New road rules take effect in Spain on October 1: what drivers, cyclists and e-scooter users need to know

From October 1, 2026, a large part of the revised Reglamento General de Circulación will come into force in Spain. The changes do not affect car drivers alone: the new rules significantly change the way cars, bicycles, electric scooters and motorcycles interact on the road.

The new rules were approved by Royal Decree 518/2026 and published in Spain's Official State Gazette, the BOE. The general idea is fairly simple: there are more requirements for car drivers and more obligations for people travelling on two wheels.

Electric scooters: from age 15 and with a mandatory helmet

For VMP users — mainly electric scooter riders — the minimum age is set at 15.

Helmets become mandatory for all VMP riders. At night, as well as in poor weather or reduced-visibility conditions, scooter users must have at least a light or reflective element visible from a minimum distance of 150 metres.

There is an important detail that has already been confused in some reports: permanent lighting for VMPs is provided for under the new rules, but this requirement is postponed until October 1, 2027.

For professional couriers using VMPs, the requirements are stricter: they must wear a protective helmet and a reflective vest throughout their working time. Failure to comply with the relevant requirements may result in a €200 fine.

There is another important point: scooters cannot simply be ridden on the pavement. The new rules maintain the ban on VMPs travelling on pavements, although municipalities are given certain powers to regulate traffic in other pedestrian areas.

Cyclists: cars must keep five metres

This is particularly significant for car drivers.

If a cyclist is travelling ahead of a car in the same lane, the driver must maintain a minimum distance of five metres.

When overtaking a cyclist, a lateral clearance of at least 1.5 metres must be maintained. On roads with several lanes in the same direction, where applicable, the driver must move completely into the adjacent lane.

When overtaking outside built-up areas, there is another requirement: the car must reduce its speed by at least 20 km/h below the speed limit in force on that section of road.

For example, if the speed limit is 90 km/h, the cyclist must be overtaken at no more than 70 km/h.

This is no longer simply a recommendation to «be careful». It is a new rule under the Reglamento General de Circulación.

Cyclists do not always have to wear a helmet

There is another inaccuracy in some of the messages currently circulating.

From October 1, helmets will remain mandatory for cyclists on roads outside built-up areas, while people under 16 must wear a helmet on all roads.

In addition, professional cyclists working by bicycle must wear a helmet in urban areas as well as in the relevant crossings.

Therefore, the statement that «from October 1 helmets will be mandatory for all cyclists everywhere» is too broad.

Motorcyclists will have to change some of their equipment

Additional requirements are being introduced for motorcycle and moped riders and passengers.

Gloves will be mandatory on roads outside built-up areas, while closed footwear will be mandatory on all roads.

Motorcycles will also be allowed, under certain conditions, to use the right-hand shoulder during traffic jams; their speed must not exceed 30 km/h.

Some requirements concerning a new type of approved motorcycle helmet will not take effect immediately. A transitional period is provided until October 1, 2027.

And another change that drivers will notice mainly in winter

On motorways and dual carriageways, when serious traffic difficulties are caused by snow, overtaking will be prohibited and traffic will be organised in the right-hand lane; the left lanes must remain clear for emergency services and snow-clearing vehicles.

A new concept is also introduced: an «emergency corridor» for emergency vehicles during serious traffic jams.

What drivers should remember

From October 1, it is worth remembering a few numbers:

15 years — minimum age for operating a VMP.

€200 — fine for a number of new VMP-related offences.

5 metres — the new distance a car must maintain from a cyclist travelling ahead.

1.5 metres — minimum lateral clearance when overtaking.

−20 km/h — the amount by which a driver must reduce speed when overtaking a cyclist outside a built-up area, compared with the applicable speed limit.

And one more date:

October 1, 2027 — some requirements, including permanent VMP lighting and the new motorcycle helmet homologation requirements, will only come into force then.

Spanish roads are becoming somewhat more complicated for those accustomed to doing things «the way they always have». But the logic of the reform is clear: cars, bicycles, motorcycles and scooters are no longer treated as separate worlds, but as participants in the same road system.

That means that from October onwards, drivers will have to pay closer attention not only to signs and traffic lights, but also to who is travelling alongside them.

And finally

A driver approaches a cyclist:

—Sir, do you know that when I overtake you now, I have to leave one and a half metres?

—Of course.

—And what if the road is narrow?

The cyclist thinks for a moment and replies:

—Then, sir, better overtake me tomorrow.

Official sources

Royal Decree 518/2026 — official BOE text

DGT — explanation of the main changes