The General Directorate of Transport (DGT) has announced that a special campaign will begin at 3:00 PM on Wednesday, April 30, to accommodate the more than 7,540,000 car journeys expected during the May Day long weekend. This measure will last until midnight on Sunday, May 4, and will be particularly intense throughout the central zone, as Thursday, May 1, and Friday, May 2, are public holidays in the Community of Madrid, and many students in several municipalities will have a school break on those days.
Specifically, the traffic forecasts prepared by the DGT predict that significant traffic movements toward major urban centers are expected in the early afternoon of April 30. High traffic intensities will be particularly evident between 4:00 PM and 11:00 PM.
On Thursday, May 1st, there will continue to be heavy traffic in the outbound direction, especially between 9:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., with high volumes and congestion. Long-distance travel will be accompanied by short-distance travel, as it is a national holiday. This will be particularly noticeable on the access roads to the coast and mountains, as well as to leisure destinations near urban centers. Return journeys will take place in the late afternoon in all autonomous communities, except for the Community of Madrid, where the following day is also a holiday.
For Friday, May 2nd, normal traffic movements to and from major urban centers are expected, as this day is a working day in all autonomous communities—except for Madrid, where a regional holiday is celebrated on that day.
Therefore, short-distance trips to recreational and leisure areas near urban centers are expected on the roads of Madrid and its surrounding areas, returning in the late afternoon, especially between 7:00 PM and 9:00 PM.
In other regions, according to DGT forecasts, an increase in departures towards coastal areas and second homes will be observed at the beginning of the weekend.
On Saturday, May 3, heavy traffic is expected towards departures from major urban centers at the beginning of the weekend. Therefore, traffic problems are being warned of in the morning at destinations, particularly due to local transport bottlenecks on the access roads to coastal cities and coastal roads. Return movements may be observed in the afternoon, as high traffic intensity may occur on some roads connecting to the central area.
