In short: Where no sign says otherwise, Guatemala’s Reglamento de Tránsito (Acuerdo Gubernativo 273-98) sets the maximums by road type: Art. 112 for urban areas (30 to 90 km/h) and Art. 113 outside them (40 to 100 km/h), lower for heavy vehicles and vehicles towing a trailer. A posted limit governs where the authority has signed one (Art. 111). There is a 60 km/h minimum on autopistas and vías rápidas (Art. 114). Speeding is Q300 under Art. 182 numeral 12, Q225 if you pay within five business days (Art. 189). General information, not legal advice.
Every number on this page is from the consolidated Ley de Tránsito and Reglamento de Tránsito text that the Departamento de Tránsito de la Policía Nacional Civil publishes itself. The rest of the road rules are on the Guatemala driving hub.
The limits, in one table
These are the generic limits: they apply where there is no specific sign on the stretch (Art. 111).
| Road type (Reglamento definition) | Urban maximum (Art. 112) | Outside urban areas (Art. 113) |
|---|---|---|
| Autopista | 90 km/h | 100 km/h |
| Vía rápida | 80 km/h | 90 km/h |
| Arteria principal (urban) / carretera principal (extra-urban) | 60 km/h | 80 km/h |
| Arteria secundaria (urban) / carretera secundaria (extra-urban) | 50 km/h | 60 km/h |
| Caminos and local streets (vías locales) | 40 km/h | 40 km/h (caminos) |
| Residential streets of controlled circulation and school zones | 30 km/h | — |
| Heavy vehicles and vehicles towing a trailer | −10 km/h on each | −20 km/h on autopistas, vías rápidas and carreteras principales; −10 km/h on carreteras secundarias |
The articles, as the consolidated text prints them:
“ARTICULO 112. VELOCIDADES MAXIMAS EN AREA URBANA. En ámbitos urbanos se establecen las siguientes velocidades máximas: a) En autopistas, 90 kilómetros por hora. b) En vías rápidas, 80 kilómetros por hora.”
The same article continues: “En arterias principales, 60 kilómetros por hora”, “En arterias secundarias, 50 kilómetros por hora”, “En caminos y vías locales, 40 kilómetros por hora”, and 30 km/h “En vías residenciales de circulación controlada y zonas escolares”.
“ARTICULO 113. VELOCIDADES MAXIMAS EN AREA EXTRAURBANA. En ámbitos extraurbanos se establecen las siguientes velocidades máximas: a) En autopistas, 100 kilómetros por hora. b) En vías rápidas, 90 kilómetros por hora. c) En carreteras principales, 80 kilómetros por hora. d) En carreteras secundarias, 60 kilómetros por hora; y, e) En caminos, 40 kilómetros por hora.”
Which road type am I on?
The limit depends on the category, and the Reglamento’s Article 7 defines each one by its physical design, not by its name. A summary of those definitions:
| Term | What the definition requires |
|---|---|
| Autopista | Separate paved carriageways for each direction, each with at least two lanes of 3.50 m, limited direct access to adjoining properties, no level crossings with railways or roads, no traffic lights; minimum-speed limits apply; outside urban areas, a hard shoulder of at least 1.00 m on the right |
| Vía rápida | Separate carriageways or one carriageway for both directions, with at least 2 lanes of 3.50 m per direction; the definition describes limited access and no level crossings as the norm (Art. 7, numeral 113); no traffic lights; minimum-speed limits apply |
| Arteria principal | “Vías urbanas pavimentadas con mínimo de tres carriles para el tránsito mixto en sentido de circulación o con al menos dos carriles para el tránsito mixto si es de dos sentidos”, each lane at least 3.50 m; may cross other roads at grade; traffic lights allowed; carries a town’s largest traffic volumes |
| Arteria secundaria | Same lane counts, lanes at least 3.00 m; feeds local streets into the main arteries |
| Vía local | Every other paved urban road that is not an autopista, vía rápida or artery, with a total width over 5.00 m; most of the urban network |
| Vía residencial de circulación controlada | A type of local road in residential areas, total width 3.00 to 5.50 m |
| Carretera principal | Extra-urban, single paved carriageway, two directions, two or three lanes of at least 3.50 m, hard shoulder of at least 1.00 m both sides |
| Carretera secundaria | Extra-urban, single paved carriageway, lanes of 2.75 to 3.49 m; hard shoulder not required |
| Caminos | All roads that are not paved, and also “aquellas vías pavimentadas que no sean calles de circulación controlada y que tengan menos de 5.00 metros de ancho” (paved roads under 5.00 m wide that are not controlled-circulation streets) |
| Zona escolar | Two or more interrelated roads where circulation is restricted because of schoolchildren |
We searched the full 208-page consolidated text for Periférico, Roosevelt, CA-1, CA-9 and Interamericana: the Reglamento names no particular road. It also defines a zona de límite de velocidad: two or more interrelated roads where exceeding the signed limit is prohibited anywhere inside the marked zone.
A sign beats the default
“ARTICULO 111. SEÑALIZACION RESPECTO A LA VELOCIDAD. La autoridad correspondiente fijará, empleando la señalización necesaria, las limitaciones de velocidad específicas que correspondan a las características del tramo de la vía. En defecto de señalización específica, se observará la señalización genérica, según lo establecido en los artículos 112, 113 y 114 del presente reglamento.”
Read in that order: the posted sign first; the table above only where there is no sign. The article calls the body that posts it la autoridad correspondiente. A web search on 25 September 2026 did not turn up a street-by-street limit list published by the Municipalidad de Guatemala; the signs on the road are the record.
Minimum speed on fast roads
Art. 114 prohibits motor vehicles from travelling below 60 km/h on autopistas and vías rápidas, urban and extra-urban. It lists three exceptions: special lanes for vehicles below the minimum; traffic conditions that prevent keeping above it; and vehicles that cannot go faster and have no parallel road, highway or route they could use instead. Disobeying a velocidad mínima sign is one of the Q100 cases in Art. 180, numeral 2.
When you must slow down anyway
The limit is a ceiling, not a target. Art. 109 obliges every driver to respect the limits and to adapt speed to their own physical and mental condition, the road, the vehicle and its load, the weather and the traffic, so that they can always stop within their field of vision before any obstacle.
Art. 110 then lists the situations that require moderate speed, and stopping if necessary:
- cyclists or pedestrians on the road, or reasonably foreseeable, especially children, the elderly, blind people, pregnant women or people with evident disabilities;
- approaching pedestrian crossings or places where people gather, such as markets, schools and churches;
- animals on the road;
- stretches with buildings with direct access to the road;
- approaching a public-transport vehicle, especially a school bus;
- slippery surfaces, or where water, gravel or other material can be thrown at others;
- railway crossings, roundabouts, intersections without priority, low-visibility places and narrowings;
- passing another vehicle where conditions do not allow it safely;
- dazzle from another vehicle or light source;
- dense fog, heavy rain, smoke or dust clouds;
- controlled-circulation roads.
For the practical side of those situations on Guatemalan roads (túmulos, night driving, rain), see our driving safety guide.
The fine and what happens next
“ARTICULO 182. MULTA DE TRESCIENTOS QUETZALES. Se aplicará multa de trescientos quetzales, en los casos que siguen:”
Numeral 12 of that list reads “Por no cumplir los límites de velocidad máxima.” The amount is fixed at Q300 in the text; the article sets no scale by how far over the limit you were.
| Stage | What the instrument says | Where |
|---|---|---|
| The ticket | A boleta de aviso, requerimiento de pago y citación stating the infraction, the amount and where to pay or file | Reglamento Art. 186 |
| Its weight | What the officer states on the boleta is a presumption that the facts are true, which admits proof to the contrary | Reglamento Art. 186 |
| Pay within 5 business days | 25% off: Q300 becomes Q225 | Reglamento Art. 189 |
| From business day 6 | Full amount plus late interest at 20% a year | Reglamento Art. 189 |
| Disagree | Written objection with evidence within 5 days of the infraction, to the Departamento de Tránsito or the Juzgado de Asuntos Municipales de Tránsito, decided within 30 days | Reglamento Art. 186 |
| Notification | Must state date, time and exact place, the vehicle’s plate, model and make, the evidence (documents, photos, video), the amount and how to pay, the rule applied, and how to challenge it; recourse within 15 days of notification | Ley de Tránsito Art. 31, as reformed by Decreto 33-2024 |
| Never notified | Unnotified fines prescribe in 120 days from imposition and payment may not then be required | Ley de Tránsito Art. 31, as reformed |
| 30 days unpaid | The traffic authority requests transfer of the vehicle to the depósito, unless the fine is under administrative challenge | Reglamento Art. 190 |
To check or pay a fine, see our walkthrough: Guatemala traffic fines lookup.
Buses and trucks: the 80 km/h limiter
Decreto 45-2016, the Ley para el Fortalecimiento de la Seguridad Vial, requires owners of collective passenger and cargo transport to have the injection pump modified, at their own cost, so the vehicle develops a maximum speed of up to 80 km/h, and to hold a Departamento de Tránsito inspection certificate for the modification. The decree adds a limit on its own limit:
“Esta regulación no implica que la velocidad de ochenta (80) kilómetros por hora sea permitida o que sustituya a la velocidad máxima autorizada en tramos carreteros o de calzadas, avenidas o calles, sea cual fuere su naturaleza, cuando dicha velocidad sea menor”
So a bus on a 60 km/h stretch is still bound by 60. The heavy-vehicle reductions in Arts. 112 and 113 apply alongside it.
Frequently asked questions
Are the limits different for motorcycles? Arts. 112 and 113 set reductions only for heavy vehicles and vehicles towing trailers. They set no separate motorcycle limit. Motorcycle-specific rules, including helmets and lane-splitting, are in our motorcycle helmet law guide.
Is Q300 per ticket even if I was far over the limit? Art. 182 numeral 12 attaches a single Q300 amount to not complying with maximum speed limits. Speed-related conduct that the Reglamento treats more severely is separate: racing or contests on the public road without permission carry Q25,000 per participating driver under Art. 185 c), and the authority must notify the Ministerio Público.
Does speed matter if I cause an accident? The Código Penal’s driver-responsibility article, as reformed by Decreto 45-2016, reaches driving “con temeridad o impericia manifiesta o en forma imprudente o negligente” that endangers life or property, with a fine of Q5,000 to Q25,000 and licence cancellation. That, and the alcohol rules, are on our drunk-driving law page.
Do the limits apply to rental cars and foreign drivers? The Reglamento’s limits are written for every driver on the public road; they do not distinguish nationality or who owns the car.
Sources
- Ley de Tránsito, Decreto 132-96, and Reglamento de Tránsito, Acuerdo Gubernativo 273-98 — official consolidated compilation (reforms through Decreto 33-2024, with the annexed Decreto 45-2016) published by the Departamento de Tránsito de la PNC, linked from
https://transito.gob.gt/legislacion-en-materia-de-transito/; documenthttps://drive.google.com/uc?export=download&id=1YM7fRaR2ZHnBPDUTfWkaUDZYsUed9tOQ. Articles cited: Ley 31; Reglamento 7 (definitions), 109 to 114, 180, 182, 185, 186, 189, 190; Decreto 45-2016 Art. 2. Retrieved 2026-09-25.
General information for drivers and visitors, current as of 2026-09-25. Traffic rules are set by the Ministerio de Gobernación through the Departamento de Tránsito de la PNC, and municipalities enforce them where traffic control has been transferred. Posted signs govern. Not legal advice. En español: Límites de velocidad en Guatemala.