Spanish roads claimed the lives of 1,119 people during the year, which is 35 less than in 2024, according to the balance presented today Thursday at the General Directorate of Traffic (DGT) by the Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska. He has also defended the use of the V.16 beacon to signal a damaged vehicle and has announced that there will be “a reasonable period” in which there will be no sanctions for not installing it in the event of a breakdown or accident. Every day about 3,000 people use this method, according to the information given by the minister.
The 1,119 deaths occurred in 1,028 accidents (14 less than in 2024) in which 4,936 injuries were recorded (267 more than the previous year), at the same time of the accident or in the following 24 hours. These deaths have been counted, provisionally, until the final figures are available, as highlighted by the minister. This has explained that the downward trend of recent years continues, a figure only lower in 2019 and leaving aside the years of the pandemic (2020 and 2021).
These figures occur in a context of increased mobility. During 2025, 478.6 million trips were recorded on interurban roads, which represents an increase of 3% compared to the previous year. “The number of deaths is still too many, a very high price for Spanish society,” said Grande-Marlaska, who asked drivers for “responsibility, common sense and good work” for the new year. During 2025, there were 36 days without fatalities compared to 44 in 2024.
Most of the deaths occurred on conventional roads – a single lane in each direction of travel – with 821 fatalities. The 298 were registered on high-capacity roads – highways and highways. Road departures continue to be the cause of the highest accident rate with 43% of deaths (481), followed by head-on collisions (21%, 237 deaths). A total of 451 deaths correspond to the so-called vulnerable road users: 103 pedestrians (four less than in 2024), 40 cyclists (eight less) and 304 motorcyclists (five more). The minister highlighted that pedestrians account for almost 10% of the deaths and that around 25 correspond to drivers who got out to place the warning triangles.
“Reasonable period”
This information has allowed Grande-Marlaska to address the controversy over the mandatory use of the V-16 beacon, of which he has highlighted that the only intention is to reduce deaths on roads: “It avoids the risk of getting out to put up the triangles, it allows lighting a kilometer away and being in the connected vehicle system.” Grande-Marlaska has reported that there will be “a reasonable period” in which information about the sanction from the Traffic Group of the Civil Guard and the DGT will take precedence. He did not want to say how long that period would last and has maintained that he seeks to prioritize “a system to save lives.” He also recalled that several European countries are pending the implementation of this system to see if they too adopt it and that the United Kingdom and Luxembourg have already banned the use of fault triangles due to their danger.
The minister did not want to get into controversy and has maintained at all times that the only objective of the V-16 is to avoid accidents. He also recalled that no data is collected and that its approval had the favorable vote of the 85 victims’ associations that make up the Traffic and Road Safety Council, in addition to the approval of the Spanish Data Protection Agency. “It is only for road safety. It is not for collection and sanctioning purposes. It is about guaranteeing safety and doing so in reasonable terms,” he stated. “I hope all vehicles have it,” he added.
A total of 165 deaths did not use the safety systems, with a very worrying figure: one in four deaths in cars and vans did not use a seat belt at the time of the accident. Added to this is that six motorcyclists and six cyclists were not wearing helmets when they suffered the accident.
Marlaska urges that the reduction in the blood alcohol level be approved as soon as possible
The Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, has asked the parliamentary groups to approve “without further delay” the bill presented by the PSOE to reduce the level of alcohol permitted for driving to 0.2 grams of alcohol per liter of blood. “There is no excuse to justify stopping this measure that does save lives.”
This reduction means in practice the almost elimination of the alcohol-driving rate. “This change closes the cycle of alcohol consumption while driving, with a clear message of zero tolerance,” highlighted Grande-Marlaska, who described as “inexplicable” the delays of the parliamentary groups of the Congress of Deputies in not approving it as soon as possible.
