Portable danger
signaling devices, better known as emergency triangles, are part of the
elements that must be carried in the car. This is indicated in the General
Vehicle Regulations. The basic function of this accessory is to notify other
motorists of the presence of a vehicle stopped on the road for having suffered
an accident, such as a breakdown or any other emergency.
Although it is an
element that seeks to improve road safety, it can sometimes have the opposite
effect, since it forces the driver to leave the car to go to the required distance:
on two-way roads, you have to put one in front and one behind, at least 50
meters away and so that they are visible at 100 meters; on motorways and
expressways only one is necessary, also 50 meters behind the vehicle, since on
these roads the two-way roads are separated by a median.
Even though the
driver must put on a reflective vest to be seen when leaving the vehicle to
avoid collisions, sometimes this measure is not enough and ends up having a
fatal outcome. The deputy director of circulation of the General Directorate of
Traffic, Ana Blanco, explained to Europa Press after participating in a round
table at the Motortec Automechanika Fair, that is 2018 “more than 20 people died
on motorways and expressways as a result of this type of outrages ”. According
to official traffic data, last year the death toll on motorways increased from
208 to 303, of which 20% were pedestrians.
To end the danger
that comes with people having to place the triangles on the road, the DGT plans
to replace this fault or accident pre-signaling element with light signals that
would be placed on the roof of the vehicle, the most visible place of it. The
change will not be immediate but is expected to arrive in 2025. During this
time, the triangle would be gradually replaced by another means of light
signaling. Currently, the regulation only recommends the use of a light device
as an optional element.
The regulatory
project would reform the aspects of how the user should behave in the event of
a breakdown or a request for help after an accident. If we are forced to stop
the vehicle on the road due to a mechanical incident, after activating the
warnings, all the occupants must abandon it safely and move to a protected
place (for example, behind the guardrail). We should never walk in the traffic
lane to go to place the triangles. We must walk through the place that offers
us the greatest security. Once we reach the appropriate distance, we will place
the pre-signaling element when traffic permits. Then we will only have to wait
for the arrival of the technical assistance service.
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