At an automotive event held in Madrid, Pere Navarro, director of the Directorate General of Traffic (DGT), stressed the importance of promoting car sharing to reduce polluting emissions. Navarro expressed that the future of mobility in Spain must be collective, following the example of France, which will implement exclusive lanes for vehicles with at least two occupants. This measure is being studied by the DGT, which could impose financial penalties on drivers who drive alone in these reserved lanes.
The city of Paris in France will pioneer this measure. From May 2025, exclusive lanes will be set up on the city’s ring road for cars with two or more people on board, in order to encourage carpooling. These lanes will be operational in specific time slots: from 7:00 am to 10:30 am and from 4:00 pm to 8:00 pm. Drivers who violate this rule could face financial penalties.
Pere Navarro explained that the use of shared vehicles is fundamental to meeting emission reduction targets and improving sustainability in transport. In Spain, measures such as Low Emission Zones and road taxes have already been implemented, but it is considered necessary to go a step further in promoting car sharing.
According to the director of the DGT, “the future will be shared, or it won’t be,” alluding to the need to adapt to new environmental challenges. Spain is evaluating the feasibility of adopting a measure similar to France’s, promoting policies that encourage the occupancy of more than one passenger per vehicle.
These types of initiatives also aim to alleviate traffic in large cities, reduce congestion and encourage a more sustainable transport model. Although the French measure will only affect certain areas of the city of Paris, it could open the door to a wider implementation in other European cities and, eventually, in Spain.
The DGT has begun to consider the possibility of a similar measure being applied in Spanish cities in the future, especially in urban areas with high traffic density. Drivers circulating unaccompanied in these exclusive lanes could receive financial penalties, although the details of the implementation are still under study.
This shift in mobility policies reflects a growing focus on sustainability and reducing the carbon footprint of transportation, which aligns with European and global policies for environmental protection.
