DGT to install another 122 speed-control cameras on Spain's main roads this year

Spain's Directorate-General for Traffic highlights the importance of traffic and speed limit awareness; however, the debate on the collection of fines and their destination remains a controversial issue

Canal Motor

Madrid

Tuesday, 18 February 2025, 13:53

Spain's Directorate-General for Traffic (DGT) will install a total of 122 new speed radars in the next few months, adding to the current 2,010 cameras it has installed on the country's roads.

Of the existing radars, 780 are fixed, 1,325 are mobile and 92 are average speed section cameras. Of the 122 new radars, 24 (17 of them will be fixed and 7 average speed) and were installed in different locations in the north, east and south of Spain in January, more specifically in the provinces of A Coruña, Asturias, Lugo, Orense, Pontevedra, Almeria, Malaga, Granada and in the Levante area in Alicante and Valencia.

In parallel, the DGT has seen a significant increase in the collection of speeding fines in recent years. This is due to a number of factors, including the intensification of speed controls, the increase in the number of vehicles and greater awareness of the importance of respecting speed limits.

According to official data, the DGT collected 413,254,703 euros in traffic fines in 2015. The Covid-19 pandemic caused a temporary decrease in traffic and, therefore, in the collection of fines - 45 million in 2020. However, the trend was quickly reversed as pandemic restrictions were lifted. The record was set in 2022, when DGT collected 507 million euros in fines.

Locations criticised

The location of speed cameras has been criticised by road user organisations and traffic experts. According to members of the Pyramid Consulting legal firm, while radars in locations with high accident probability are necessary, many devices "are placed in stretches with unrealistic speed limits". Experts state that such radars generate automatic penalties that then serve as an important source of income for the DGT.

Speeding fines make up for 70% of the total. This figure has influenced the growing installation of fixed and mobile speed cameras. However, "a large number of these radars are placed on stretches of road that are not particularly dangerous, often with low speed limits that favour fines of 100 euros without loss of points. This makes drivers believe that the main objective is to collect money, not ensure safety", Pyramid Consulting lawyers said.

However, the DGT defends the installation of radars by arguing that high speed is still present as a concurrent factor in 21% of fatal accidents. According to 2023 data collected by the DGT, 211 fatal accidents caused by speeding were recorded in a 24-hour window.

Adequate speed could prevent a quarter of the deaths in road accidents. As an example, the DGT explained that it is practically impossible for a pedestrian to survive after being hit by a vehicle that is going at 80km/h or above, while the risk decreases to 5% at a speed of 30km/h. According to a study issued by the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC), if average speed was reduced by just 1 km/h on all roads in the EU, 2,200 deaths could be prevented every year.

Are speed limits respected?

Based on the results of the European Baseline project, the level of compliance with the speed limit in Spain varies according to the type of road.

While on motorways 63% of motorists drive within the speed limit, on motorways this percentage drops to 51%. On traditional roads, compliance with the speed limit is 43% - a low level, similar to that of Belgium (46%).

On urban roads with a 50km/h limit, the level of speed compliance by passenger cars is 65%. On 30km/h roads, the level of compliance is 32%, the highest of the three countries for which data is available.

It should also be noted that the average speed on streets where the limit is 30km/h is 11km/h lower than when the limit is 50km/h (36km/h compared to 47km/h) - a difference that greatly reduces the risk of a fatal or serious road traffic collision.

The most frequent fines

According to a DGT report on the evolution of fines since 2015, speeding accounts for two out of every three fines. It is followed by not having a valid ITV vehicle inspection test, improper use of a mobile phone, not wearing a seatbelt and having an expired licence or not having one at all.

Since the introduction of speed cameras in Spain 20 years ago, road fatalities have decreased by 75%, suggesting a positive correlation between the increase of these devices and the reduction of serious accidents.

Destination of fines

However, the debate on the collection of fines and their destination remains a controversial issue. According to current legislation, revenue from traffic fines must be used entirely for the improvement of road safety, including infrastructure, road safety education, research and victim assistance.

However, the destination of this revenue is not entirely clear. For that reason, Patricia Navarro, the Partido Popular political party's president for Malaga, has asked the Spanish government to allocate the money that the Directorate-General of Traffic (DGT) collects via the radars installed in the province to the improvement of provincial roads. Navarro states that "we must improve traffic and, to reduce accidents, we need to improve road infrastructure in the province; this is what we have been demanding from Sánchez and minister Puente all this time".

The Automovilistas Europeos Asociados (AEA) has highlighted the large number of complaints made mainly on motorways and dual carriageways, "and not on secondary roads, where 70% of fatal accidents occur". AEA's president, Mario Arnaldo, said that "the DGT should rethink its speed camera policy, as it is not achieving its objective of preventing speeding or accidents, turning radars into mere collection instruments".

On the other hand, in recent years, penalties have been toughened. According to the DGT, these measures are aimed at reducing accidents. However, according to the Pyramid Consulting lawyers, "the increase in the amounts and the loss of points that entails the completion of courses to recover the licence and recovery exams raises doubts about their real intention".

Legal challenge of fines

Experts in fine management have observed an increase in the legal challenge of penalties, particularly in cases where procedural errors are perceived, "as the authorities fail to provide the necessary evidence to substantiate the offences".

According to them, this highlights "the need for greater transparency and accountability on the part of the authorities to ensure that funds are used in accordance with their original purpose at the national level".

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