ZAGREB, 28 July 2022 - The amended Road Safety Act, introduces a number of changes, notably regarding the use of electric vehicles such as scooters, as well as the obligation for medical professionals to notify drivers in case they are temporarily unfit to drive, goes into force on Saturday.

The Ministry of the Interior notes that the new law regulates for the first time the use of electric scooters, unicycles, Segways and other similar vehicles.

The law defines areas where such vehicles may be used and the conditions they and their drivers have to meet in order to participate in traffic.

Under the law, all persons riding such vehicles have to wear a helmet and not only those above 16, as is the case with bicycles. They must use cycle lanes or, if there are none, ride slowly along sidewalks and in traffic-calming zones.

At nighttime or during periods of low visibility, all persons riding bicycles, scooters and similar electric vehicles must wear reflective vests or other reflective gear.

E-scooter riders, as well as cyclists wearing headphones in both ears, face a fine of HRK 300.

An electric scooter with a motor of more than 0.6kW or one that can develop a speed of more than 25 kmph must not be used in public traffic if it does not have a speed limiter or is certified and, if possible, registered, the Strujni Krug e-mobility association has said.

The Ministry of the Interior also recalls that the amended law introduces an obligation for doctors examining or treating a driver as well as driver's GP to notify the driver in case the driver is temporarily unfit to drive and to enter this in their medical record.

Doctors and drivers who fail to comply with the new regulations will be fined.

A person may be temporarily unfit to drive for a maximum six months, after which the driver need not undergo another medical checkup.

The new law regulates for the first time the participation of horse riders in road traffic and introduces a new term denoting a fully autonomous vehicle, a vehicle that can operate without a driver.

The law also envisages penalties for drivers using partially autonomous vehicles as fully autonomous ones, without the driver sitting in the driver's seat.

For more, check out our politics section.

January 12, 2021 – The surprise Zagorje landslide has left people wondering if the groundwater has triggered the fall of ground or if the region's earthquakes may have played a part

Flattening trees and completely covering a main thoroughfare through the village of Gornji Jesenje, a surprise Zagorje landslide that occurred last week has left locals wondering if the shift of wintertime groundwater was to blame or if seismic disturbances in Croatia may have also played their part.

The Zagorje landslide occurred at the end of last week. So far, the road remains blocked. The landslide took place over four days ago. The village of Gornji Jesenje, where the Zagorje landslide took place, is just a couple of kilometres from the main thoroughfare which runs from Zagreb, through Zapresic and Zabok, and on to Maribor in Slovenia. Travel between the two major European cities remains unaffected by the landslide (although a strike by Slovenian police may currently stall passage between the countries on the border).

Thousands of cubic meters of earth were shifted in the Zagorje landslide, as the main picture (a screenshot) shows. Trees that run alongside the road were flattened with the force of the earth fall. The Zagorje landslide started under the Gorjak quarry near Gornji Jesenje. It has buried the state road DC74 in Krapina-Zagorje County. The Gorjak quarry has been in operation for about 40 years. The national institution, Hrvatske ceste, responsible for the maintenance of such routes is aware of the situation following the Zagorje landslide. Their response is pending and being planned. Their first responsibility will be to clear the road for traffic to be able to pass along the route. Further study of the area's susceptibility to further landslides is also pending. The winter groundwater, the quarry and the three large earthquakes, plus many aftershocks experienced in the region over the last 11 months will all each need to be taken into account

ZAGREB, July 1, 2020 - Contracts for the start of a 105.5 million kuna project to construct a Novi Marof east bypass road were signed in that northwestern Croatian town on Wednesday.

The contracts were signed by the Croatian state-run road operator (HC) director, Josip Skoric, and senior executives of the companies that will build the road.

Novi Marof Mayor Sinisa Jenkac said at the ceremony that local inhabitants had been waiting for this project since 1987 when the decision on the east bypass road had been made. The infrastructure will defuse traffic jams in the center of the city.

The project includes the construction of a 4.5 -kilometer-long road, two bridges across the River Bednja, six crossroads and interchanges, and other facilities.