The Director General of Traffic (DGT) has announced the deadline date to replace the vehicle warning triangles with the V-16 beacon
In July 2021, emergency triangles became no longer mandatory. Since 1999, the triangles were used in the event of a traffic accident or breakdown and their use was mandatory. Penalties were sanctioned if they were not carried in the vehicle or were not placed correctly.
In a bid to reduce driver accidents, the DGT decided to replace the warning triangles with the V-16 beacons. These units are lights that are placed on the roof of the vehicle and warn other motorists without having to leave the vehicle.
Since July 2021, these emergency lights have coexisted with the triangles. However, the latter will end up disappearing to be completely replaced. The deadline by which all drivers must carry this V-16 light will be January 1, 2026. Thus, the beloved triangles have only three years left to live.
While both signaling elements can still be used, regardless of whether it is one or the other. The penalty of 200 euros for not carrying either of the two will continue to be applied.Â
What do the new beacons do?
The specifications that the V-16 beacons must meet for their use to be suitable are the following, according to the DGT instructions:
They must have a battery that lasts at least 30 minutes;Â that they are waterproof, that they have an electromagnetic fastening system to the roof of the car, their use is approved in Spain and that they have geolocation ( be placed properly on the roof of the car).
These new beacons will be connected to DGT 3.0, so when they are turned on they will emit a GPS signal that allows Traffico to know where there is a stopped or damaged vehicle- thereby alerting the rest of the network.
This change is by Royal Decree 159/2021, of March 16, which regulates assistance services on public roads. It shows the advantages of the V-16 instead of the triangles.
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