Cyclists can hit sidewalks, highway authority says

Spain's highway authority, the DGT, is set to introduce measures that will give priority to cyclists and pedestrians over motor vehicles in urban areas, the organization's Ramón Ledesma told the Cities Conference for Road Safety in Córdoba on Friday.

The reforms to the General Traffic Regulations, set to be drafted this year, will permit bicycles to travel on sidewalks wider than three meters, as long as they remain at least one meter from buildings. Current rules prohibit cyclists from sidewalks, though some municipalities have introduced bylaws to get around the regulations. Cyclists will also be allowed to travel down the center - rather than keep to the right - of streets with a 30km/h speed limit.

"The DGT now wants to promote the use of bicycles not as an alternative means of transport, but a preferred one," said Ledesma.