Police will not fine smoking drivers in Spain

POLICE will not fine people for smoking while driving according to the Director of the DGT traffic department.

In the past there have been several cases of Local Police handing out tickets to people seen smoking while behind the wheel, arguing that they could not be fully in control of their vehicle.

But now Pere Navarro has said that his department has no plans to order traffic police to take action against smokers, despite saying that it is a clear distraction and thus dangerous.

He says his department would support a possible Ministry of Health ‘ban’ on public health grounds. However, he added that he would “not be comfortable” with the image of “Guardia Civil chasing smokers.”

Navarro was speaking at the launch of a new traffic safety campaign. He highlighted that 24 per cent of drivers killed last year had high rates of alcohol in their blood, a percentage that rises to 35 per cent for those killed on urban roads.