The Guardia Civil is investigating a 52-year-old woman, resident in Mallorca, as the alleged perpetrator of a road safety offence for driving at 175 kilometres per hour on a road where the speed limit was 80 km/h. The driver was travelling at more than twice the speed limit. The incident occurred on 12 November when the woman, who was driving an “off-road vehicle” on the MA-13 road towards Alcudia, was caught by the Guardia Civil’s radar vehicle driving at high speed.
Traffic officers stopped the driver and verified that she had reached the threshold for a criminal offence by exceeding the maximum speed limit on the road by more than 80 km/h. The Guardia Civil reports that this type of behaviour poses a serious risk, not only to the offender but also to other road users, and, according to Article 379 of the Criminal Code, can carry penalties of imprisonment for 3 to 6 months, a fine of 6 to 12 months, community service for 31 to 90 days and the withdrawal of the driving licence for one to four years.
The Guardia Civil reminds drivers of the importance of respecting the established limits and emphasises that excessive speed is one of the main factors in road accidents. Earlier this year, the Directorate General for Traffic (DGT) launched a new intensive surveillance campaign focused on speed limits, as inappropriate speed is considered one of the main causes of road accidents.
The data shows that this factor is the third most common in traffic accidents, especially in those with fatalities. The DGT reminds drivers that travelling above the established limits carries sanctions, both financial and in the form of losing points on their driving licence. On its official website, the organisation has a detailed table specifying the amounts of the fines, which can range from 100 to 600 euros, as well as the loss of between 2 and 6 points, depending on the speed limit of the road where the offence was committed.
Furthermore, it is emphasised that driving more than 60 km/h over the speed limit on urban roads or more than 80 km/h on interurban roads is considered a crime against road safety. On sections of motorways and dual carriageways leading into cities with speed limits below 100 km/h, speeding will be penalised with the corresponding fine, but administrative and criminal sanctions will only be applied if the speed limit is exceeded.