During the past year 2023, 1,145 people lost their lives on Spanish roadsAs the Minister of the Interior announced at the beginning of the year, Fernando Grande-Marlaskawhen presenting the balance of Road Safety 2023. Throughout the entire year, there were 1,048 fatal accidents which, in addition to the aforementioned death toll, left 4,495 seriously injured.
Data that, although still high, is maintained in the levels of the last decadebelow 1,200 victims. A year in which there were more displacements and after which the minister highlighted the bad data. Therefore, I urged to contextualize them to adopt the necessary measures and correct them as much as possible. To give a clearer image of the situation on Spanish roads, the following information: Throughout the year, there were barely 25 days without deaths.
The measures announced by Grande-Marlaska are beginning to take shape, according to what was published in the magazine of the General Directorate of Traffic (DGT)and may already come into force from next to. The organization plans a change in some of the articles of the General Traffic Regulations (RGC)which will affect all vehicles, especially motorcycles, priority vehicles and cranes. The changes would be made through a Royal Decree and, if everything goes according to plan, they will enter in 2025.
With snow, overtaking is prohibited
The first of the changes will have to do with the use of the left lane in icy and snowy conditions on highways and highways. It will be mandatory to drive only in the right lane, and overtaking in these conditions is strictly prohibited. Left Lane would be left for the use of emergency vehicles and snow plows. With this modification we intend to facilitate the work of the track maintenance services and that driving conditions remain optimal despite the bad weather conditions, says Ana Blanco, deputy deputy director of Traffic at the DGT.
The shoulder, allowed for emergency vehicles and motorcycles
The second of the measures will only affect two types of vehicles: tow trucks and ambulances. Both will be allowed to circulate on the shoulders for emergency services. To do this, they must meet certain conditions: use the corresponding luminous and reflective signs and not go beyond 30 kilometers per hour (except in the case of priority vehicles).
At the same time, the use of Right to motorcycle users in traffic jams on all types of roads. To do this, they must not travel above 30 km/h and must respect the priority of the vehicles that are obliged to circulate on the shoulder, especially bicycles. It is a measure to make the circulation of motorcyclists fluid with certain safety conditions, the DGT indicates.
How to act when an ambulance comes
Finally, a situation in which many users have found themselves and They don’t really know how to react. Being in a traffic jam due to an accident, we hear in the background the ambulance or police car sirens. Until now, the highway code does not accurately establish user behavior on congested roads, only the presence of priority for priority vehicles (pardon the redundancy) in emergency service.
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Now, with the new modification, users on highways and highways, who are completely stopped or who circulate very slowly due to a traffic jam or accident, they will know how current. Those who are in right lane must open to the right; those on the left, to the left. In this way, there is a central corridor for emergency and police vehicles.
The goal is to explain clearly How drivers should behave in these circumstancesto facilitate the work of the emergency services and speed up their access to the victims of an accident, concludes Ana Blanco.
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