What are the black or occupancy radars arriving in Spain in 2026

The Directorate-General for Traffic (DGT) has installed the first occupancy radar on the A2 motorway, at the entrance to Madrid from Barajas. This device aims to monitor the use of the new Bus-HOV lane and penalise drivers travelling alone when it is not permitted.

This radar will prevent the misuse of lanes reserved for High Occupancy Vehicles (HOV or Bus-HOV). The lane, which will be added to this motorway from the first quarter of 2026, will prioritise the use of public transport and private transport with at least two occupants.

The main peculiarity of this future HOV lane is that it will not have a physical separation from the other lanes, which, according to authorities, necessitates the use of a specific radar for monitoring improper use, as explained by Autocasión.

Occupancy radars, also known as black radars due to their discreet casing, do not measure speed but scan the interior of cars to verify if they have at least two occupants.

Offenders detected travelling alone will be fined 200 euros. These devices are integrated into the DGT 3.0 ecosystem, a connected system that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to analyse images in real-time. Each unit consists of two synchronised fixed cameras, installed one at the start of the HOV lane and another between 50 and 100 metres further along. The cameras are equipped with infrared optical sensors and artificial vision software that detects human silhouettes with 95 per cent accuracy.

These radars can process up to 1,000 vehicles per hour, distinguishing between solo drivers and actual occupants by analysing thermal and movement patterns, ignoring elements such as dummies or pets.

The energy for these radars comes from integrated solar panels, and the data is transmitted via 5G to central servers to automatically generate fines by licence plate, without immediate police intervention. A peculiarity of these systems is their invisible mode, as they do not emit flashes or other signals.