A Ruthless Trap in Torrevieja: 72,000 Victims and 13 Million Euros from a Single Speed Camera!

Planning a trip to Spain’s sunny coast? Be on your guard. In 2025, the province of Alicante turned into a veritable minefield for drivers, and record-breaking traffic tickets drained their wallets to an astronomical total of nearly 29 million euros. At the very center of this financial scandal stands one ruthless machine.

Instead of fond vacation memories, tens of thousands of tourists and residents brought home traffic tickets from Route CV-905 in Torrevieja. The speed camera located just seven kilometers along this main road operated like a perfectly oiled money-making machine. Last year alone, it issued a staggering 72,557 tickets! This figure makes it the second “most greedy” speed camera in all of Spain. The absurdity of the situation reached its peak when it came to light that even… the official car of the Torrevieja City Council itself had fallen into the trap of this ruthless device.

This single checkpoint generated the lion's share of the astronomical sum of 13.2 million euros in speeding fines issued in the province of Alicante in 2025. According to the summer report from the European Associated Motorists (AEA), an organization representing drivers, this represents a massive 83.5% increase in fines compared to the previous year.

Top 3 Most Profitable Speed Cameras in Spain in 2025

However, the ordeal for drivers in Alicante doesn’t end at Torrevieja. This province is a veritable hotbed of traffic fines—as many as five of the fifty most profitable speed cameras in Spain are located on the roads here. The camera at kilometer zero of the A-77A managed to ruin the budgets of 30,742 drivers (earning it 11th place nationwide). The speed camera on the A-70 wasn’t far behind; with over 18,000 tickets issued in 2024, it “boosted” its statistics to 29,488 violations. Meanwhile, the speed camera on the CV-86 issued over 24,000 fines, even though it had caught only 385 drivers the previous year!

Nationwide, revenue from the General Directorate of Traffic (DGT)’s speed cameras rose to a record high of 246.8 million euros in 2025. Speeding tickets currently account for nearly 42% of all fines issued on Spanish roads. However, experts are beginning to sound the alarm, asking point-blank: Is this still about safety, or has it become purely a business venture?

"We need to ask ourselves whether the current system places too much emphasis on making a quick profit from highways and expressways. After all, let’s not forget that as many as 70% of accidents resulting in injuries occur on regular roads."– Mario Arnaldo, President of the AEA

The AEA does not mince words, arguing that the sharp increase in fines is not the result of a drastic decline in drivers’ skills, but rather the cynical placement of new speed cameras at strategic, highly profitable locations. Representatives of the organization point out explicitly that some speed cameras are used more to rake in money than to prevent collisions. The DGT consistently rejects these accusations, firmly maintaining that strict enforcement of speed limits is absolutely essential to saving lives on the roads.

Regardless of who is right in this dispute, one thing is certain: when visiting the Costa Blanca, a heavy foot on the gas pedal could cost you much more than the vacation itself.