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BlueBox Associates
updated 21 August, 2008

new autoroutes :: train - SNCF & TGV :: Ferry crossings :: flights to France :: healthcare

Travelling to and in France - Driving in France

France Autoroutes, N routes and minor roads

France has had an apalling record for road safety for years, and everyone has a story of some maniac on the French roads endangering their own lives and those of others. But the French Government is now seriously clamping down, and foreign motorists need to take heed of the new tough approach being applied by the Gendarmes! This has become a political issue, so police now have targets to meet resulting in a real determination to stop speeding, dangerous driving and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Speed Cameras - both fixed and mobile are now much more in evidence - and the French authorities may now pursue fines in the UK and driving endorsements earned in France could now apply in the UK too. If you get caught in a speed trap - more than 250 likely to be operational in France this summer - you will have to pay on-the-spot fines of £50-£500 depending on your speed - or have your vehicle impounded until you pay up! Somewhat bizarrely radar detectors are illegal in France, but you can check out where the fixed speed cameras are on various websites - e.g. www.viamichelin.fr or www.controleradar.org

IF YOU SEE A SPEED CAMERA SIGN in France it generally means there IS a speed camera coming up - be prepared for a camera within the next kilometre or so - you cannot say you have not been warned!

Don't forget that you can be fined for not having the correct paperwork with you (driving licence, vehicle registration book and insurance certificate); not having a set of spare bulbs and a warning triangle - and don't expect to be immune from these rules because you are a foreigner! A driver caught speeding 20-40kph (12-25mph) over the limit can expect a fine of €750 (£600+). Anyone speeding by more than 40kph will be fined up to €1,500 and could lose his/her licence.

Motorists are required to use dipped headlights outside built-up areas day and night, although sadly they do not have to be yellow any longer. If you are driving through the forests of the Landes, you should keep your headlights on to ensure you can be seen on these dangerous roads lined by thick forests and with little in the way of variety to overcome the monotony of long strecthes of featureless roads. Seat belts are compulsory for front and rear seat occupants, if fitted. Children under 10 are not allowed in the front. Alcohol limit is lower than the UK.

Speed Limits		but if wet
Autoroutes	130kph(80mph)	110kph(68mph)
Dual Carriageways	110kph (68mph)	100kph (62mph)
Open roads	90kph (55mph)	80kph (50mph
In town	50kph (31mph)
		Remember that the 50kph limit applies as soon as you enter a town and see a sign like this (left)- there will not necessarily be a 50kph sign!
this road has priority	This road does NOT have priority	AND do remember that especially in towns the dreaded "PRIORITE A DROITE" (give way to the right) still applies on some roads - look out for the diamond signs on main roads which will tell you whether you have priority or not . Especially in town, play safe and assume you do not have priority unless it is clear that you do!!
Controversy is raging in the Midi-Pyrenees about plans to remove hundreds of plane trees from the verges of main routes in the region. Even expat Brits have got in on the action. The regional council wants to remove the trees in the interests of road safety - a significant number of road deaths are due to vehicles going off the road and colliding with the trees each year. The French government is on a road safety campaign at the moment after belatedly realising that its road safety record is one of the worst in western Europe. Speed cameras and traps, clamp downs on drink- and drug driving, and hefty fines are having an impact (see above).But particularly out on the long windy country roads which we enjoy so much, the manic Frenchman driving at speed and with disdain for the safety of himself or others is still something I witness every year. However, those plane trees, said to have been planted by Napoleon to shade his marching troops from the heat of the midday sun, are nevertheless quintessentially French, and could rightly be claimed as part of the French heritage. Demonstrations took place in early October outside Toulouse on the N88 road to Albi where there are plans to demolish tens of trees. The protesters from groups such as "Arbres et Routes" and "Amis du Terre" (Friends of the Earth) wrap the trees in blue and green paper to draw attention to the cause. The campaign is having some success - plans to remove trees on the N113 at Villefranche du Lauragais having been abandoned by the Highways Authority. The protestors claim that the solution should lie with changing driver behaviour rather than destroying trees! Vive la France! Subscribe to RSS headline updates from: Powered by FeedBurner