The General Directorate of Traffic (DGT) begins today Friday, December 22, and until January 7, 2024, the special campaign of regulation, management and surveillance of the 19.7 million road trips planned throughout the national territory on the occasion of the Christmas holidays, and which in Cantabria will reach 276,000.
As usual, different phases have been established coinciding with the main Christmas festivities that this year, in addition, take place on the weekend.
· 1st phase, Christmas: From Friday 22nd to Monday 25th of December. For this first period, 60,000 trips are planned in Cantabria.
· 2nd phase, New Year's Eve: From Friday 29 December to Monday 1 January, with a forecast of 68,000 vehicles travelling in the Community.
· 3rd phase, Reyes: From Friday 5 to Sunday 7 January, period in which 45,500 trips are expected in Cantabria, and at the end of which the special Christmas device will be concluded.
As usual, many of these trips, both long and short, especially during weekends and holidays, are directed to second homes, mountain areas for winter sports, areas of winter and Christmas tourist attraction, as well as commercial areas.
TECHNICAL AND HUMAN MEANS
To cover all these journeys, the DGT has prepared a special operation that includes regulation, management and surveillance measures that will ensure mobility and fluidity on the roads, while ensuring road safety.
To this end, the DGT has the maximum availability of its human resources (Agents of the Traffic Group of the Civil Guard, official personnel of the Traffic Management Centers, Helicopter patrols and personnel responsible for the maintenance of equipment and the installation of measures on the road) which, among other functions, will be responsible for:
a) Facilitate the mobility and fluidity of traffic, as well as ensuring road safety on the roads.
b) To maintain proper road safety conditions for all types of vehicles on roads with sections or areas affected by adverse weather conditions such as snow, ice, fog, rain and wind.
(c) To assist users in the event of any incident or unforeseen event that may arise on the journey and to monitor the correct behaviour of users on the road using the human and technical means available to the agency: 780 fixed radars (92 of them of course) and 545 mobile speed control, in addition to the 13 helicopters, 39 drones, 245 cameras and 15 camouflaged vans to control the use of mobile and the safety belt.
d) Timely reporting of any road incidents through traffic information bulletins on the different radio and television stations, on the web www.dgt.es, on Twitter @DGTes and @InformacionDGT and on phone 011.
(e) To intensify speed and blood alcohol controls as a tool for the prevention of road accidents.
For this year’s special operation, in the case of Cantabria, the provincial head of Traffic, José Miguel Tolosa, has indicated that there is the deployment of up to 180 agents of the Traffic Sector of the Civil Guard, the participation of the personnel (up to 57 people) of the Northwest-Cantabrian Traffic Management Center, based in A Coruña, as well as the collaboration of the local police of the main municipalities of the Autonomous Community and road maintenance personnel.
He also pointed out that the areas where a greater presence of vehicles is expected are the junction between the A-8 and A-67 motorways, in the vicinity of Torrelavega, and on the A-8, especially in the eastern part of the Community, bordering the Basque Country.
He has also pointed out that at this time the controls on the roads, especially of alcohol and drugs, will be increased.
From the Government Delegation in Cantabria and the Provincial Traffic Headquarters remember that it is important to avoid the most unfavorable hours to travel, plan the trip on the safest route to avoid unforeseen events and inform yourself of the state of the roads through the Twitter accounts of DGT (@informacionDGT and @DGTes), the newsletters on radio and television, as well as on the phone 011.
ARRIVING LATE IS BETTER THAN NOT ARRIVING, ALSO AT CHRISTMAS
In these wintry days, which are conducive to celebrations, Traffic insists on remembering that drinking alcoholic beverages and driving are incompatible actions. In addition, it is necessary to be cautious in our movements, especially on short and night trips, and always to be informed about the possible adverse weather conditions that may arise at any time of winter.
Prudence is essential because, as the traditional communication campaign of the DGT for these dates recalls, no matter how important the trip is, “arriving late is better than not arriving, also at Christmas”.
The complete device can be consulted on the DGT website https://www.dgt.es/conoce-el-estado-del-trafico/recomendaciones-de-trafico/, a document where you can find traffic forecasts, more unfavourable hours for travel, historical maps, road safety advice and rules, traffic regulation and management measures as well as the traffic operation by Autonomous Communities