Truck traffic in the Basque Country will be banned on 12 August due to the eclipse

On Friday, the Department of Safety published in the Official Gazette of the Basque Country a resolution of the Directorate of Traffic prohibiting lorries fromtravelling on Basque roads on 12 August, from 00:00 to 24:00, due to the total solar eclipse, a restriction that will affect all vehicles over 7,500 kilograms, except buses and coaches.

The resolution, signed by the Director of Traffic, Mr Olabarri, states that any violation of the rule shall be punished in accordance with the provisions of the Act, but adds that, exceptionally, traffic may be permitted, depending on the circumstances.

The measure has given rise to the "strongest rejection" of the Spanish Confederation of Freight Transport (CETM), which considers the restrictions to be disproportionate and "without sufficient technical justification", and has therefore urged the Basque Government to reconsider its decision and to adapt the measure to "criteria of proportionality and rationality".

This body has argued that the ban will lead to 'total paralysis of freight transport and will affect thousands of international operations' and 'will have a major impact on economic activity and will cause delays in deliveries, breach of contracts, disruption of national and international routes, supply problems, problems in parking areas and significant cost increases for transport companies and the entire logistics chain'.

Balanced alternatives

CETM explains that there are "more balanced" alternatives, such as limiting restrictions to the most influential time slot of the eclipse and the hours before and after.

Thus, it gives the example of the Foral Community of Navarre, where restrictions have only been imposed between 17:00 and 24:00. In addition, the AP-68 motorway, the main national and international freight corridor, will remain open.