The Traffic Regulations are about to be updated, but the news has nothing to do with the regulations. In 2023 new road signs will arrive, others will be updated, some will slightly change their design and those that are practically in disuse will disappear. The objective is to adapt to all the changes that have occurred in terms of mobility and traffic in recent years.
All drivers will therefore have to update our knowledge: don’t worry, there is enough time for it. At the moment, the Royal Decree (drafted by the General Directorate of Traffic, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Transport, as well as other organizations) it is only a draft that must (still) reach Congress, where it will receive the corresponding amendments, go to the Senate and when it obtains the green light in the Upper House, it will return to the Cortes Generales.
AFASEMETRA, the association of signal manufacturers, believes that They will come into force in mid-2023. In the memory of the Royal Decree, it also makes it clear that “they do not oblige any administration to install new vertical signs and road markings” and neither do they establish a specific term. “For reasons of conservation and maintenance” the change will be made when determined by the owner of the road.
In case someone wants to catch up, in this link you have the full catalog and then we detail the most important changes that correspond to the signs of obligation, prohibition, danger and information.
New danger signs
P-8: This sign indicates danger due to the proximity of a level crossing that does not have barriers or semi-barriers.
P16a and P16b: These signals are not new, but they do modify their design. When indicating the slope of the road, they will include an arrow that will inform about the sense Of the same.
P‐20a: the signal in charge of warning about the danger due to the proximity of a pedestrian crossing is well known. It is not new, but it also changes its design: the pedestrian’s silhouette will now be more clearly outlined. A modification that will be applied to all signals in which this image appears
Q-21a: The danger signal due to the proximity of a place frequented by children, such as a school, a playground, etc., is also not new. In this case, it is updated to remove gender connotations: Before, a boy appeared leading a girl by the hand, and now it will be the other way around.
P-21b: this new traffic signal will inform about the danger due to the proximity of a place frequented by older people such as, for example, a center for the elderly, a residence…
Q-22a: warns about the danger due to the proximity of an exclusive passage for cyclists.
P-24a: The catalog of signs that indicate danger due to the presence of free animals that can cross the road is expanded with one dedicated to boars.
P-33: this sign is not new, but it does totally change the design of your image. Alert about the proximity of a section in which visibility is often reduced due to different factors. Before it represented a car surrounded by several points and now a partially covered vehicle appears.
P-35: the catalog welcomes a new signal that informs of the proximity of a twisted rail or “a section between a confluence and a fork where different lane change movements occur by vehicles, crossing their paths and thereby increasing the risk of collisions.”
New mandatory signs
R-2: commonly known as ‘Stop’. In this case, only the design of the word that forces us to stop our vehicle changes: the letters will have a finer typography.
R-420: this new road sign indicates the existence of a reserved and compulsory circulation route for Personal Mobility Vehicles (VMP) represented by the image of a scooter. It also prohibits other vehicles from using it.
R-421: indicates the same as the previous signal, but in this case it is extended to bicycles.
R-422: this new signal requires users who travel by bicycle to get off the bike and complete the indicated section on foot. You will be able to count on limitations of specific periods, which we imagine will be temporary.
New prohibition signs
R-118: this new prohibition sign indicates that Personal Mobility Vehicles (VMP) they will not be able to access the road where it is installed.
R-119: the prohibition is the same as in the previous case, but this signal also includes the bikes.
R-120: this sign is responsible for prohibiting access to the Low Emission Zones of the cities and is aimed at those vehicles that, due to their label or other criteria, will not be able to enter the ZBE. Of course, the conditions of the prohibition must be specified in the signal itself or in a complementary panel.
New information signs
S-1b and S-2b: These vertical signs tell us where a line begins or ends. multilane Highway, which has special traffic regulations. At the same time, it can refer to the branch of a junction that leads to this type of track.
S-1c and S-2c: As in the previous case, it informs at what point a highway 2+1 (those formed by three lanes, where circulation can be in both directions). It can also refer to a branch that leads to this road.
S-45: This signal informs about the presence of an exclusive passage for cyclists and it can go hand in hand with the P22-a, which warns about the proximity of the passage itself.
S-46: is similar to the previous one, but indicates the existence of a step shared by pedestrians and cyclists.
Road signs that will disappear in 2023
In 2023, for various reasons, some signs that we can find on the streets of Spanish towns will disappear. three of them are the R-308a (prohibits parking on odd days), the R-308b (prohibits parking on even days) and the R-309, that informs about the existence of a limited parking area in which the driver must indicate at what time the parking of his vehicle has started.
