
or Glorieta
=
Roundabout
Red
=
Network e.g. Road network
Semáforas =
Traffic Lights
Entrada =
Entrance
Salida =
Exit
Travesía =
Crossing
Peaton =
Pedestrian
Prudencia =
Caution
Peligro =
Danger
Desvío =
Diversion
Libre = Car spaces available
Completo =
Full
Abierto
= Open
Cerrado =
Closed
Peaje =
Toll Road
!Recuerde! =
Remember
No adelantar =
No overtaking
Póngase en el carril =
Get in Lane
Aseso Solo =
Access only
Cambio de Sentido =
Change of Direction
Conducir =
Driver
GRUA =
Breakdown vehicle
Delantera =
Front
Izquierda =
Left
Derecha =
Right
Todo directo =
straight on
Zona de descansar =
Rest Area or Service Station
SUMA =
Collection Agency for Local
Authority
al Gasolina sin plomo =
Petrol
el Gasoleo =
Diesel
This
information is written purely to advise based on the
authors 20 years of experience in Spain.
Copyright