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Original poster

Driving in France

26 replies

MaryMotherOfCheeses · 04/05/2009 17:45

What do I need to know?

Rough Guide talks about needing spare specs, a yellow coat, triangle...

And all sorts of complicated rules about junctions and who has priority. I'm getting confused.

Will it all make sense when I get there?

OP posts:
giddykipper · 04/05/2009 17:47

Yes, as long as you keep on the right! The 'priority to the right' rule is hardly ever used these days and never on main roads.

Directskiandsun · 04/05/2009 17:52

Hi - you need:-

Warning Triangle
Hi-Vis jackets for all travelling in car (Halfords do a 4 jacket pack for those handy 4 person families....)
Spare light bulbs (for the car.....)
First Aid kit
Fire extinguisher
Headlamp deflector stickers (put them on when parked on the ferry; take them off before you land back in UK)

Re: driving rules - they seem worse than they are and yes, it does (mostly) make sense when you get there.

It's a good idea to take out some breakdown cover which will cover you in France - friends of ours didn't, their usually reliable car broke down in Normandy and the ensuing two days resulted in stress that they feel can only be fully appreciated in the book they are going to write about the whole thing.

Good luck! The roads are - IME - much better than UK and the motorways are rarely backed up or being dug up for little apparent reason. There are also regular pitstops just off the motorway (called Aire) - these often just have toilets, picnic tables, grassy areas to stretch your legs, but others are full blown service areas as well

Lilymaid · 04/05/2009 18:07

Follow Directs advice as to what to take. If you are travelling along autoroutes you will find them far superior to UK motorways and generally less busy. The worst part is getting back to the UK and having to drive along the dreadful British roads again.

Original poster
MaryMotherOfCheeses · 04/05/2009 19:27

Spare light bulbs! Yikes. DH says we've got silly expensive things which are £80 each - ie we never expect to replace them.

Who checks you've got them anyway?

Would someone mind running through the "priority to te right" thing?

OP posts:
BecauseImWorthIt · 04/05/2009 19:39

Their roundabouts are just like ours now - i.e. you arrive at a roundabout and stop, giving way to traffic that is approaching from your right.

Except obviously in France it will be traffic coming from your left.

The complication is that it used to be the other way round - so you drove straight to the roundabout and traffic coming from the left had to give way to you.

Regardless, the best advice is to approach the roundabout slowly and take it easy going round it, being aware (using your mirrors) of cars behind and on either side of you.

Also, although the motorways are very good, their sign posts aren't as good as ours, and you will often find that you don't have much notice for a turning off the motorway. It is a really good idea to have an up to date French road map and to plan your route, so that you know (roughly) when you will need to be turning off, so that you can ensure you're in the right hand lane.

BecauseImWorthIt · 04/05/2009 19:41

Oh, and another thing - the French have different speed limits for when it's raining. They will be marked on road signs, but make sure that you adhere to them. French police are very hot on this, and will escort you to the nearest cash point so that you can pay your fine!

Othersideofthechannel · 04/05/2009 19:49

It's 110 on the motorway when it's raining and 130 in fine weather.

KM that is.

Priority to the right applies unless the road coming from the right has a stop or giveway sign. On rural roads, crossroads are usually marked with a cross like an X if the priority is to the right.

Othersideofthechannel · 04/05/2009 19:50

You need to be able to prove you are the owner of the vehicle and you have insurance (green card) and a valid driving license whenever you are behind the wheel.

Gendarmes can do spot checks on your paperwork.

mackie9117 · 04/05/2009 19:55

My dad has been travelling in France for over 50 years and taught me a thing or two! I carry a box of completly random bulbs that are not relevant to our car at all. If ever I'm stopped I shall just wave these at the police man and hope for the best! Take it easy for the first half an hour , after that you'll wonder what you were worried about. It will all make sense.

moocowmrs · 04/05/2009 20:17

Just one thing use the motorways ! very quiet, tolls not expensive at all. Can usually get nice food at the "aire's" ( service stations ) the facilities are good and clean but vary from stop to stop some are full on service stations others are just a picnic ground and loo.
Oh just remembered as we have been caught out the un manned petrol stations both in towns and other places do not take uk cards, ie you can't pay at the pump.

Original poster
MaryMotherOfCheeses · 04/05/2009 21:34

Hmm. Thanks for all this. I've been doing a bit of googling and now have the following list of things to do / buy:

Warning Triangle
Hi-Vis jackets
Spare light bulbs
First Aid kit - Is there something specific we need in there?
Fire extinguisher
Headlamp deflector stickers
GB sticker
New road map
Both parts of driving licence for both of us
Copies of insurance documents, MOT, and log book.
Must phone insurance companies to check we're covered.
Ditto AA cover
Need to check what the pin number is for my credit card.
Travel insurance.
E111

Yikes.

OP posts:
stephla · 04/05/2009 21:58

Watch out for the toll roads - they look at your average speed along the stretch of road you have just been travelling. So you need to stick to the speed limits or stop for a coffee to make up the time.

BecauseImWorthIt · 04/05/2009 22:14

Buy a can to carry some petrol. Petrol stations are not as plentiful as we are used to, and as moocowmrs says, sometimes they only take French credit cards.

Best to head for the supermarkets to buy fuel rather than rely on the motorway services.

Directskiandsun · 05/05/2009 08:25

MaryMotherofCheeses - the E111 has now been replaced by a EHIC (a card instead of that foldy-up thing you had to take to the post office). You can apply online and it's delivered to you, but be aware they expire after 3 years, so even if you have one now, check the expiry date!

JeffVadar · 05/05/2009 10:14

The websites for both the AA and Michelin have quite good route planners. You put in your starting point and destination and you can print out a complete set of directions. You can specify things like 'avoid motorways' etc and if it's a long trip it will recommend places to stop overnight.

I also really recommend extending your AA breakdown cover as well. I think it costs about £40, but worth it!

Michelin

AA

Tortington · 05/05/2009 10:15

remember to look LEFT at roundabouts, i have come a cropper a couple of times

BonsoirAnna · 05/05/2009 10:17

The place de l'Etoile in Paris does not adhere to the usual roundabout rules. Just avoid it.

Original poster
MaryMotherOfCheeses · 05/05/2009 19:56

No intention whatsoever of driving into Paris. I'd rather poke myself in the eye with a croissant

EHIC. That's the one. Got one somewhere...

It's not cheap you know. £50 for breakdown cover, plus £40 to extend car insurance.

OP posts:
floradora · 09/05/2009 14:37

You can buy a spare lightbulb kit on the ferry - not very expensive at all. I agree with Mackie, after a slowish and careful first half hour you'll be fine. I would say though that overtaking etiquette on motorways is abit different in France as the done thing is to drive up quite close behind you then pull out a bit more sharply, rather than a slow gradual overtake as we do in Uk - it's not agressive driving, just a different style! And people tend to continue to indicate whilst overtaking then pull straight back in once they're past the car tehy want to overtake. Is that way to detailed and boring? I think I might be a driving nerd

ChippyMinton · 09/05/2009 15:06

Halfords do a lightbulb kit.

That's good advice about overtaking style, as you will notice it straight away.

My main advice, as someone who gets right and left confused, is to chant this mantra when pulling away or making a turn:

'DRIVE IN THE GUTTER' ie the driver's side should be closest to the side of the road, rather than in the centre of the road.

jkklpu · 09/05/2009 15:09

When you're following signs on roads other than motorways ("autoroutes"), go straight on if there is no sign at a particular junction. Until you learn this, you always get lost very close to your destination.

Wordsmith · 09/05/2009 15:14

The roads are much better than here. The motorways are clearer and the surfaces seemed smoother (or maybe our Citroen just liked being 'home').

Didn't know anything about the triangles and jackets before we went. Found out on the ferry. You can buy everything on there. Don't think all of that listed is essential - the triangle, deflectors and hi-vis jackets are. (or were last year - the law changes on this from time to time.)

littlerach · 09/05/2009 15:32

Mootorways are fab.
Tolls reasonable.
Aires are v good.
Petrol stations aren't always open and don't always take British cards

Ewe · 09/05/2009 15:43

Just a quick question about needing proof that you are the owner of the car... what if you're not the owner of the car?

We are going to France in August and borrowing my Mum's car that we are fully insured on etc - will this be ok? This all sounds very complicated.

Othersideofthechannel · 10/05/2009 16:01

Ewe, don't worry. I think the idea is that if you have the ownership papers with you (even if they are not in your name)it is highly unlikely that you have stolen the car.

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