The DGT is making moves to make it illegal to use a vehicle with only the driver onboard. However, it is in the pipeline and could be appproved.
The Head of this traffic department (DGT) Pere Navarro pointed out that in November 2024 they had carried out studies “On the A-2 and the A-1 and checked the occupancy [of vehicles]; 85% of cars had a single occupant. I would tell you that moving 1,000 or 1,500 kilos to transport a single person is something we cannot afford. It is nonsense.”
Pere Navarro, explained that it was necessary to reduce the number of vehicles on roads and streets and that one of the alternatives was to promote the use of carpooling. There was one phrase that has been repeated ever since: “The future of cars will be shared or it won’t be at all.”
The reality is that there is no confirmation or any official regulation. However, a draft, royal decree has been written, involving the Ministry of Ecological Transition and the Ministry of the Interior, which will modify the regulations for low-emission zones and traffic rules.
If approved (as written in its latest version) the text will allow town councils to establish traffic restrictions based on vehicle occupancy if they so wish. However, in June 2025, the public consultation phase closed, and no further progress has been made on the legislation.
However, people interpreted from this that “the Government will ban going alone in the car.” This rumor grew and even the far-right party, Vox gave it credibility: “They are leading us to tyranny, to total social control,” its leader, Santiago Abascal, went so far as to claim.
For the moment, there are no restrictions in sight, but rather an active promotion of higher vehicle occupancy. Navarro explained that the DGT has been promoting it for years.
“If we could manage to get two people into each vehicle, which seems like it shouldn’t be impossible at this stage of the 21st century, we would achieve half the vehicles, half the fuel consumption, and half the emissions,” Navarro argued.
(News: Spain)
Keywords: No Passengers, Sharing, Single Occupant, DGT, Navarro, Royal Decree, Vehicles, Cars
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