Simon Hunter
SPAIN’S DGT traffic authority is ramping up spot checks in a bid to nab drink and drug drivers during the Christmas period.
The plan, which will be presented by the DGT on Tuesday, will include an increased number of stops and testing for drivers at a time when there will be a lot of company dinners and gatherings of friends in the run up to the festive season.
While Spain’s Civil Guard is charged with monitoring national roads and motorways, the DGT has also called on local police officers to increase their vigilance of areas where people are likely to be consuming alcohol or drugs over the Christmas season.
The DGT is taking action during a week when the numbers of deaths on the roads over the recent public holidays in Spain were released.
According to the traffic authority, a total of 18 people died in 17 deadly crashes during the so-called puente, the combination of the Constitution Day holiday on December 6 and the Immaculate Conception holiday on December 8.
While high, the figure was in fact lower than the 22 deaths registered in 2017, which was the last time that these two holidays fell on a Wednesday and a Friday, according to news agency Europa Press.
So far this year, there have been 1,072 deaths on the Spanish roads, 36 of which were registered in the month of December. In 2022, there was a total of 1,145 fatalities.
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