We have just started the summer and many will be the people who will take their car in the coming weeks or months in order to travel to their vacation destination . We must be very careful and although it is important that the car has undergone a good inspection , the DGT also warns of something essential in case of breakdown or emergency on the road. This is then what you should do (and what not) on the road according to the General Directorate of Traffic.
If you have a breakdown or emergency on the road, this is what you should do according to the DGT
What should we do when we are on the road and suddenly we have a breakdown or the urgent need to stop? According to the DGT regulations, it is necessary to find a safe place where you can stop the car that is off the road and that does not cause an accident. So let’s avoid at all costs, stopping at a change in grade, in a tunnel or on a curve as it could be really dangerous for us and the cars that are circulating.
For this reason, it will be necessary to circulate with the car until you see the first exit , also signaling with the emergency lights (in the case of traveling at night we will also have to turn on the position lights). Once we have stopped, it will be necessary to use the emergency triangles, although as of July 1, as announced by the DGT in March, we will be able to put these triangles aside to use instead an orange flashing light device that is It must be placed in the highest part of the vehicle and that is usually the roof (in any case it will be allowed to use the triangles until 2026).
If you continue to use the triangles, remember to position these 50 meters in front and behind the car.
In addition, we will have to put on our reflective vest since, as the DGT advises from its Twitter account, drivers do not perceive a pedestrian until they are ten meters away, something that will be insufficient to avoid the accident.
A driver does not perceive a # pedestrian until they are 10 m away #distance, insufficient to avoid an accident🕴↔️.
And more at night. # Pedestrian on the road, ALWAYS reflective vest 🦺.
👉 https://t.co/rgPt5oebN6#CaminaSeguro pic.twitter.com/7z4DJpNF3y
– Directorate General Traffic (@DGTes) June 19, 2021
Finally, it is necessary to call the assistance service since the DGT advises that drivers do not fix the fault since they put themselves at risk of being run over.
What not to do in a road emergency
We already know everything to do in an emergency, so that it never occurs to you, for example, to change the car wheel on the edge of the road , do not turn off the hazard lights, place the triangles correctly and never, you sit or lean on night barriers while you wait for breakdowns to arrive.
You must stay inside the car or if you have stopped in a place away from the road, you can wait outside, but always behind the barriers.
