|
All population centres can be reached by the state road network, however tiny
the village or difficult the route. The road network is organised in a very
hierarchical way. The fastest roads are the highways and motorways, which allow
the highest speeds (maximum 120 km/h) and link the main Spanish cities.
Motorways impose tolls and the highways that do not impose tolls are known as
autovías in Spain. National roads set lower speed limits (100 km/h at most).
They may go through towns, though this is avoided if possible. These roads have
one or two lanes in each direction, but no central barrier. This type of road
connects all the towns. Below these are the secondary roads, which set much
slower speed limits. These roads are very narrow and do not have a hard
shoulder.
Almost one third of international travellers enter Spain by air. More than 50
million passengers per year pass through Spanish airports. All the major cities
have an airport. The most important is Barajas in Madrid, followed by Barcelona.
These are connected by a shuttle service, which carries over two and a half
million passengers per year. Flights to the Balearic and Canary islands are also
very significant because of the volume of traffic.
The most important cities have very efficient underground transport networks
(metros) that normally operate from 06:00 to 01:30 the next morning. The price
of a single ticket is more or less €1 and it is better value to buy one of the
multi-trip special offers available. For example, a 10 trip combined Metro-bus
ticket costs around €6. Any town or city of a certain size also offers a good
city bus service. The taxi service is the most comfortable means of transport,
but also the most costly. Apart from inter-urban buses, another means of
transport widely used in Spain is the train, which offers various services and
covers the entire country. In addition to the local commuter train network,
regional trains offer a great variety of destinations and there is also a high
speed line (AVE)
Last updated 02/08
Source: European Union
© European Communities
Reproduction is authorised.
|
Share
Print
The Weather:
Relax for a few minutes in our online leisure zone