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If you drive regularly in Spain, the chances are there are significantly more cameras watching you than there were even a year ago. New figures from the Speed Camera Observatory in Spain, compiled by Coyote using its own data alongside official DGT statistics, show that Spain's road network now has 3,621 speed cameras in operation.

 

Five years ago, that figure stood at 2,640. That is a rise of 37%, or nearly 1,000 additional devices, and the expansion shows no sign of slowing down.

 

In the last year alone, 226 new cameras were added, a 7% increase on the previous period. It is a trend that has been visible at a local level too, with Alicante seeing a significant rollout as part of a wider DGT crackdown on speeding earlier this year. Murcia has also been in the frame, with new installations added to the network in recent months. 

 

Of the 3,621 cameras now in operation, 2,472 are fixed speed cameras, 600 are traffic light cameras, 295 are average speed cameras and 254 are mobile and seatbelt enforcement cameras. Average speed cameras have seen the sharpest growth of all, up 86% since 2021, while traffic light cameras have risen by 53% and fixed cameras by 32%. A newer addition to the mix is the mobile towed speed camera, which adds an unpredictable element that many drivers will be unfamiliar with.

 

Nearly half of all cameras, 44%, are in urban areas, with 32% on secondary roads and 24% on motorways and highways. If you want to check what is near you, there is a useful general overview of speed camera locations across Spain that is worth bookmarking.

 

The regional picture shows some notable differences. Here is where the cameras are concentrated:

 

 

In terms of year-on-year growth, the Canary Islands lead with a 33% increase, followed by Murcia at 22%, with Asturias, the Valencian Community and Galicia all up by around 10 to 15%.

 

Over five years, the fastest-growing regions make for interesting reading. Asturias leads with 60%, followed by the Canary Islands at 56%, Cantabria at 50%, the Balearics at 44% and La Rioja at 38%. These are not regions typically associated with heavy traffic enforcement, which underlines just how broadly the DGT is spreading its net.

 

It is also worth bearing in mind that cameras are not always functioning correctly. Earlier this year, nearly 26,000 drivers in Cádiz had to be refunded after receiving fines from a faulty speed camera.

 

The direction of travel is clear. Spain's roads are being monitored more closely than at any point in the country's history, and with another 226 cameras added in the past year alone, that is not changing any time soon.

 

Image: JefK/Pexels