Editing Transport in Gibraltar

{{Short description|none}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
'''Transportation in Gibraltar''' includes roadway, bus, air, aerial cable car and sea. Due to Gibraltar's compact size and density, walking is the most popular mode of transport making up 48% of trips. Private vehicles make up 30% of trips while a further 15% of trips are made on motorcycles or mopeds.<ref>{{cite web |title=Gibraltar Sustainable Traffic, Transport and Parking Plan |url=https://thinkinggreen.gov.gi/uploads/docs/urban/2%20-%20STTPP%20Main%20Document%20-%20Appendices%20A-D.pdf |access-date=25 January 2025 |pages=22 |date=October 2016}}</ref>

==Road==
===Private transport===
[[File:Gibraltar-LookLeft-right-hand traffic.jpg|thumb|left|150px|Traffic [[Left- and right-hand traffic|drives on the right]]]]
[[File:GBZ international vehicle registration oval.png|thumb|100px|Gibraltar's country identifier is '''GBZ''']]
[[File:Gibraltar rear number plate.jpg|thumb|A current [[Vehicle registration plates of Gibraltar|Gibraltar rear number plate]] featuring the country identifier GBZ]]
[[Gibraltar]] has {{convert|49.9|km|mi|1}} of [[highway]]s, all of which are paved. It has one of the highest levels of per capita [[Automobile|car]] ownership in the world, with as many motor vehicles as people. Unlike the United Kingdom and other [[British Overseas Territories]], traffic in Gibraltar [[Left- and right-hand traffic|drives on the right]], as it shares a land border with Spain. Traffic formerly drove on the left; the change to driving on the right was made at 5.00 a.m. on 16 June 1929.<ref name="GibKincaid">{{Cite book|last =Kincaid|first=Peter|title=The Rule of the Road: An International Guide to History and Practice
|publisher=Greenwood Press|date=1986|page=109|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QatPAAAAMAAJ&q=Gibraltar|isbn=0-313-25249-1}}</ref>

Older roads in Gibraltar, primarily in the city centre, are fairly narrow with a typical speed limit of {{convert|50|km/h|0|abbr=on}}. Gibraltar has ten fuelling stations, and fuel prices are lower than in neighbouring Spain due to lower [[fuel duty]]. Some people from Spain even enter Gibraltar for the sole purpose of purchasing fuel.

Gibraltar's international vehicle registration is GBZ, and [[vehicle registration plates of Gibraltar]] consist of the letter 'G' followed by up to five digits (1-99999) or four digits (1000-9999) and a single letter. These are as standard, the same shape, type face and colours as those in the UK, however non-standard number plates have been permitted. The [[Chief Minister of Gibraltar|Chief Minister's]] official car has the registration number ''G1'', while the [[Governor of Gibraltar|Governor's]] car, following tradition, has a crown, in place of a number.

The two highways in Spain leading in the vicinity are the [[Autovía A-383|A-383]] which ends in La Linea, and the [[Autovía CA-34|CA-34]], which leads to the [[Gibraltar-Spain border|border]].

The traditional sole road into Spain, [[Winston Churchill Avenue, Gibraltar|Winston Churchill Avenue]], intersected with the airport's runway requiring movable barricades to close when aircraft landed or departed resulting in congestion. A new tunnel was constructed to solve this problem although delays pushed back its official opening until 31 March 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |date=30 March 2023 |title=KINGSWAY INAUGURATED - 187/2023 |url=https://www.gibraltar.gov.gi/press-releases/kingsway-inaugurated-1872023-8737 |access-date=2023-04-24 |website=Government of Gibraltar |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=31 March 2023 |title=Kingsway is now open & operational |url=https://www.gbc.gi/news/kingsway-now-open-operational |access-date=2023-04-24 |website=[[Gibraltar Broadcasting Corporation]] |language=en}}</ref> The new road and tunnel is named Kingsway with the approval of [[Charles III]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Peralta |first=Gabriella |date=30 March 2023 |title=Over 14 years later, Kingsway Tunnel opens |url=https://www.chronicle.gi/over-14-years-later-kingsway-tunnel-opens/ |access-date=2023-04-24 |website=[[Gibraltar Chronicle]] |language=en |quote=that the airport and tunnel access roads [and the tunnel]...will be known as Kingsway...and that has been approved by His Majesty himself today}}</ref> and passes under the terminal and the eastern edge of the runway before connecting with [[Devil's Tower Road]]. Runway access is now closed to everyday road traffic but is still available for exceptional or emergency use as well as pedestrians, cyclists and mobility scooters.<ref>{{Cite web |date=28 March 2023 |title=Airport Tunnel to open on 31st March 2023 - 177/2023 |url=https://www.gibraltar.gov.gi/press-releases/airport-tunnel-to-open-on-31st-march-2023-1772023-8730 |access-date=2023-04-24 |website=Government of Gibraltar |language=en |quote=The road from the new roundabout at Devil’s Tower Road to the East Gate roundabout is approximately 1.2km in length, including approximately 350 metres of covered tunnel.}}</ref>

===Public transport===
[[File:Gibraltar Bus Company Route 4.jpg|thumb|left|Gibraltar Bus Company [[Dennis Dart]] on route 4 at the Both Worlds bus terminus, [[Sandy Bay, Gibraltar|Sandy Bay]].]]
[[File:Open-top bus in Gibraltar 2005.jpg|thumb|Calypso Transport [[open top bus]] on discontinued route 10]]
There are a total of eight different bus routes in Gibraltar. There are two companies who provide stage-carriage bus services in Gibraltar: Gibraltar Bus Company and Calypso Transport.

The [[Government of Gibraltar]] owned Gibraltar Bus Company operates routes 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8 and 9 with a fleet of 21 buses, 18 of which are [[Dennis Dart]] low-floor midibus with [[Caetano Nimbus]] bodies and featuring 28 seats and three [[Mercedes-Benz Sprinter]] minibuses with Unvi bodies and catering for 15 seated passengers.<ref>[http://www.gibraltarbuscompany.gi/site/images/GibBusNetworkMap.pdf Network Map] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201102032230/http://www.gibraltarbuscompany.gi/site/images/GibBusNetworkMap.pdf |date=2 November 2020 }} Gibraltar Bus Company</ref> The Darts entered service the day the company was officially formed, Saturday 10 April 2004, when it took over the operation of private company Rock City Services, who had been unwilling to invest in its fleet. The trio of Sprinters entered service during November 2010 and operate Service 1 to the Moorish Castle Estate in the Upper Town area of the city.

Calypso Transport operates route 5 between the Frontier (the land border with Spain), the airport and the city centre and tickets between this route and those operated by the Gibraltar Bus Company are not inter-changeable. An adult single fare on either operators' services currently costs £1.00 and an all-day Hoppa ticket costs £1.50. A year-long trial period where free travel was permitted aboard the buses of the Gibraltar Bus Company ended in May 2012 and only qualifying residents, commuters and [[Military of Gibraltar|military personnel]] now qualify for free travel in the territory.

====Bus Fares - Both Operators' Services====
[[File:Gibraltar Bus Company timetable 2018.jpg|thumb|upright|Timetable on a bus shelter]]

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! !! Single !! All Day Pass
|-
| Adult ||£1.80||£2.50
|-
| Pensioner ||£1.00||£1.50
|-
| Child ||£1.50||£2.00
|}

Calypso Transport uses a fleet of red [[double-decker bus]]es.{{citation needed|date=July 2013}}
[[File:Gibraltar bus routes.png|thumb|right|Gibraltar Bus Company bus routes (''right-click to enlarge'').]]

Route 5 buses operate every 15 minutes Monday to Saturdays, and every 20 minutes on Sundays,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cab.gi/bus-route-information|title=Bus Route Information|website=gcab|access-date=5 January 2020|archive-date=9 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200809120314/https://www.cab.gi/bus-route-information|url-status=dead}}</ref> this is a shuttle between Reclamation Road (British Steps) near John Macintosh Square and the Frontier/Airport terminus via the Market Place bus station [[Grand Casemates Square]].{{citation needed|date=July 2013}}

Gibraltar Bus Company increased the bus fares for all routes in Gibraltar in May 2013.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g187510-i1247-k6318338-Bus_fare_increases-Gibraltar.html|title=Bus fare increases - Gibraltar Forum - TripAdvisor|website=www.tripadvisor.com}}</ref>

===Taxis===
Taxis are available from a number of taxi ranks around the [[Rock of Gibraltar|Rock]]. Many taxis cater specifically for tours of the Upper Rock Nature Reserve and these can be picked up from the frontier or the city centre, however, taxi drivers are also obliged to take standard fares as well as tours.

==Rail==
===Historical===
There are no extant railways in Gibraltar. There was formerly an extensive railway within the Gibraltar Dockyard, and neighbouring works and storage facilities. It included tunnels, one of which went through the [[Rock of Gibraltar]], and is still in use today as a road tunnel. At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries there was also a temporary industrial railway in Gibraltar. At the period when both railways were operational, it was possible to travel right round the entire coastline of Gibraltar by train.<ref>[http://www.foghs.org.uk/nl/67.pdf Friends of Gibraltar Heritage Society] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327122347/http://www.foghs.org.uk/nl/67.pdf |date=27 March 2009 }}, December 2003, pp 7-8, ptovide full details.</ref> The dockyard railway had a roster of 17 locomotives, distinguished by numbers, but four of which also carried names: ''Gibraltar'', ''[[Catalan Bay|Catalan]]'', ''Rosia'', and ''[[Mons Calpe|Calpe]]''.

===Access to the rail system in Spain===
Whilst railway track extends to the outskirts of [[La Linea de la Concepcion|La Linea]] from the aborted [[San Roque-La Línea railway]] line expansion project in the 1970s,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.europasur.es/lalinea/Linea-lleva-ochenta-esperando-primer_0_423857779.html|title=La Línea lleva más de ochenta años esperando que pase el primer tren|first=Europa|last=Sur|date=14 November 2010|website=Europa Sur}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.google.com/maps?q=36.175256,-5.359137|title=36°10'30.9"N 5°21'32.9"W|website=36°10'30.9"N 5°21'32.9"W}}</ref> the nearest actual railway station (in Spain) is ''"[[San Roque station|San Roque - La Línea]]"'' station on the [[Adif|ADIF]] [[Algeciras-Bobadilla railway]] line Junction via [[Ronda]].  In 2021, after details emerged about a possible accession agreement of Gibraltar into the Schengen Area, the Chief Minister [[Fabian Picardo]] commented on the potential of railway development upwards towards Europe.<ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211205/Zrx0DdMLe5c Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20210212055614/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zrx0DdMLe5c Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite web| url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=2208&v=Zrx0DdMLe5c&feature=youtu.be| title = Fabian Picardo answers questions about Gibraltar's future relationship with EU #GBCviewpoint 2/2 | website=[[YouTube]]| date = 15 January 2021 }}{{cbignore}}</ref>

Until 1969 a ferry from Gibraltar provided convenient access to Algeciras station, which along with the railway line to Ronda was built by a British company known as the [[Algeciras Gibraltar Railway Company]].

===Access to the rail system in Morocco===
Ferries by ''FRS'' running twice a week from Gibraltar to [[Tanger-Med]] port provide access to the [[Rail transport in Morocco|Moroccan railway]] system.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://goafrica.about.com/od/morocco/a/moroctraveltips_2.htm|title=Top Tips for Getting to and Around Morocco|access-date=6 July 2012|archive-date=9 October 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131009202056/https://www.gibraltar.gov.gi/judiciary-a-law?start=2|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.seat61.com/Morocco.htm|title=How to travel by train London to Morocco &#124; Train travel in Morocco|website=www.seat61.com}}</ref>

==Sea==
[[File:Gibraltar navy.jpg|thumb|left|Gibraltar's [[Royal Navy Dockyard|Royal Navy Base]]]]
[[File:Aurora gib.jpg|thumb|{{MV|Aurora|2000}} berthed adjacent to the [[Gibraltar Cruise Terminal]] at the Western Arm of the [[North Mole, Gibraltar Harbour|North Mole]]]]
Being a [[peninsula]], the sea has long been vital to Gibraltar's transport links. The [[Royal Navy Dockyard]] was formerly Gibraltar's major employer. 

There is still a [[Gibraltar Harbour|harbour]] on the [[Gibraltar west|west side]] of the territory. The Gibraltar-registered merchant marine consists of 26 ships of 1000 tonnes and above. There is an irregular direct regular fast [[ferry]] service to [[Tanger-Med]] port, [[Morocco]] but many passengers now travel from [[Algeciras]] or [[Tarifa]] due to a more regular service being present at those ports.

The ferry between Gibraltar and Algeciras, which existed until 1969, when communications with Spain were severed by the Spanish dictator [[Francisco Franco]], was reopened on 16 December 2009, served by the Spanish company [[Transcoma]],<ref>[http://www.chronicle.gi/headlines_details.php?id=17969 New ferry 'repairs 40 year gap' says Spanish Diplomat] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091218183902/http://www.chronicle.gi/headlines_details.php?id=17969 |date=18 December 2009 }}, ''[[Gibraltar Chronicle]]'', 17 December 2009</ref> which used a [[catamaran]], ''[[Punta Europa Segundo]]'' in memory of the original ferry that served the cross-Bay route in the 1960s. The maritime operations of Transcoma were taken over by [[Grupo Medex]] on 10 November 2010, which announced a higher-capacity new ship for 2011.<ref>[http://www.chronicle.gi/headlines_details.php?id=20448 Gib Ferry Company Taken Over] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923203246/http://www.chronicle.gi/headlines_details.php?id=20448 |date=23 September 2015 }}, ''[[Gibraltar Chronicle]]'', 10 November 2010</ref> Freight ferries between Gibraltar and Algeciras for shipments of food goods were started after the UK's withdrawal from the EU.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.chronicle.gi/first-uk-food-shipment-cleared-in-algeciras-arrives-by-sea-in-gibraltar/|title = First UK food shipment cleared in Algeciras arrives by sea in Gibraltar}}</ref>

Various [[cruise liner]]s visit the [[Port of Gibraltar]] throughout the year, and dock at the [[Gibraltar Cruise Terminal]] on the Western Arm of the [[North Mole, Gibraltar Harbour|North Mole]]. This provides the means of transport for a significant proportion of [[day-tripper]] tourists arriving in the territory.

==Air==
During World War I, the [[Royal Naval Air Service]] brought one of the first seaplanes to come to Gibraltar, a [[Wight Seaplane]], to search for submarines.

In 1931 the seaplane [[Saro Windhover]] Captained by [[Edgar Percival]] for [[GB Airways]] was the first of regular passenger flights from Gibraltar to Morocco. If there was a [[Levant (wind)|levant wind]], then the seaplane would land on an aerodrome in Morocco instead of Tangier harbour.

[[File:Gibraltar Airport main runway with 4-lane road crossing.jpg|right|thumb|[[Gibraltar Airport]] and border area. Showing runway (Gibraltar) and pier behind (Spain).  Officially, any [[Disputed status of the isthmus between Gibraltar and Spain|exact line is still disputed]]]]
Work began in 1939 to build what is today [[Gibraltar Airport]] and is the territory's only airport. It is situated very close to the border with Spain. [[Winston Churchill Avenue, Gibraltar|Winston Churchill Avenue]] the road which runs from the [[Gibraltar–Spain border]], crosses the runway, requiring the road to be closed each time an aircraft lands or takes off. Scheduled civilian passenger flights are operated by [[EasyJet]], [[British Airways]] and [[Royal Air Maroc]].

Following [[Córdoba Agreement|an agreement]] signed in [[Córdoba, Spain|Córdoba]] between the Governments of the United Kingdom, Spain and Gibraltar in September 2006, the use of Gibraltar Airport by both Gibraltarian and Spanish services was agreed. Gibraltar Airport will be adapted to have an entrance from Spain (as well as Gibraltar), in a similar manner to Basel and Geneva airports (which are also adjacent to borders).

[[Iberia (airline)|Iberia]] commenced direct flights between [[Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport|Madrid]] and Gibraltar on 16 December 2006 with [[GB Airways]] following on 1 May 2007. However, GB Airways discontinued its Madrid service on 30 September 2007 and Iberia subsequently considered using smaller aircraft, possibly from its [[Air Nostrum]] regional partner – indicating that neither operator may have been able to fill their planes with passengers. Iberia eventually withdrew its service in September 2008. In 2009 [[Ándalus Líneas Aéreas]] started flights between Gibraltar and Madrid. However, on 13 August 2010, the airline ceased operations because the Spanish aviation authorities withdrew their licence.

Following the takeover by EasyJet, GB Airways dropped its direct Gibraltar–[[Heathrow Airport|London Heathrow]] service on 28 October 2006<ref>Gibraltar News Online, [http://www.gibraltarnewsonline.com/2006/07/21/gb-airways-drop-gib-heathrow-route-this-winter/ GB Airways drop Gib-Heathrow route this Winter]{{Dead link|date=July 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=no }}</ref> despite apparently remaining popular. The reason cited by GB Airways was the "convenience of" concentrating all its London services onto a single hub at [[Gatwick]].  Later, a sale of several of GB Airways' Heathrow [[landing slots|slots]] is believed to have netted GB Airways with up to £80m.<ref>Gibraltar News, [http://www.gibfocus.gi/details_todaysnews.php?id=3058 GB Airways sells Heathrow slots for £80 million]{{Dead link|date=July 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=no }}</ref> In late 2007 GB Airways was bought by EasyJet (and thus ceased to be a [[British Airways]] franchise partner); all flights were rebranded as EasyJet in 2008.

Flights are available from Gibraltar to London Heathrow, [[Gatwick Airport|London Gatwick]], [[Luton Airport|Luton]], [[Bristol Airport|Bristol]], [[Casablanca Airport|Casablanca]], [[Tangier Ibn Battouta Airport|Tangier]] and [[Manchester Airport|Manchester]] airports. During 2012 [[bmibaby]] offered a service to [[East Midlands Airport]], but the airline ceased operations in September 2012.

==Cable car==
{{Main|Gibraltar Cable Car}}
[[File:Gibraltar Cable Car 2.jpg|thumb|200px|[[Gibraltar Cable Car]]]]
A [[aerial tramway|cable car]] runs from just south of the city centre to the [[Gibraltar Barbary Macaques|Ape's Den]] and the Top of the Rock, which despite its name is actually the second highest peak of the Rock.

==Proposed tunnel==
{{main|Strait of Gibraltar crossing}}
In January 2021, it was reported that the [[United Kingdom]] and [[Morocco]] would discuss building a [[Strait of Gibraltar crossing]] between [[Gibraltar]] and [[Tangiers]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.euroweeklynews.com/2021/01/11/uk-and-morocco-may-discuss-a-tunnel-linking-gibraltar-and-tangiers/|title = UK and Morocco may discuss a tunnel linking Gibraltar and Tangiers| work=Euro Weekly News |date = 11 January 2021}}</ref>

==Dispute with Spain==
{{See also|Disputed status of Gibraltar}}
The road crossing into Spain was closed by the Spanish authorities in 1969 and only reopened for pedestrians in 1982 and for vehicles in 1985.

A ferry operated between [[Algeciras]] and Gibraltar until 1969. For a few months in 2004 Spain banned cruise ships which had visited Gibraltar from going to Spanish ports on the same journey. In 2003, the land frontier was closed for a day by Spain on the grounds that a visiting cruise liner, the [[MV Aurora (2000)|MV ''Aurora'']], was affected by contagious food poisoning.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3237235.stm|title=Fury over Gibraltar border closure|date=3 November 2003|via=news.bbc.co.uk}}</ref> No cases in Gibraltar were reported.

The airport is built on the [[Disputed status of the isthmus between Gibraltar and Spain|isthmus]] which the Spanish Government claim not to have been ceded in the [[Treaty of Utrecht (1713)|Treaty of Utrecht]], thus the integration of [[Gibraltar Airport]] in the [[Single European Sky]] system has been blocked by Spain. The 1987 agreement for joint control of the airport with Spain was rejected by the then Government of Gibraltar. All successive Governments of Gibraltar have rejected it, although welcoming joint use of the airport (which being next to the border could operate in a similar manner to [[Geneva Airport]] or [[EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg]]). Following the ''[[Cordoba Agreement]]'' (between the UK, Spain and Gibraltar) in 2006, the joint use of the airport was finally agreed.

The road crossing from Gibraltar into Spain can often be subject to long delays. A loop road is located next to the border to hold cars waiting in the queue to cross into Spain. Motorists (and sometimes pedestrians) crossing the border are randomly subjected to long delays and searches by the Spanish authorities.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theolivepress.es/spain-news/2013/07/28/motorists-trapped-in-lengthy-gibraltar-border-queues/|title=Motorists 'trapped' in six hour Gibraltar border queues in sweltering heat|last=Smallman|first=Karl|date=2013-07-28|website=Olive Press News Spain|language=en-GB|access-date=2020-02-12}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline|Transport in Gibraltar}}

{{Gibraltar topics}}
{{Transport in Europe}}

[[Category:Transport in Gibraltar| ]]
[[Category:Transport in dependent territories of the United Kingdom|Gibraltar]]