How much does a toll road cost in Spain? Toll roads in Spain. Toll roads in Spain
Highways in Spain
According to Wikipedia, Spanish roads carry 90% of the country's passenger and 79% of freight traffic.
There is a good explanation for this - Spanish roads are quite well designed and built. The road network provides excellent transport connections between Spain's major cities and also connects Spain with neighboring Portugal and France.
At one time, Spain received a large sum of money from the European Union to put its road network in order. I used this money very effectively. The roads in Spain differ from German autobahns only in the speed limit.
Autobahns go directly into cities and are conveniently integrated with the urban transport network.
The pavement on Spanish roads is of very high quality.
The center where major highways converge is, of course, Madrid. But also to Barcelona, the largest port, there are excellent roads from three sides: South-West, North-East and North-West.
The speed on Spanish highways is 120 km/h.
Road equipment
Road signs, indicators, fencing with reflectors, signs with route numbers, emergency call bollards - the highways of Spain are simply crammed with all of this.
CARRETERAS CONVENCIONALES are roads that do not contain the signs of the three previous roads. In other words, these are ordinary roads in Spain, which in turn can be divided into different subtypes. Depending on the presence and size of the shoulder, as well as the number of lanes on the road surface.
VÍ-A DE SERVICIO - service road. Sometimes it can be called VÍ-A LATERAL - side road. This is an additional road that is located next to the main road. Such roads in Spain can be found on industrial sites, next to large industrial zones, residential areas, etc.
CARRETARA DE CIRCULACIÓ-N is what is called the ring road in Kyiv. In other places you can hear the ring road. A road that encircles a populated area and connects roads leading to the populated area.
From this above classification of roads in Spain, we should dwell in more detail on the roads that we indicated at the beginning of the list.
PEAJE - toll roads in Spain. The only Spanish toll road can be AUTOPSTA. Such a road assumes the presence of several lanes in one direction of travel; lanes in the opposite direction of movement are located on different roads. Exits from this road are limited. All interchanges are made at different levels.
TOLL ROADS IN SPAIN. The Spanish toll road is marked with a sign with the word PEAJE in a red circle. Payment on toll roads in Spain can be carried out in different ways. Near large cities, sections of such roads are free to travel. In some areas you need to pay the specified amount immediately. In some sections, payment is made at the exit from the toll road in Spain. Often, when entering a toll road, you will have to take a ticket and pay when leaving the road. The ticket itself will list the exits from the Spanish toll road in the form of a small map.
The most expensive sections are the sections of the toll road in Spain with tunnels. For example, travel through the Cadí tunnel will cost you about 10 euros. Travel from Barcelona almost to France costs about the same.
At the entrance, exit or at divisions and junctions of such roads there are points for issuing tickets or payment. You will be notified of these points by signs, including those requiring you to reduce your speed. At this point the toll road will expand significantly. At the ticket issuing point, everything is simple - you need to stop in front of the barrier and wait until the machine issues a ticket. It must be saved until the end of the trip. If it is lost, you will have to pay the maximum, as if the trip was made from the farthest point of the toll road.
A little information for those who are going to travel to Europe for the first time. The easiest way to travel around Europe is through high-speed, usually toll, roads. They allow you to quickly arrive from point A to point B and are designed just for this. You won’t see much beauty or the country in general, but there are exceptions (for example, the A75 road in France along which we returned from Spain). Diesel fuel on the highway in both France and Spain, as I said above, is approximately 1.6 - 1.65 euros per liter.
Toll roads cost approximately 7-8 euros per 100 km. Road toll points are standard, both in France and in Spain. They look like a bunch of gates on the highway with barriers. In both of the above countries, payment is taken for the distance traveled.
At the entrance to the toll road you receive a ticket, at the exit from the toll section you pay the toll. The ticket comes out of the machine automatically, the main thing is to take it and then the barrier will open. There are several ways to pay. You can pay by card, you can pay in cash, you can pay through a machine, you can pay in person.
The easiest way is to pay by credit card (we don’t take into account the “telepay” system, I think that’s what it’s called, correct me if I’m wrong). And so pay by card - drive up to the barrier, put the ticket into the machine (into the flashing slot), after that another slot will blink (sometimes the same one where the ticket was pushed), stick the card there, after a second the card pops out and the barrier opens, the whole way is clear, and the money was withdrawn. If something doesn’t work out, then in this case there are operators on duty at the payment point, and even if you don’t press the help button, but stand for a very long time at a closed barrier, a person will definitely come up to you and help. Sometimes the machines break down, and then a person also comes and saves the world. In general, everything is simple and clear.
To understand which payment method to choose, look at the icons above the gates. There are clear pictograms. If you do not have a special “telepage” card, do not go through the gate with a pictogram in the form of a capital Latin letter “t”. Another feature of toll roads in Spain. A couple of days after arriving in Roses and, accordingly, after driving on toll Spanish highways, SMS began to arrive through the mobile banking system saying that I, in some kind of “Security”, had made a successful purchase for 1 euro. At the same time, I did not make any purchases from this organization, especially using the card.
Having rummaged through the Internet, we found out that toll roads in Spain are the security service of the organization servicing toll roads in Spain, they will check the authenticity of the credit card. In fact, money is not debited from the card, but only blocked on it. Money is blocked every time you pay for travel. The blocking falls off after a month. So if anyone encounters this, don't panic.
Read more about Spain in THIS report.
There are also some kind of local free highways (eg M-10 in Madrid, SE-30 in Seville, V-30 in Valencia, etc.).
Autobahns in the Canary Islands (Tenerife and Gran Canaria) are free.
The most expensive object to travel is the Cadi tunnel - 11 euros.
Here you can find out about prices for toll roads throughout Europe. Click on the map on the country you are interested in and the table will show travel prices.
Today there are at least 28 countries in Europe that have toll roads:
Is there more up-to-date information? Please share in the comments.
If you are interested in information about toll roads in other countries, follow this link.
Today I will talk a little about toll roads in Spain, in particular in Andalusia and Catalonia. For tourists they are not particularly needed, only if you need to get there quickly. The permissible speed on them is 120 km/h, but many go 140. But you must admit, it’s more pleasant to ride along the sea, stopping in different towns and observation platforms, than to drive along a concrete fence for several hours in a row.
Just recently we drove along the AP-7 toll road from to. We needed to get there in the morning for a hot air balloon ride, and next time not be late at . The pleasure is not cheap! The journey cost about €9 and the same for petrol. I told you how we rented a car.
Toll road payment procedure
Before entering the toll road, you will be warned several times and offered free detours. There are several payment options:
- When you enter you receive a ticket, when you leave you pay
- You pay only upon departure or upon entry
You can pay with cash, coins or a bank card (but be careful with it! More on that below)
Before the payment points, the road is divided into many lanes (see photo at the beginning):
- Blue tracks for automatic payment using devices under glass (not for us!)
- Payment only by cards (cards on signs)
- Payment by cards and cash
- Manual – payment through an operator, this is the easiest way :-)
If you have any difficulties with payment, click on the contact button and an operator will come to you and help you pay.
Be careful when paying by card!
I had an unpleasant incident with payment. I think it's like that for everyone. When leaving the highway, I paid for the fare with my card. We took out about €7. Then a day later you receive an SMS about the withdrawal of €1 with the description: parking peaje Madrid. Then another day, then again upon arrival home! I haven’t been to Madrid, which means it’s being removed or blocked by the highway payment office.
For what? After all, I already paid €7. Apparently for some reason they check the map after each trip on the toll road. They say that in a month they will return the blocked euros.
But I did not conduct experiments and blocked the Tinkoff card. The bank returned the money to me and reissued the card for free. Next time I will pay cash for toll roads.
What do you think about these write-offs?
I don't advise you to count by hand. The most convenient service for calculating route costs is. The site is ugly, but very functional. It works throughout Europe, maybe even more. You ask from where and where, and it offers several route options. It shows how much you will spend on travel, gasoline and how long you will be on the road. So you will decide for yourself the optimal time-money path.
There is also a purely Spanish site -. It contains more accurate data on road tolls, but it doesn’t show anything other than the price.
Well, don’t forget about good old Google Maps. He builds routes between cities well. In the options there is a checkbox to avoid toll roads.
How can I save up to 20% on hotels?
It’s very simple - look not only on booking. I prefer the search engine RoomGuru. He searches for discounts simultaneously on Booking and on 70 other booking sites.
The length of the public road network in Spain, including the Canary and Balearic Islands, is 683.175 km. Almost all of them are paved roads. The length of highways is 17,109 km, of which almost 3,000 km are .
Toll roads
In Spain there are tolls for using roads. Travel through some tunnels is also subject to payment.
The road toll system in Spain depends on several parameters: distance traveled, vehicle category, season and even rush hour during the day.
Tariffs for travel on major highways for 2019:| Highway | Route (distance) | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| AP-2 | Zaragoza - AP-7 (225 km) | € 24.60 |
| AP-4 | Seville - Cadiz (95 km) | € 7.45 |
| AP-6 | Madrid - Adanero (74 km) | € 12.70 |
| AP-7 | A9 (France) - Barcelona (156 km) | € 14.70 |
| AP-7 | Barcelona - Valencia (347 km) | € 37.50 |
| AP-7 | Valencia - Alicante (178 km) | € 17.60 |
| AP-7 | Cartagena - Vera (97 km) | € 10.90 |
| AP-7 | Malaga - Guadiaro (105 km) | € 16.20 |
| AP-8 | A63 (France) - Bilbao (105 km) | € 15.50 |
| AP-9 | Ferrol - A3 (Portugal) (196 km) | € 21.55 |
| AP-15 | Tudela - Irurzun (112 km) | € 5.70 |
| AP-36 | Ocaña - La Roda (150 km) | € 13.60 |
| AP-41 | Madrid - Toledo (60 km) | € 7.65 |
| AP-51 | Villacastín - Ávila (26 km) | € 1.45 |
| AP-53 | Santiago de Compostela - Dozón (57 km) | € 6.00 |
| AP-61 | Segovia - AP-6 (28 km) | € 1.35 |
| AP-66 | Campomanes - León (78 km) | € 13.35 |
| AP-68 | Bilbao - Zaragoza (298 km) | € 32.85 |
| AP-71 | León - Astorga (43 km) | € 5.15 |
| R-2 | Madrid - Guadalajara (59 km) | € 6.15 |
| R-3 | Madrid - Arganda del Rey (39 km) | € 3.30 |
| R-4 | Madrid - Osana (58 km) | € 6.00 |
| R-5 | Madrid - Navalcarnero (28 km) | € 3.55 |
| C-32 | Montgat-Palafolls (57 km) | € 4.93 |
| C-32 | Castelldefels - El Vendrell (49 km) | € 5.32 |
| C-33 | Barcelona - Montmeló (29 km) | € 1.66 |
The tariffs in the table are for cars and motorcycles in the summer (at rush hour, tariffs on some roads, for example around Madrid, are slightly more expensive).
These are indicative fares, calculated once at the beginning of the year based on the Spanish motorway website, provided that traffic between points is carried out on the same motorway.
For example: Zaragoza - AP-7 (€ 24.60), subject to movement only via the AP-1 motorway. When traveling on a different route, the fare may differ in one direction or another.
Areas with special payment
Cadi tunnel
The Cadi Tunnel is located in the province of Barcelona. The Cadi tunnel has a length of 5.026 m. It is the third longest tunnel in Spain. It was opened on October 30, 1984.
Tariffs for 2019: Tariffs for 2019:* Rush hours are weekdays at the following times:
- 07:30 – 10:30 (morning)
- 17:00 – 21:00 (evening)
Buy a road map of Spain and Portugal from Amazon online store with delivery .
Basic traffic rules in Spain
Speed Limit
Standard speed limits in Spain (unless otherwise indicated on signs).
Cars:- in a populated area - 50 km/h
- outside the populated area - 90 km/h
- on the road - 100 km/h
- on the motorway - 120 km/h
- in a populated area - 50 km/h
- outside the populated area - 70 km/h
- on the road - 80 km/h
- on the motorway - 90 km/h
It is prohibited to drive on highways vehicles whose speed according to technical characteristics does not exceed 60 km/h.
For vehicles equipped with snow chains, the maximum permitted speed is no more than 50 km/h.
Speed cameras
Speed cameras are widely used in Spain. As of August 2010, some cameras (on the AP-7 in Castellon, the AP-7 in Murcia, on the A-31 in Alicante and the A-52 in Zamora) are equipped to alert the nearest police officer in the event of speeding, committed by the driver of a foreign car.
The police officer receives a photo of the car and has the right to stop the vehicle and impose a large fine on the spot. If the fine is not paid immediately, the car may be detained. It is planned to install more such cameras in the future.
Alcohol
Maximum permissible blood alcohol level 0.5 ‰.
For drivers with less than 2 years of experience, the permissible blood alcohol level is 0.3 ‰.
If your blood alcohol level exceeds the legal limit, the fine will be €500.
If the blood alcohol level exceeds the permissible limit by 2 times or the violation is committed repeatedly within a year, the fine will be € 1,000.
If illegal drugs are found in the body, the fine will be € 1,000.
The fine for refusing to take an alcohol or drug test will be €500.
Low beam
The use of low beams is only required when driving through tunnels.
Transportation of children
Children under 3 years old can travel only when using suitable child restraint systems suitable for their weight.
Children aged 3 years and under and under 135 cm tall must use a child seat or booster seat appropriate for their weight.
Children over 135 cm tall can use regular seat belts.
The fine for violating the rules for transporting children is € 200. In this case, the vehicle may be detained.
Seat belts
Using seat belts Necessarily for front and rear passengers.
Fine - € 200.
Talking on the phone
It is prohibited to use a telephone that is not equipped with a technical device that allows hands-free negotiations while the vehicle is moving. At a gas station, your mobile phone must be turned off while refueling.
Fine - € 200.
Fines
Police officers have the right to collect fines on the spot for traffic violations. An official receipt will be issued.
Foreign drivers must pay the fine in cash immediately or their vehicle may be impounded until the fine is paid. If you pay the fine immediately on the spot, you will receive a 50% discount, but you will lose the right to appeal.
If you received a fine receipt by mail, then if you pay the fine within 20 days via the Internet or banking institutions (las oficinas de Correos o en cualquier sucursal del Banco Santander), its amount is also reduced by 50%, and the driver is also deprived of the right to appeal resolutions.
If you do not pay the fine within 30 days from the date of receipt of the notification of the imposition of a sanction, a decision is made to forcefully collect the fine.
There is a small nuance here, which is that it is very difficult to determine exactly when you received this notification, and cases of receiving a 50% discount 2 months after the adoption of the resolution are not uncommon.
Fines for speeding differ within a populated area and outside it.
Fines for speeding in Spain:| Over speed | ||
|---|---|---|
| up to 20 km/h | € 100 | |
| 21 - 30 km/h | € 300 | € 100 |
| 31 - 40 km/h | € 400 | € 300 |
| 41 - 50 km/h | € 500 | € 300 |
| 51 - 60 km/h | € 600 | € 400 |
| 61 - 70 km/h | € 600 | € 500 |
| over 70 km/h | € 600 | |
In 2014, the requirements for overtaking cyclists were tightened. The minimum permissible distance to them when overtaking should be at least 1.5 meters. In this case, it is allowed to partially or even completely occupy the oncoming lane, provided that no interference is created for oncoming cyclists.
Since 2014, Spain has formally adopted the 2011 European Directive “to facilitate the exchange of data at borders regarding road safety violations.”
Now the authorities of the state where the traffic rules were violated have the right to track the violator by license plate number, even in another state, and send a receipt to pay the fine to his homeland. In case of refusal to pay the fine, the case against the motorist will be transferred to the authorities of the offender’s home country for examination and collection of a fine.
This directive covers eight types of violations: speeding, not wearing a seat belt, running a red light, exceeding the legal limit of alcohol, driving under the influence of drugs, driving without a helmet, using a mobile phone or any other means of communication while driving.
Helpful information
Petrol
1.29 1.43 1.21 0.72 as of 10/24/2019
In Spain, unleaded petrol is available in 95 and 98 ( Gasoline sin plomo) and diesel fuel ( Gasoleo "A" or Gas-oil). Leaded gasoline is not available.
Note that gasoline prices in the Canary Islands are € 0.20-0.22 less than the national average.
There are a small number of gas stations (LPG) called "Autogas".
Coordinates of LPG gas stations (96 Kb).
Emergency numbers
- European emergency number - 112
- Police - 091
- Ambulance - 061
- Fire service - 080
Mandatory equipment
Equipment that necessary have in your car:
- Warning triangle- in case of an accident, 2 signs are recommended (otherwise local authorities may impose a fine if only one is installed)
- Spare wheel- or a kit for its repair
- Reflective vest- mandatory when exiting a car stopped on the roadway or side of the road. However, it is not necessary to carry it in a car. Spanish police cannot fine a foreign driver who does not have a reflective vest in their car. Fine - € 200.
Winter equipment
Winter tires
In the summer, the police pay attention to the driver’s “dress code.” For example, for driving bare-chested or wearing flip-flops, the driver can be fined €80. The front passenger's legs thrown up on the dashboard can cost €100.
Tow trucks have priority right of way.
The use of navigation software that indicates the location of fixed speed cameras is permitted.
At the same time, operating navigation equipment while driving is punishable by a fine of € 200.
The use of radar detectors has been prohibited since May 2014. If they are used, the fine is € 200. For the use of anti-radars, the penalty is much more serious - up to € 6,000.
If the radar detector is combined in one device with a navigator, then it must be deactivated.
Many tourists who come on holiday to Spain prefer to rent a car immediately upon arrival at the airport to make their holiday more complete and convenient. There are also those who come to this country, which is quite remote from Eastern Europe, in their cars. It is important for everyone to know the nuances spanish highways, which you may encounter when traveling around this country by car.
This article, dedicated to the types of highways, toll roads in Spain and how to use them, I am starting a series of articles with the help of which, I hope, the use of Spanish roads will become simple and convenient for road travelers. So:
Highways in Spain
There are two types of motorways in Spain − autovia and On both of them, if there are no limit signs, the maximum permitted speed is 120 km/h. By the way, the speed limit sign 120 occurs with enviable regularity, so it will be difficult to forget about the speed limit even with a strong desire.
There are several differences between these two types of Spanish highways, but one thing is important for us - the autovia type road is free to travel, the autopista type is toll. Both are indicated by signs on a blue background, but the toll road will always have a “Peaje” icon next to its designation, a white circle with a red rim and a black horizontal stripe inside (pictured on the right).
And here's what it looks like on large pointers:
As you can see, to get to Madrid you can choose either the AP34 toll motorway or the free A31. And here the exit to the right from the toll highway also leads to the toll road. In both cases, there is a paid icon on the side of the designation.
By the way, the quality of coverage on all roads in Spain, both toll and free, is beyond praise. What was especially striking was how slower the tires wear out - I’ve already driven more than 80 thousand on my Renault Megane, and the tread reserve is even more than sufficient. In Russia, mileage figures on one set of tires were much more modest.
How to pay for toll roads in Spain
The toll system for toll roads in Spain is quite simple and understandable. Usually, you just need to drive through the toll section once, and no problems will arise in the future. But there are still a couple of pitfalls here. I'll try to write about them in more detail.
So, having decided to take the toll road, you must drive through the entry terminal. Everything is very simple here, you drive up to any of the terminals above which there is a green traffic light or a green arrow, and stop in front of the lowered barrier. To your left is a terminal in the form of a metal yellow locker. There is no need to click anywhere - literally after a couple of seconds a ticket pops out of the terminal, which you need to take (pictured on the right). The barrier opens, and you can go ahead (see the photo - the appearance of the entrance terminal to the toll highway).
You need to keep your ticket - it shows the place of entry to the toll road. Based on this, the payment amount will be calculated. If you lose your ticket, they will assume that you are driving from the very beginning of the road. So far everything is very simple, the only difficulty may arise when exiting the toll Spanish motorway. Let's look at this point in more detail.
So, having left the toll road following the sign in the desired direction (or on the advice of the navigator), after a few hundred meters you will see a large terminal for paying tolls:
First of all, we pay attention to the color of the traffic light or arrow at the top above the terminal - if it is red, like the one above the photo above the leftmost one, then this terminal is temporarily closed, there is no need to go there.
The next point is that many cars in Spain are equipped with a system for remote payment; special terminals are equipped for them, through which they drive without stopping (the barrier rises automatically, having received a signal from the device installed on the front window). Terminals for these cars can be of two types - exclusively for them (in this case, the white letter “T” is located in a blue circle), you cannot drive through it without a device, and general ones (indicated by the same letter “T”, but in a blue square ), in this case you can use this terminal to check out.
And the last important point is the payment method. There are separate passages for payment exclusively with bank cards (see photo above); you cannot pay in cash there. There are universal machines (in the same photo), you can pay either in cash or by credit card. Using his example, we will analyze the payment process. We drive up and stop near the machine. The slot where you insert the ticket is highlighted in red. Insert the green arrow up, as in the photo:
The amount to be paid immediately appears on the monitor:
Now you can reach into your wallet for cash or a credit card:
We collect the change from below, if you paid in cash, the barrier opens, and “Have a nice trip” from the terminal:
And in conclusion, a few words about the simplest payment method - manual with the help of an operator. If you see a large sign at the top with the word MANUAL, and under it there is a booth, this means that at this payment point there is also an operator, to whom you can simply give the ticket and pay in cash or by card. In recent years, this payment method has not been available at every motorway exit, so it is better to be prepared for the fact that you will have to deal exclusively with technology.