Spain’s general speed limits for cars are 120 km/h on motorways and dual carriageways, 90 km/h on conventional roads and 20, 30 or 50 km/h in towns, depending on the street. The traffic authority, the DGT, publishes the location of its fixed cameras. It reported 763 fixed control points, including 90 average-speed sections, in December 2024.
| Road type | Cars |
|---|---|
| Motorway and dual carriageway (autopista, autovía) | 120 km/h |
| Conventional road | 90 km/h |
| Road through a town (travesía) | 50 km/h |
| Urban street, two or more lanes each way | 50 km/h |
| Urban street, one lane each way | 30 km/h |
| Urban street, single surface with pavement | 20 km/h |
What are the speed limits in Spain?
Articles 48 and 50 of the Reglamento General de Circulación set the limits above, and signs can set lower ones.
- Conventional roads: where the two directions are physically separated, the road owner can set up to 100 km/h for cars and motorcycles.
- Urban streets: 20 km/h where road and pavement share one surface, 30 km/h with one lane each way and 50 km/h with two or more lanes each way. Lanes reserved for certain users or for public transport are not counted.
- Roads through towns (travesías): 50 km/h for all vehicles.
- Motorways inside towns: 80 km/h unless signs say otherwise.
Since 1 October 2026, Real Decreto 518/2026 has required a driver overtaking cyclists, pedestrians and other vulnerable road users outside built-up areas to slow to at least 20 km/h below the limit and to leave at least 1.5 metres. The same 1.5 metres and 20 km/h reduction apply when passing a stopped vehicle that occupies the lane.
What kinds of speed cameras does Spain use?
Spain uses fixed cameras, average-speed sections known as radares de tramo, and mobile units. The DGT’s magazine gave these national figures in December 2024:
- Fixed control points: 763, including 90 average-speed sections, on motorways, dual carriageways and national conventional roads.
- Mobile radars: 430, operated by the Guardia Civil traffic unit.
Those figures exclude Catalonia and the Basque Country, where traffic powers are transferred. The network has grown since: on 27 February 2026 the DGT announced 33 new radars, 20 fixed and 13 average-speed, as part of a plan for 122 new control points, of which 106 were then in service.
Where does the DGT publish its camera lists?
The DGT publishes camera locations on its website and through its national traffic data portal. Its February 2026 press release says new radars are signposted on the road, published on the DGT website and made available to operators for their navigation systems. The dataset “Radares fijos DGT” on nap.dgt.es gives the locations of fixed cameras on the state road network, except in the Basque Country and Catalonia.
Are speed camera apps legal in Spain?
Spanish law bans radar jammers and detectors but excludes warning mechanisms that report where traffic surveillance systems are. Article 13.6 of the traffic law, Real Decreto Legislativo 6/2015, prohibits installing or carrying radar inhibitors and carrying radar detection mechanisms, and it states that warning mechanisms informing of the position of traffic surveillance systems are excluded from that ban. Article 18.3 of the Reglamento General de Circulación, as amended from 1 October 2026, says the same (texts checked on 30 October 2026).
What should visiting drivers know about Spain?
Speeds are in km/h, and the urban limit changes with the layout of the street, so a street with one lane each way is 30 km/h unless a sign says otherwise. The DGT’s figures and its camera dataset do not cover Catalonia and the Basque Country, so do not read them as a national total. Heading north? Read our France guide, because French rules on warnings differ. Our Italy guide covers the Mediterranean route further east.
