This August marks the start of the pilot phase for the new High-Occupancy Lane (Bus-VAO) on the A-2 highway, a mobility project designed to streamline entries and exits to the city of Madrid. The adjustment and technical verification period will extend until the first days of September, allowing for the assessment of the technological infrastructure's correct functioning and helping users adapt to the new signage and usage rules.
The implementation of this route is the result of joint work between the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, the General Directorate of Traffic (DGT), the Regional Transport Consortium of Madrid (CRTM), and the Madrid City Council. Initially, the lane reservation will cover the section between Madrid and Torrejón de Ardoz, both for testing and the initial launch. Although adaptation works have prepared the left lane in both directions up to Alcalá de Henares, the extension to this Complutense municipality will be deferred to a later stage. In total, the project spans nearly 19 kilometers intended to incentivize shared mobility and the use of public transport.
Unlike traditional Bus-VAO infrastructures in other capital access points, the A-2 lane does not have a fixed physical separation. It utilizes the leftmost lane in both directions, reserving it technologically only during peak traffic hours, allowing it to revert to regular use for all users outside these restricted periods.
The planned schedule for the testing phase indicates that throughout the first week of August, the reservation will be active from 07:00 to 09:00 hours in both directions. From the start of the second week until the end of the test period, this morning bilateral shift will be maintained, and a second afternoon slot will be added, from 15:00 to 17:00 hours, exclusively for outbound traffic towards the periphery.
According to DGT criteria, authorization to use this lane when active includes specific groups: public passenger transport (buses), cars with at least two occupants (regardless of whether they are combustion or hybrid), motorcycles, and authorized emergency vehicles. This directive means that 100% electric cars with a single occupant will also not be permitted on this lane, subject to the same minimum occupancy rule as other automobiles.
The absence of fixed walls or barriers necessitates a strict protocol for entering or exiting this lane. To guide drivers, specific luminous and road signage has been installed, supported by the light panels on the highway gantries, which will display pictograms indicating the service activation.
The system uses a color code with beacons integrated into the road surface: green will mark the designated zones for entering or leaving the fast lane, while amber light will indicate sections where crossing the dividing line is strictly prohibited. When the beacon lights remain off, the lane loses its special status and becomes usable again without restrictions by any type of vehicle.
For those heading towards Madrid, permitted access points are located in Torrejón de Ardoz, the Rejas and Canillejas areas, with the only exit from the section fixed around Avenida de América. Meanwhile, drivers leaving the capital can merge at Arturo Soria-Josefa Valcárcel and the Eisenhower interchange, with points to exit the lane in Canillejas and Rejas.
During the testing period, ten interurban bus lines will operate express services to the Avenida de América interchange to evaluate improvements in travel times under real traffic conditions. These include routes 223, 224, 224A, 226, 227, 229, and 261 (serving Alcalá de Henares, Torrejón de Ardoz, and surrounding municipalities), as well as lines 281, 282, and 283 (from Coslada, San Fernando de Henares, and Mejorada del Campo).
107 morning trips to Madrid are scheduled (40 via Bus-VAO), 83 outbound trips (32 via the special lane), and 75 journeys on Friday afternoons (30 via the segregated lane).
Compliance with traffic rules will be ensured through the installation of cameras for license plate recognition and thermal and optical sensors designed to verify cabin occupancy. Drivers accessing the reserved lane with fewer occupants than permitted or crossing the line outside the green beacon zones will incur administrative sanctions. All technological equipment will be monitored during the summer period to adjust operating parameters for the definitive opening.
