January 5, 2024.- The Deputy Delegate of the Government in Valladolid, Alicia Villar, has presided today the preparatory meeting of the special device on the occasion of the winter motorcycle concentration Penguins 2024, the international event that begins on Thursday, January 11, and will last until Sunday, January 14.
Alicia Villar has detailed at the end of the meeting all the work aimed at ensuring the safety of the meeting but has stressed “the importance of personal decisions, the need for all participants to collaborate to achieve that objective, with a prudent and safe driving, taking all precautions and avoiding any risk factor on the road so that everyone enjoys the party”.
The working meeting was also attended by the regional coordinator of the General Directorate of Traffic -DGT-, Inmaculada Matías; the chief captain of the subsector of the Traffic Group of the Civil Guard -ATGC- of Valladolid, Manuel Martín; the colonel head of operations of the Command of the Civil Guard of Valladolid, Javier Peña; the chief curator of the Aliens Brigade of the National Police of Valladolid, Mónica Martín; as well as the organizers of ‘Penguins 2024’, the coordinator and Emimoto, the Club.
Effective
324 people from the General State Administration, including professionals from the State Security Forces and Corps, the General Traffic Directorate, AEMET and other AGE officials, will work to ensure traffic safety and fluidity and ensure road safety.
The device will be activated on the first day of the event, on Thursday, January 11, and will be extended until Sunday afternoon 14. In this way the four days will be covered and also the return of the thousands of visitors who are expected to come to the concentration.
164 personnel of the Civil Guard of the specialties of Traffic, Citizen Security and SEPRONA will serve in Penguins 2024.
The device includes alcohol and drug and speed controls to ensure the safety of the concentration, in addition to the environmental control carried out by SEPRONA to leave the camping area in good condition.
A drone from the EVAT unit - Traffic Headquarters and Civil Guard - will be used to assist in surveillance and control.
On the other hand, the National Police will assign 120 troops to Penguins, from various units, from Thursday to Sunday. They will cover all the events foreseen in the Penguins 2024 program, with presence both in the camping grounds and in the other places where the party is moved, with special emphasis on the most multitudinous acts, such as the tour of Recoletos or the torch parade. In these cases, in addition to the usual patrol cars, the National Police Station of Valladolid has planned special devices that will have the presence of the Police Intervention Units (UIP) and the Prevention and Response Units (UPR) to cover both the route of the motorcycles through the city and the points of confluence, such as the Recoletos area.
Every day there will also be a control by the services of canine guides, subsoil, TEDAX -Technical Specialist in Deactivation of Explosive Devices.
In addition, the General Directorate of Traffic will be joined by 40 personnel from the Provincial Traffic Headquarters, the Northern Traffic Management Center, in-room personnel, the helicopter patrol and personnel maintaining equipment of intelligent technologies applied to transport.
The agents will be deployed through the interurban roads of the province to make a specific control surveillance on risky behaviors, dangerous driving, speed, alcohol, drugs and obligatory documentation.
To the ground controls, surveillance will be added from the air, with the Pegasus helicopter that will fly over the roads that lead to the concentration compound, as well as drones that will transmit images to the Valladolid Traffic Management Center.
Special traffic management measures
Due to the activities scheduled during the rally, from 3 p.m. on Friday, 12 January to 2 p.m. on Sunday, 14 January, the CL-610 road will be closed to circulation, between kilometre points 4 and 9,800, a stretch in which only the circulation of motorcycles, public transport and authorised vehicles will be allowed.
Faced with this punctual cut of the road, the DGT has established the following alternative itineraries:
- Sense Medina del Campo to Valladolid: from Puente Duero by CL600 towards Simancas, to Camino Viejo Simancas towards Valladolid.
- Direction Valladolid to Medina del Campo: from CL-610 exit to VA-30 direction ascending to exit to Camino Viejo Simancas and by the same to CL-600 and Puente Duero.
In addition, on Friday, January 12, from 16.30 until all the participants in the excursion to Mojados have finished, exits 177 will be cut in an increasing direction and 177 A in a decreasing direction.
Finally, on Saturday, January 13, from 11.30 a.m. until all the participants in the flag parade have just passed, Exit 18 of the VA-30 will be cut.
DGT stand: awareness and road training
In addition, on January 12 and 13, the DGT will have a stand on the premises with specialized staff from the Provincial Traffic Headquarters to inform motorists and raise awareness about the consequences of some of the risky behaviors when driving.
This year the information will focus on how alcohol and drugs influence driving and accident and the role of passive safety elements.
Motorists, along with pedestrians and cyclists, are considered vulnerable people on the road because motorcycle rides involve a risk of injury 20 to 40 times greater than that of a car driver, so extreme caution and precautions are crucial. In fact, in 2023, 3 motorcyclists lost their lives on roads in the province.
Information about the state of the roads
In order for attendees to have the necessary information at all times on the state of the roads, during the four days of Penguins, the DGT will publish messages on the social network X with the hashtag #Penguin2024, on Facebook and YouTube, both for motorcyclists and to remind other drivers of the need for prudent driving and respect.
Traffic puts all its channels at your disposal. In X: @InfoDGT; @DGTes; web, phone 011 and media newsletters. And you can also consult the networks of AEMET (AEMET_Cyl) and Civil Protection, where any incident is promptly reported.
In addition, messages of awareness, prevention or warning of possible controls, as well as recommended itineraries, will be published on the luminous panels of the roads of influence of the concentration.
Weather forecast
From day 8 the State Meteorological Agency -AEMET- will issue a special prediction for the city of Valladolid, with scope for the days 11,12,13 and 14 of January. It will be sent by email to Civil Protection and the city of Valladolid at 11.00 and will be updated daily until the 14th. A daily tweet will also be broadcast with the prediction and updates in the @AEMET_CyL account of the social network X.
Violet dots
As in other editions, violet dots have been arranged in the Penguins’ precincts to raise public awareness and attend to, inform and help victims of any type of sexist aggression.
The aim of these violet spots is to raise awareness and prevent so that women can enjoy the party under equal conditions, free from harassment and be treated with respect at all times.
Enrolled
The concentration of Penguins already exceeds 14,000 registered, as confirmed by the organizers, the Club Turismoto, which expects to exceed the 43,000 attendees of the last edition.
As for the economic impact of the event, the organizers estimate that Penguins leaves about five million euros in Valladolid and the surrounding villages.