On the road Assuming that you already know that you drive on the right in Spain, and that you need a valid driving licence and insurance documents, the following information is designed to help you understand the instructions and phrases you will come across when driving on the Costa del Sol.

A7/N340/AP7 The roads on which you may find yourself travelling on the Costa del Sol vary between full European toll motorway, dual carriage-way, national highway and minor country roads. The motorway on the Costa del Sol is the A7, with the toll sections being the AP7. The national A7/E-15 is slowly replacing the original coastal highway N340 (la carretera nacional), which connects Cadiz in the west to Malaga in the east. The standard of the connecting roads to travel inland, being either main roads or country roads, depend on the destination and its surrounding terrain.

Cambio de sentido Drivers needing to change direction on la carretera should do so at a cambio de sentido, which either has feeder roads going off and on, by underpass or by overpass, or are roundabouts. Cambios des sentidos are only several kilometres distance from each other, so please resist the temptation to save time by turning across the road (very, very dangerous, and in most places a physical impossibility due to the concrete centre section). Many sections of the main highway have access by roundabout to the urbanizaciones (the housing developments on both sides of the highway). The roundabouts assist the vehicles entering from the right intothe fast-moving traffic stream.

Safe driving in Spain Spain, in line with the rest of Europe (including the UK) strictly enforces the rules of safe driving, including the control of speeding. These rules include: Zero-tolerance on drink-driving; Seat belts to be worn at all times; Use of mobile phones prohibited whilst driving. Security on the highways in Spain is managed by the Guardia Civil, Traffic Department (Trafico), which enforces these rules with on-the-spot fines (multa), amongst other measures.