Millimetres from tragedy

In the early hours of Friday, September 13, Daniel Ruiz, a Costa del Sol taxi driver, came terrifyingly close to losing his life when an aggressive driver attempted to overtake a lorry, and passed into the lane going in the opposite direction of the notorious A-355, known by locals as ‘the road of death’.

The near miss happened at around 2am when Daniel was on his way home after finishing his working day. Daniel narrowly avoided a head-on collision thanks to his quick reflexes and managed to swerve safely to the edge of the road.

The reckless driver performed a mindless overtake, crossing the continuous red line on a blind curve in the dark. The thick red line separating the two directions was a recent addition as a safety measure after a continuous spate of fatal accidents this year from other drivers attempting the same.

One of the most dangerous roads in Spain

The taxi’s dashcam caught the incident, but while it shows just how close the incident was to tragedy, the offending motorist was going so fast, the car’s number plate is not distinguishable. The near miss caused Daniel to have to pull over at a layby to calm himself for 45 minutes. He then uploaded the video footage from the dashcam to highlight the continued dangers from reckless drivers on the A-355, despite recent safety additions.

In terms of fatalities, the A-355 linking Marbella, Ojén, Monda, and Coín is the sixth most dangerous in the country. In 2023, the road claimed the lives of 10 people.