CORALLY

Can you ride forest tracks by motorcycle in the Community of Madrid? What the rules say

Last reviewed: November 9, 2026

In forests run by the Community of Madrid, motorcycles may only use the authorised, signposted ways (Decree 110/1988, article 1), and in any forest leaving the ways is banned all year round. On drove roads, motorcycles are banned except with an exceptional permit (Act 8/1998, art. 43.f), and in the Guadarrama National Park you ride on roads only.

Allowed

  • On paved roads, including inside forests and the Guadarrama National Park.
  • On tracks in the region's forests that carry the sign opening them to traffic (Decree 110/1988, art. 1).
  • Through a private forest, if its owner expressly allows it (Act 16/1995, art. 88.2).
  • A sports activity off those ways, with an exceptional permit requested 15 days ahead (Decree 110/1988, arts. 3 and 4).

Not allowed

  • Off the ways on any forest land, public or private, all year round (Decree 59/2017, INFOMA plan, annex 2, 2.2.c).
  • On tracks in the region's forests without a sign opening them (Decree 110/1988, art. 1).
  • On drove roads: the act bans motorcycles except with an exceptional permit (Act 8/1998, art. 43.f).
  • On tracks in the Guadarrama National Park without express authorisation: they are restricted-access ways (PRUG, art. 46.1).
  • On tracks closed by resolution, such as those in 11 forests of the Sierra Oeste since September 2026 (Resolution 2263/2026).
  • Through a private forest without its owner's permission (Act 16/1995, art. 88.2).

Regional forests: only signposted tracks

The rule is in a 1988 decree that is still in force: in forests run by the Community of Madrid, motor traffic «is limited to authorised ways» and prepared areas, with the corresponding signs (Decree 110/1988, art. 1). Off them, only surveillance, management, forestry work and emergencies (art. 2).

Sport or any other activity with motor vehicles off those ways needs an exceptional permit, requested in writing 15 days ahead, with the route, date and type and number of vehicles (arts. 3 and 4). Events in already-prepared areas must be notified 15 days ahead even with a federation licence (art. 5).

There is no official map or list of authorised ways: the sign is what identifies them. With no sign opening a track, assume it is closed to motorcycles.

Any forest: never off the ways

The region's wildfire plan (INFOMA plan, Decree 59/2017) covers all forest land, whoever owns it, and bans motor traffic off the ways all year round (annex 2, 2.2.c).

Madrid's Forestry Act also lets the authorities restrict or ban vehicles in public forests, temporarily or permanently (Act 16/1995, art. 88.1). In private forests, visitors may only enter if the owner expressly allows it (art. 88.2).

Drove roads: motorcycles banned

The Community of Madrid's Drove Roads Act 8/1998 says it plainly: traffic in off-road vehicles, motorcycles and any other motor vehicle is banned outside the cases the act provides for (art. 43.f). Those cases are farm vehicles and vehicles going to isolated houses or farms (art. 31), organised activities with prior authorisation (art. 33), and a special, exceptional permit, for a year at most, for activities that benefit rural areas (art. 36). Always at 20 km/h at most (art. 42).

An organised activity on a drove road must be applied for three months ahead (Decree 7/2021, art. 36). For a ride, no.

Protected areas

Madrid has a lot of protected land. What you can do on a motorcycle is set by each area:

  • Guadarrama National Park: motor vehicles on roads only; tracks are restricted-access ways that need express authorisation, and where traffic is allowed, 30 km/h on tarmac and 20 on dirt (Madrid PRUG, arts. 38.1.a, 46.1 and 46.5).
  • Cuenca Alta del Manzanares Regional Park: in reserve zones, motor vehicles banned off suitable ways; elsewhere, only on the ways its management plan lists (Act 1/1985, arts. 14 and 17).
  • Sureste Regional Park: the same in reserve zones; in zone B, only on roads and on the ways its management plan lists (Act 6/1994, arts. 27 and 28).
  • In other areas and Natura 2000 sites, whatever their plan says.

Wildfires: seasons and closures

The high-danger season runs from 15 June to 30 September; the medium one, from 16 May to 14 June and in October (INFOMA plan, section 2.1.D; 2026 annual plan). The dates do not close tracks by themselves: on high or extreme risk days, the Directorate-General can restrict vehicle access to public forests.

And closures can last: after the Sierra Oeste fire, Resolution 2263/2026 (BOCM of 3 September 2026) restricted motor-vehicle access to the tracks of 11 public-utility forests in Fresnedillas, Robledo de Chavela, Navas del Rey, Pelayos, San Martín de Valdeiglesias and Villa del Prado, with no end date and signposted at the entrances.

What is not clear

Decree 110/1988 has no consolidated text and we could not check whether it has been amended, although the region still cites it as the rule for motor vehicles in its forests. There is no inventory of which tracks carry the sign that opens them, and we have not read the management plans of Cuenca Alta and Sureste. Nor do we know whether the Sierra Oeste closure has been lifted, in whole or in part.

Until it is clear: roads and tracks with a clear sign allowing traffic, the sign rules and, if in doubt, ask the Directorate-General for Biodiversity and Forest Management or the forest rangers.

What if you get fined

Riding on forest ways or areas where there is an express ban, or doing an activity without the required permit, is an offence under Act 16/1995 (art. 101.2). The act still sets fines in pesetas: roughly €30 to €601 for minor offences and up to about €60,101 for serious ones (art. 106). Under the state Forestry Act, riding a motor vehicle off tracks without permission is minor with no damage, €100 to €1,000 (Act 43/2003, arts. 67.k and 74). On a drove road, a minor offence is roughly €60 to €601 (Act 3/1995, arts. 21.4.c and 22).

What each area is

Four designations you will meet out in the country, each with its own page: what it is, what the acronyms mean and what it means for your bike.

How Corally applies it

  • Singletrack (in Corally, «paths») is outside the default way filter: the planner does not use it and the analyser flags the sections of a GPX that run on it.
  • If OpenStreetMap says a way is closed to motorcycles or motor vehicles, the planner avoids it and the analyser flags it as «No motorcycles».
  • The «Zones with rules» layer flags the protected areas, public-utility forests and drove roads it knows on your route: it does not block it, it warns you so you can decide or ask for a permit.
  • What Corally does not know: which tracks carry the sign that opens them, closures by resolution, new chains and signs, and each area's plan. The data is public and collaborative and may differ from the ground: the signs rule.

Plan a dirt-track route in the Community of Madrid

Frequently asked questions

Can you ride forest tracks in Madrid?
In forests run by the region, only on tracks with a sign opening them to traffic (Decree 110/1988, art. 1). In any forest, never off the ways (INFOMA plan).
What about a cañada?
No: Madrid's drove roads act bans motorcycles except with an exceptional permit (Act 8/1998, art. 43.f), and even then at 20 km/h at most (art. 42).
Can you ride in the Sierra de Guadarrama?
On the roads, yes. National Park tracks are restricted-access ways that need express authorisation (PRUG, art. 46.1).
Is there a speed or group limit?
There is no general regional rule for tracks: the signs apply. In the National Park, 20 km/h on dirt, and on a permitted drove road, 20 km/h. No general group size.
Are tracks closed in summer?
The high-danger season (15 June to 30 September) does not close them by itself, but the region can restrict access to public forests and close tracks by resolution, as after the 2026 Sierra Oeste fire.
What is the fine?
Under the state Forestry Act, €100 to €1,000 with no damage (Act 43/2003, art. 74). Madrid's act has its own scale, still in pesetas (Act 16/1995, art. 106).

Sources (with the article)

A practical guide written by Corally from the rules cited at the end. It is not legal advice: rules change, every protected area has its own plan, and signs on the ground always prevail.