Driving in Madrid

I don’t recommend you drive anywhere within Madrid city limits. As Rodney Dangerfield would put it, "it’s a jungle out there." But, if you’ve got to do it, at least make sure you’ve got some protection around you inside a car. Because if you’re considering getting a motorcycle, I think you’re either out of your mind or you haven’t seen how the locals drive yet.

  

Do the activity at: Driving in Madrid Cloze

Not that they’re all bad, that’s not it at all. But, there are just enough crazies out there to make an organ donor out of you fast.

The M30 at 14:30 on a Friday.
Areas which are under construction are just like an
anarchic PS2 game,
and therefore one of the best debate points supporting
new driving laws.

In fact, almost 10 people die every day on Spanish streets and highways (3,329 in 2005 according to Qué). But, July 1, 2006 may be a turning point for life-saving in Spain when a new driver’s license point system comes into effect. Drivers start out with from 8 to 12 points and lose points by driving poorly and getting caught. Basically speaking, you can lose your license in a single morning of bad driving.

By the way, even if you don’t lose your license, you can still get it suspended for a month or two and/or get a hefty fine. Then you may have to pay quite a lot to take a "crash" driving course on whatever you did wrong in particular. (I'm not sure, but I think it's 170 euros for a recovery course and around 320 for a course to recover your license.)

Now, I’m a bit skeptical about the new law as I am with all bureaucracy in Spain, but I can see that it may be necessary in some cases. Here are my opinions about the system point by point (along with the “points” a particular infraction or traffic violation may cost you):

Match the headings to the paragraphs in
this activity: Driving in Madrid Matching.

2 points: Parking or stopping in risky areas (i.e. pedestrian crossings, etc.)

The number 2 bus in my home town of Alcorcón used to have to make a right turn onto a side street that always had cars double parked right next to a convenience store. The bus very often got stuck there because of the double-parking and the passengers sometimes had to either get off and walk from there or wait for 10 minutes or longer. In the end, the double-parkers won and the bus-line had to change the route. It seemed no-one was interested in enforcing the regulations against double-parking in this particular case, but maybe the new points' law will be different.

2 points: Using a radar-detector to avoid speeding fines.

I hear sales of radar-detectors have doubled and radio stations are openly marketing “legal” radar detectors. Besides this, apparently there are radar detectors out there that deactivate the police’s radars and are in turn somehow "undetectable" by police. Also, police here still seem to have very few radar detectors for so many vehicles. (125) On the other hand, police have already been discovering a few too many Michael Schumachers out there speeding at over 250 kilometres per hour (kph). (150 mph – miles per hour) There’s currently a sort of 250 kph club made up of unofficial "crazy" members who like to show off mobile phone photos of their speedometer readings.

By the way, Spain currently has 125 radar detectors while Great Britain has 7,000. (Qué) There are plans to purchase 175 more in 2006 and 200 in 2007. (20 Minutos) According to this newspaper: the government predicts at least 6,000 people will lose their licenses per year.

2 points: Not using your lights correctly (i.e. headlights) or not having any to begin with (i.e. a broken taillight).

There are a few of those kinds of drivers in Madrid who never check for broken taillights until they happen to get stopped at a surprise police check-point. The police don’t usually pull you over on the highway as these usually have little or no shoulders. So they usually do so in traffic circles after cars have just exited from the highway.

2 points: Carrying a 0-12 year-old as a passengeron a motorbike.

I can’t say I feel sorry for these riders. Two points seems cheap. By the way, motorcycle accidents are up by 27% this year (20 Minutos). Many local car drivers don’t seem to even notice these smaller vehicles. Just yesterday I saw a car driver pull out of a driveway and almost hit a rider. A couple of months ago I saw a car hit a bike rider from behind. Do yourself a favor and either walk, ride a bus or get a car!

2 points: Going over the speed limit by between 21 – 30 kph.

Ten kilometers over the speed limit doesn’t seem like too much, but 20 is usually starting to push your luck. However, when everyone around you is driving 20 kph over the limit, it seems like your driving at or below the speed limit is more likely to cause an accident than prevent one. In my book, the safest driving is to follow the pack. When in Rome, do as the Romans.

3 points: Making a u-turn in the wrong place.

You see a few crazy dangerous maneuvers from time-to-time. They make you wonder what Spaniards learn in those difficult and expensive driving courses they have to take in order to get a driver’s license in the first place.

3 points: Using a cellular phone or any other device that makes it more difficult to drive (i.e. gps).

I see a lot of people using cell phones in their 30,000-euro cars and I ask myself: “haven’t you heard about hands-free mobile phones?” By the way, they’re really cheap these days as compared to those big fancy cars.

3 points: Not keeping a safe distance – 70m.

One of the most irritating things about driving in Madrid is the super-aggressive tailgaters. In fact, even with this new law, be prepared for some pretty close and “intimate” driving. Some locals love to cut it as fine as possible and it’s hard to imagine these laws changing that. They seem to think that any distance is ok as long as the two cars don’t actually touch.

3 points: Not wearing your seatbelt, helmet or other required safety devices.

I can’t imagine why people don’t use a seatbelt considering it might save their lives, but I still see a few mamas driving with their children jumping around in the back seat. (Yes, the law says they’re supposed to be wearing a seatbelt in a special safety seat for children.)

3 points: Going over the speed limit by between 31 – 40 kph.

I think that 3 points is ok. How fast is fast enough? Enough is enough!

4 points: Using a vehicle on the highway that is prohibited there.

Considering the fact that there are usually no shoulders on highways here, if you use a bike on the highway, maybe you’ll get lucky if the only thing you lose is your points.

4 points: Carrying an excess of 50% of passengers (except in buses).

In other words, it’s not a good idea to see how many people you can fit in your Volkswagen on the street. I haven’t seen many people pushing their luck on this point.

4 points: Driving a vehicle without the proper license.

Check your Spanish driver’s license. For example, don’t just assume that because your stateside license permitted you to ride motorcycles in the States that you’ll be able to do so here. Besides that, it's obvious you should have a license for the vehicle you're driving.

4 points: Throwing a lit cigarette out the window.

June’s not over yet and you can already see lots of burned out areas by the highways. Just this week I drove by a grass fire on the way home from work. Much of Madrid is really dry (it’s a bit of a desert) and it is in constant danger of going up in flames in the heat of the summer. If you ask me, throwing a lit cigarette out the window is just plain stupid.

4 points: Driving in a negligent way or putting others at risk.

This seems like a catch-all category to me. You could argue that if a driver is driving too fast and talking on his cell phone, then you could also say that he is driving in a “negligent” way. If you sum all the points up for these three infractions, they’re 10 points. In fact, some newspapers here have mentioned the possibility of losing all your points in a single day.

I’m curious as to how the following current situation will be handled:

By law, when a car is in a two lane traffic-circle like car A in the picture below, it has the right of way to continue around the traffic circle. By law, car B must yield to car A. In fact, around here the current “informal law” is that car A must yield to car B. Most drivers seem to “know” this and get into the left lane before they get into the traffic circle if they want to continue around the traffic circle to the left.

In Madrid, there are only two kinds of drivers that turn left in the right lane like car A, learners and truck drivers. It’s a bit pathetic to see driving teachers insist on sticking to the books and teaching their students to stay in the right lane, especially when you see the speeds at which other drivers tend to take these traffic circles.

4 points: Going over the speed limit by over 40 kph (as long as it’s not also 50% over the speed limit. i.e. if the speed limit is 90, 50% is 45 kph).

It’s a real shocker to get overtaken by a Michael Schumacher when you’re driving along at 120 kph, let me tell you. Sometimes you don’t even have time to get over into the right lane out of the way before they’re on top of you.

4 points: Not stopping at a red light, a stop sign or not yielding the right of way.

At the moment, the usual thing is to see most drivers continue driving when there’s no traffic at a red traffic light. Stop signs seem to be nothing more than a sort of yield sign. And a driver yielding the right of way is a rare treat.

By the way, there’s no such thing as turning right on a red light after coming to a full stop at a four-way traffic light like in the States. Nobody does it.

Also, there are often two traffic lights at corners. You might come to a red light like car A below and get confused by the green light across the street. Car B can drive on, but car A cannot until its light turns green as well. My advice: if you hadn’t realized this, you’re not ready for driving in Madrid or Spain yet. Study up first!

4 points: Passing up other vehicles making it difficult or dangerous for oncoming vehicles (also, if visibility isn’t good enough, if it’s a dangerous place, etc.)

I haven’t had this problem as there are plenty of good two-lane highways in Madrid. You rarely have to face oncoming traffic. The good side of this is that you don’t need much horsepower to get around.

4 points: Putting bicycle riders in danger when you pass them up.

As I said before, given how considerate some drivers are, you’re a lot better off not even getting near one of those "donor-bikes."

Still not convinced you shouldn't get a motorbike?: Have a look at the railing on the right in this picture. They're all over the place. The posts holding it up are infamous for causing amputations in motorcycle accidents around here.

4 points: Backing up on a highway.

This would seem like plain common sense (or lack of it). If you miss your exit ramp, drive on to the next one and turn around! You deserve to lose 4 points!

4 points: Not doing what the traffic officer tells you to do.

This is common sense as well. However, many drivers don’t seem to notice these guys even when they’re all decked out in fluorescent yellow. My advice is to turn on your hazard lights to let the drivers behind you know about them – just in case they pay attention to the green light if the officer signals you to stop.

4 points: Drunk driving – .25 to .50 milligrams per liter in a breathalyzer test.

Warning: I talk to an awful lot of Spaniards who think they drive perfectly under the influence. I hope I never run into those people on the road. (pun intended)

4 points: Making it difficult for drivers to pass you up.

i.e. In the picture below, A makes it difficult for B to pass him up by either slowing down when B slows down or speeding up when B speeds up. That’s either stupidly dangerous or downright mean (bad) and driver A deserves to lose points.

6 points: Drunk driving – over .50 milligrams per liter in a breathalyzer test – or driving under the influence of any other hard drugs.

I think the Spanish government is being rather generous on this one. It makes you wonder who they’re protecting. (… Just a joke …)

6 points: Driving in a race, in the wrong direction against traffic (kamikaze-style) or in a really crazy way.

Up to this point any driver could make a normal person feel sorry for him with excuses. But, this beats it all. If you drive this way, you deserve to lose your license.

6 points: Refusing to take the breathalyzer test.

I reckon refusing to take the test is as good as admitting you’re guilty. Who are you trying to kid?

6 points: Going over the speed limit by over 50%. (i.e. if the speed limit is 90, 50% is 45 kph).

Get those crazy guys off the road! Maybe it’ll save a few lives.

6 points: Professional drivers can’t go over their permitted driving times by over 50% or under their required resting times by under 50%.

i.e. They can’t drive too long or rest too little. Professional drivers have other additional difficulties as well, which I won't go into here.

In conclusion, besides this point system, this new law coming into effect the first of July will produce many new criminals who will be sent to already overcrowded prisons. I hasten to state that I disagree with this, but I suppose it must be easier for politicians to punish tens of thousands of individuals than to get a few car companies to produce cars that don't go over that speed limit. So driving at over 190 kph or having a blood alcohol level of over 1.25 grams / litre of blood will now be crimes.

Remember: if the threat of paying huge fines, paying higher insurance rates or losing your driver’s license don’t convince you to be more careful on the streets of Madrid after the first of July, there’s always a chance you can recover your driver’s license once you’ve lost it. Let me warn you though that you have to study a 600 page book and get an almost perfect score on a written exam. (Que)

In the end, what the DGT (Dirección General de Trafico) is trying to do is to save lives. It’s worked in other countries in Europe. Why not in Spain? My recommendation is to relax, take your time getting places, and keep your license. Above all, the payoff for you and your family will be that it might just save your lives.

The NIV at 10:30 on a Monday.
It's always like that.
You should see it at rush hour.
You should also see the always empty toll-road that runs parallel to this super-busy highway. It makes one think about their overly-bureaucratic pricing strategy, doesn't it? It seems that it would be less profitable for car companies to produce slower cars and toll-road companies to reduce their prices.

By the way ...

A few recommendations for some other things that should lose somebody some "bad" points (other things that irritate me):

Car company owners should lose points for producing cars that will do 250 kph. If it will be a crime to drive at over 190 kph, why shouldn't it be a crime to produce a vehicle that will go that fast?

Car drivers should lose points for nearly running over a pedestrian in a crosswalk. In my town they've built huge speed bumps all over the place, which do slow down fast drivers somewhat. Such is the bureaucracy here though that the local city hall missed the most dangerous pedestrian crossing right next to a couple of schools near my apartment. I'm almost certain someone's going to get run down there any day now as I see some pretty close calls on a weekly basis. Oh yea! Maybe some bureaucrats should lose a few points as well.

Shopping centres owners, etc. should lose points for making their parking spaces so small. I get a new dent just about every time I go shopping or park in a light industrial area. Who's responsible for that? My only consolation is that super-egoed Humvee owners can't possibly park their enormous vehicles anywhere near one.

Automobile drivers should lose points for losing their cool. Have a look at this activity about angry drivers: Road Rage. Some drivers get so aggressive behind the wheel that they actually get violent either by purposefully hitting the other driver's car with their own car or by stopping their car and attacking the individual. Of course, physical violence is and should be a crime. However, at the moment, running somebody over or crashing into their car is usually considered an accident. My feeling in a couple of close calls was that the other driver's intention was to actually run into my car. Who's to say what these accident-prone drivers real intention was?

Whoever made up the highway numbering system in Madrid and Spain should also lose a few points. Have a look at the photos on the traffic signs in the photos above. In order to find your way around Madrid (and Spain), you really need to know your highway system first. (What do all those numbers mean?) I really recommend you study the highway system in Madrid's big-picture before you actually try to go anywhere. Doing so can save you loads of time and money, let me tell you! (It also pays to know a little about the general geography of Spain. Especially regarding where cities that lie at the end of some of these highways are. i.e. Badajoz, Toledo, etc.)

Also, if you're planning on driving in Madrid, Spain, and/or you're from abroad, I suggest you buy a book on driving here before you get behind the wheel. (See right on navigation bar above.)

Note: Besides the other irritating points I've mentioned, in Madrid, flashing your headlights at other cars is often taken either as an insult or as a warning of police cars ahead on the highway.

Finally, as a disclaimer to all of the above I should point out that I really know very little on the subject of driving in Spain. I'm just an English teacher. If you want to know more, have a look at the book and map I mentioned before.

June 29, 2006

Driving in Madrid Comprehension Quiz

Vocabulary (119 vocabulary words and phrases)

make sure - to do something so that something will happen - asegurarse

out of your mind - you are crazy - estas loco

organ donor - a person who donates organs after his death - donante de organos

turning point - the point where everything changes - el punto donde cambia todo

even if - something will happen in the event that something else does too- incluso si

hefty - heavy - pesado

crash driving course - intensive driving course - curso de conducir intensivo

to make a right turn - to turn the car to the right - girar hacia la derecha

double parked - to park a car on a street next to another car - aparcado en doble fila

convenience store - small neighbourhood food, etc. shops - tienda de ultramarinos

get stuck - to be trapped or blocked by something

- atrapado por algo

passengers - clients who travel on a bus, plane, ship, etc. - pasajeros

bus line - a bus route, usually with its own number - una ruta de autobús

enforce - when someone in power obliges someone else to do something - obligar

fine - paying money as a punishment for doing something wrong - multa

purchase - buy - comprar

at least - if nothing else - al menos

taillights - the lights at the back of a car (not the break lights) - luz trasera

check-point - a place where policemen stop cars to check them - punto de control

shoulder - the side of the road where cars can park in emergencies - arcén

are up by X% - "there are X% more ..." - hay un x% más de ...

driveway - the entrance "street" into a residence's garage - carretera de entrada

to push your luck - to take overly big risks - desafiar a la suerte

follow the pack - to conform and do what everyone else is doing - seguir a la masa

u-turn - a turn reversing the direction of a vehicle - cambio de sentido

from time-to-time - sometimes - de vez en cuando

driver's license - a document permitting one to drive - licencia de conducir

device - a machine for small functions - un aparato

by the way - in addition, an expression used to change topics - a propósito

fancy - very well decorated and expensive - extravagante

keeping a safe distance - maintain a safe distance - mantener una distancia segura

tailgater - a person who follows your car in their car too closely - chupa-ruedas

close - near - cerca

seatbelt - a device used to attach someone to their seat - cinturón

helmet - a hard and safe hat - casco

enough is enough! - this is enough - ¡Basta ya!

assume - to take for granted - suponer, dar por hecho

stateside - from or in the United States - de los estados unidos

burned out - completely burned - completamente quemado

drove by - to drive a vehicle beyond something - pasar de largo en un vehículo

a grass fire - a fire which burns grass - un fuego que quema hierba o pasto

go up in flames - burn completely - quemar completamente

catch-all - something that includes all possibilities - abarca todos las posibilidades

sum up - to add several numbers - sumar varios numéros

the right of way - a vehicle can go first, before another one - tener preferencia

traffic circle - a one-way circular street where two streets cross - rotonda, glorieta

by law - according to the law - por ley

yield - to permit another to go first - ceder el paso

sticking to the books - to adhere perfectly to the rules - adherirse a las reglas

to take a place at x kph - to drive through a place at x kph - tomar un sitio a x kph

shocker - something that shocks or surprises - algo chocante o sorprendente

overtake - to pass somebody or something - adelantar

let me tell you - permit me to tell you - os lo digo yo

get over - move to the side - mover hacia un lado

get out of the way - to remove oneself as an obstacle - quitarse uno de en medio

they're on top of you - to have somebody right behind you - tener a alguien encima

a rare treat - a surprise gift - un regalo sorpresa

there's no such thing - it doesn't exist - no hay tal cosa

a four-way traffic light - a crossroads with lights in all four directions - un cruce con luzes en las cuatro direcciones

get confused - to become unable to think clearly - confundirse

drive on - to continue driving - "on" a veces significa "continuar" detrás de un verbo, continuar conduciendo

until - up to the point in time - hasta

study up - study - "up" a veces significa "completamente" detrás de un verbo, estudiar

passing up - to overtake somebody completely - "up" a veces significa "completamente" detrás de un verbo, adelantar

oncoming - coming towards you - veniendo hacia ti

given that - assuming something is true - dado qué

donor-bikes - a play on words, a mix between motorbikes and donors - donantes-motocicletas

railing - a fence with vertical metal posts - verja

backing up - to go in a backwards direction - retroceder

common sense - ideas or practices always considered normal - sentido común

lack - a state when there is not enough of something - carencia

miss the exit - to forget or pass the off ramp - pasarse la salida de largo

exit ramp - the exit from the highway - la salida del autopista

turn around - to turn the car till it goes in the opposite direction - darse la vuelta

deserve - to earn through one's hard work - merecer

all decked out - dressed or decorated in a very obvious way - adornado

advice - suggestions and recommendations - consejo

hazard lights - the emergency lights on a car - luces de emergencia

drunk - a person who drinks to much alcohol gets drunk - borracho

breathalyzer - a device for measuring alcohol blood levels - prueba del alchohol dado por la policia

run into - to meet someone, also to crash into something - cruzarse con y chocarse con

pun - joke with a double meaning - broma de doble sentido de palabras

driving under the influence - to drive having some substance in one's body, alcohol, drugs, etc. - conducir bajo la influencia de

joke - something you say to make people laugh - chiste, broma

feel sorry for - to feel pity for - sentir pena por

reckon - think - pensar

as good as - the same as (also used in comparatives) - lo mismo qué

Who are you trying to kid? - Who are you trying to fool? - ¿A quien intentas engañar?

rest - to relax in order to recover strength - descansar

overcrowded - with too many people - atiborrado

hasten - hurry - darse prisa

punish - to oblige someone to accept a penalty for something done wrong - castigar

threat - the possibility of harm or problems - amenaza

there's always a chance - there's always a possibility - siempre hay una posibilidad

payoff - reward - recompensa

rush hour - the time at which there is a maximum of traffic - hora punta

toll-road - a road which you pay for - carretera de peaje

pricing strategy - the strategy used to decide the prices one sets for products or services - la estrategia usada para decidir los precios uno pone para productos o servicios

crosswalk - pedestrian crosssing - paso de zebra, cruze de peatones

somewhat - to some extent (a little) - algo

run down - run over someone with a vehicle - atropellar

close calls - situations that almost (became an accident) - por poco (se convierte en accidente)

on a weekly basis - weekly - semanalmente

dent - a deep mark (damaging my car) - abolladura

just about every time - almost every time - casi siempre

losing their cool - getting angry - perdiendo la calma

purposefully - decisively - decisivamente

accident-prone - "prone" indicates someone is likely to do something - alguien que esta dado a que algo le ocurra

whoever - whatever person - quien quiera que sea

made up - invented - inventado

big-picture - a holistic perspective - una perspectiva holística

loads - lots - muchos

it also pays - it is also a good idea - también es buena idea

lie (Lie, etc.) - describes the location of something, usually referring to geography, same as "is" - está

abroad - outside of one's own country - en el extranjero

get behind the wheel - to sit down in a car behind the steering wheel in order to drive it - meterse detrás del volante

is taken as an insult - to understand something is meant as an insult - se toma como insulto

disclaimer - denial of responsibility - negación de responsibilidad

point out - to make someone notice something - señalar

Sources:

http://www.permisoporpuntos.es/es/

20 Minutos

Qué Madrid

Other:

Oxford Dictionary

Proz Translations

Answers.com

Dirección General de Trafico

Online Reference Dictionary, Encyclopedia & more Word: by: WordStarts withEnds withMentions Wordreference Spanish / English Dictionary.