Watch: Man in wheelchair zooms past Barcelona traffic
A video of a wheelchair user overtaking cars in Barcelona has gone viral in Spain.
The man was filmed by a fellow road-user, a motorbike rider who was travelling just behind the wheelchair.
The wheelchair user is filmed travelling at high speeds and overtaking cars on the Barcelona road.
“We are aware of this incident but unfortunately there were no police officers or traffic police there at the time to tell the person to slow down,” a spokesman for Los Mossos d’Esquadra, Catalonia’s police force, told The Local on Tuesday.
“It is definitely illegal to ride a wheelchair in such a dangerous way, putting the safety of other road users, as well as yourself, at risk,” he added.
Catalan police confirmed they had not yet identified the man.
Legally, motorized disability scooters should travel on the pavement and should only use the hard shoulder of a road when there is no pavement available, according to Spain’s traffic regulations.
If there is no hard shoulder, motorized scooter users may use the road, providing they do not stop other vehicles from passing.
Most disability scooters’ maximum speeds are around 8km/hour (5mph) but can reach around 24km/hour.
Barcelona is regarded as a disabled-friendly city in many respects; the majority of its pavements have ramps down to the roads to make it easier for wheelchair-users.
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The man was filmed by a fellow road-user, a motorbike rider who was travelling just behind the wheelchair.
The wheelchair user is filmed travelling at high speeds and overtaking cars on the Barcelona road.
“We are aware of this incident but unfortunately there were no police officers or traffic police there at the time to tell the person to slow down,” a spokesman for Los Mossos d’Esquadra, Catalonia’s police force, told The Local on Tuesday.
“It is definitely illegal to ride a wheelchair in such a dangerous way, putting the safety of other road users, as well as yourself, at risk,” he added.
Catalan police confirmed they had not yet identified the man.
Legally, motorized disability scooters should travel on the pavement and should only use the hard shoulder of a road when there is no pavement available, according to Spain’s traffic regulations.
If there is no hard shoulder, motorized scooter users may use the road, providing they do not stop other vehicles from passing.
Most disability scooters’ maximum speeds are around 8km/hour (5mph) but can reach around 24km/hour.
Barcelona is regarded as a disabled-friendly city in many respects; the majority of its pavements have ramps down to the roads to make it easier for wheelchair-users.
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