New machines on the Peages

[(RIP) Shenzi]

First of all to remind everyone, a peage is a toll booth, the road is called an autoroute.
New machines have been fitted in some peages and I think it will only be a matter of time before they all have them. These are much better for bikes and hopefully will reduce the queues we have had to suffer in the past.
The lanes with these new machines generally show a green arrow above as the manual lanes do. To recognise them look for a tall blue machine in place of the manned kiosk. These new machines differentiate between bikes, cars and trucks and accept payment in cash or by cards.

 

[Ogmios]

Thats good to know.

Thanks for that.

 

[Wapping]

Excellent heads up...

Many thanks.

 

[Taff]

New machines have been fitted in some peages ... These are much better for bikes and hopefully will reduce the queues we have had to suffer in the past.

I really don't mean this to sound funny, but why are they much better for bikes?

 

[Wapping]

I really don't mean this to sound funny, but why are they much better for bikes?

With the existing card readers bikes are charged the same as cars, which roughly doubles (at least) the cost of the journey.

To pay the right charge therefore means a queue for the manned booths, or paying the extra.

The new smart machines detect it's a bike and reduces the charge, sppeding progress.

 

[foolonastrom]

Top Tip:

Dont put the toll card anywhere near a strong magnet (such as a tank bag magnet) . This will wipe the magentic stripe on the card rendering it unreadable. you will have to wait for a bloke to come and help.

Top Tip 2:

Avoid the Payage, and get on the D roads, much more fun (although perhaps not through any large french city)

 

[(RIP) Shenzi]

Top Tip:
Avoid the Payage, and get on the D roads, much more fun (although perhaps not through any large french city)

Not a very good tip at all until you get into the area of your choice. The speed limit on route nationales, now quite rigorously enforced, is 90kph 56mph. Figure how long it will take you to get anywhere then get back on the autoroute!

 

[Taff]

With the existing card readers bikes are charged the same as cars, which roughly doubles (at least) the cost of the journey.
To pay the right charge therefore means a queue for the manned booths, or paying the extra. The new smart machines detect it's a bike and reduces the charge, speeding progress.

Thank you sir - a model answer.

 

[Lord Snooty]

Thanks for posting that Bob.

 

[Coolcarbon]

Danke Bob.....

 

[kenseaton]

Not quite sure that the peage machines always recognise a bike... I got stuck in a peage (the machine wasn't keen on my card) and had to paddle back round to the manned booth where the chap charged half what the machine wanted.

And in one case the toll ticket came out above my head - obviously intended for truckers. I made sure that I paid that one at a manned peage just in case!

One tip I did find for GSers is that the peage ticket sits securely under the petrol tank flap even up to 100+ speeds. Much easier to stash away before the barrier comes down...

Ken

 

[(RIP) Shenzi]

Not quite sure that the peage machines always recognise a bike... I got stuck in a peage (the machine wasn't keen on my card) and had to paddle back round to the manned booth where the chap charged half what the machine wanted.

Ken

Maybe you should read my first post again Ken, pay particular attention to the word 'new'

 

[Deleted account 210609001]

I came through one of these this year. Having always queued for the manned booth to avoid the car fees, I was flummoxed to find the manned booth signs had directed to me to one of these machines. Oh my God, a new experience - what should I do?

I assumed it was going to charge me for a car, so pressed the button and waited for a response so I could protest in my schoolboy French. ("Good day to you, sir. It would seem that your confounded machine has mistaken my motocycle for a car. As you will see from your closed circuit video, I am indeed riding a two-wheeled powered vehicle. I wonder if you'd mind making the appropriate adjustment via your wireless uplink/downlink in order that I might pay the reduced fee. Oh, and I don't recall my Grandfather talking about having to stop repeatedly in order to pay tolls when he landed at Normandy to rid your country of the scourge of Nazism.")

Anyway, although it said "Classe 5" I didn't know what this meant. Turns out Classe 5 is a bike, so all was well.

(I went through a similar toll booth in Italy the previous year, which recognised the bike and said "moto" with a little picture of a bike on it. Much better for Little Englanders like me.)

Any idea how they recognise them as bikes? Purely weight, or something more complicated?

As for speed limit enforcement, I noticed loads more speed traps on the N-roads this year, as well as a couple on the autoroute near the Channel ports. It seems like the days of free speed on empty roads in France are over - perhaps because so many people saw it as free speed. I'm guilty as charged, I'm afraid.

Didn't see any police on the D-roads, though.

 

[kenseaton]

Sorry Shenzi, I read your post and used the self-same machines as in your picture... and still had a problem.

I was in France in the middle of September and those machines were at all the main points.

The places that didn't have the new machines were mostly in the north or when I headed away from the big road to get some bends in... round about Troyes and Avallon and Valence.

Ken

 

[(RIP) Shenzi]

Bloody odd about these machines Ken, they had them on the big peage south of Montpellier but yesterday when I went through they had all gone Not that I minded, I love sitting around in the pissing rain!

 

[Ash]

Not a very good tip at all until you get into the area of your choice. The speed limit on route nationales, now quite rigorously enforced, is 90kph 56mph. Figure how long it will take you to get anywhere then get back on the autoroute!

and don't forget they have fuel on auto routes especially on Sundays [dimanche]

 

[luckylucian]

Didn't the French President promise to curb the speeding in France.

In previous 20 years of visiting never saw French Police monitoring speeding on Autoroutes, plenty of checks on cars etc as they left toll booths

Last trip saw three speedtraps between Calais and Reims!

Never mind, think of the better fuel economy

 

[(RIP) Shenzi]

Didn't the French President promise to curb the speeding in France.

Yes he did when he was the Police minister. No question that he has changed things dramatically and really cut the number of road fatalities. This surprised me as I didn't think enforcing speed limits would have such an effect. Now if they get as serious with breathalysers that will make another big difference.