Watch your speed in France.

[Devon]

Watch your speed in France and treat the French plod with respect:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/safety/3190922/Dont-mess-with-the-French-police.html

 

[Gundog]

Oh fuk.....

 

[Devon]

Oh fuk.....

Hardly ever seen a traffic cop until a couple of years ago but they seem to be getting all over the place now

 

[Aidan1150]

The fines are probably even higher now as that article was published in October last year.

 

[Arsey]

Sounds like I got off lightly in May then.

 

[Monsieur]

Food for thought - I'm off to France in 2 weeks with my bike and then again with the family car 2 weeks after that...I'll take good care to watch my speed.
I like the 'judge dread' quote - What I say is the truth. It is up to you to prove I lied. I don't need a photograph of you speeding.

Couple of questions though...
- do I need a hiviz vest whilst on the bike if I then break down? I know I need one in the car and also a triangle but what about on my bike?
- also, If I did get stopped for speeding how is the fine paid? Is it just cash or do they carry mastercard card readers with them?

 

[Hustler]

....
Couple of questions though...
- do I need a hiviz vest whilst on the bike if I then break down? I know I need one in the car and also a triangle but what about on my bike?
- also, If I did get stopped for speeding how is the fine paid? Is it just cash or do they carry mastercard card readers with them?

No to the vest and the triangle on the bike, and cash.

 

[patzx12]

France is OK on a bike, carry some spare cash and dont go 50km over the limit.
Read the traffic let a fast car past and use it as a "front door".
An up to date set of maps on the Garmin.
you can cruise at 160 - 170 without any hassle on the Peage.
If you speed in unsuitable places or through peoples town you deserve to get done.
By the way Route Napolion is covered in cops there are a lot of better roads that are lighly policed.

 

[Arsey]

France is OK on a bike, carry some spare cash and dont go 50km over the limit.
Read the traffic let a fast car past and use it as a "front door".
An up to date set of maps on the Garmin.
you can cruise at 160 - 170 without any hassle on the Peage.
If you speed in unsuitable places or through peoples town you deserve to get done.
By the way Route Napolion is covered in cops there are a lot of better roads that are lighly policed.

Don't entirely agree.

The trigger is 40kmh over the limit.

Get caught above this and you lose your licence and get fined.


You must have been unlucky on the Route Napoleon-I've done it twice in last 12 months and don't think I saw a single cop on either visit.

 

[(RIP) orbit]

Entering a village i.e a village name sign with a red border you normaly go from 90-70-50 kph, just got done by two "flicks" hiding behind a bush for 74 in the 70 zone as I was coasting down to the 50 result 68 euros - one point .

They do not ware HI vis jackets but blue short sleve shirts

 

[(RIP) Kaister]

how things change

back in 1981 as a young and nieve teenager, a couple of us toured / raced around france for 3 weeks.

We took tents,camped by the side of the road exceeded the speed limit with impunity and DIDNT WEAR HELMETS !! at all, except when it rained - once or twice maybe

we honestly believed that helmets weren't compulsory - it turned out that they weren't compulsory for mopeds in towns( or something like that ?)

never so much as saw a cop and never thought anything about it.

 

[patzx12]

And many a 150mph + on the Périphérique in my ZX12R days

 

[Riders Rest]

Bit of bad luck Orbit, not much police traffic round here or the routes I ride though that doesn;t mean they are not there...

I think you need only apply common sense slow down for villages and ride the non National routes and you will be relativelyt left in peace. I find that 14:00 (after lunch - breth testing local) and 16:30 (the start of the guzomie period as workes start making their way home) are the most police infested times around the Limousin and Auvergne.

I have found the Gendarme to be polite and repectful so have always treated them the same. Remember they are also military so serve in Iraq, Lebenon etc as well as police the streets.

Ride safe and have fun.

 

[(RIP) orbit]

Bit of bad luck Orbit, not much police traffic round here

Lots of new speed cameras going up in the Limousin now, guess the locals don't like them as the one just up the road from us has had black paint sprayed over the lense and a club hammer taken to it 3 times in 4 weeks now

 

[Deleted account LB]

France is OK on a bike, carry some spare cash and dont go 50km over the limit.
Read the traffic let a fast car past and use it as a "front door".
An up to date set of maps on the Garmin.
you can cruise at 160 - 170 without any hassle on the Peage.
If you speed in unsuitable places or through peoples town you deserve to get done..

50 km over limit - er not any more - you will be binned over 40 and fined upto that point anyway - speedin is speedin

Cruise at 160 - 170 km - not with a copper on your arse - you will get done - I know !!

Oh and dont go to France when theres a bike meet on and expect to get away with high speed - they rub there hands together and make sure they are wearing there jackets with the biggest pocketsready for you to fill em up

 

[(RIP) orbit]

You just can´t win

A few weeks on from my previous post re getting done for being 74 in a 70 zone I was happily doing 85 on a 90 road , nice sunny day and I was in no hurry to get anywhere in particular when I spied ahead of me a Gendarmerie Van, we kept the same speed and distance between us for about 3 kms when the van speeded up and disappeared , on rounding the next bend he was parked up and standing in the road and waiving me in , after being asked to produce all my papers , breath tested and checked on the " in van" computer system I was told in perfect English "all was ok " and wished " good day " I asked why they had stopped me in the first place and was told " I appeared to be driving very slowly on my motorcycle "

 

[Glyno]

Be warned !!


They dont wear hi viz coats or vests ....just there normal Gendarme blue.They can be very difficult to spot if you´re trappin on a bit

 

[Steptoe]

and DIDNT WEAR HELMETS !! at all, except when it rained - once or twice maybe

we honestly believed that helmets weren't compulsory - it turned out that they weren't compulsory for mopeds in towns( or something like that ?)

never so much as saw a cop and never thought anything about it.

A few of us did the same thing back in 1984 - rode all along the coast road from Port Grimaud to Nice with out helmets. Bloody awful, flies, knotted hair and headaches.

 

[Wapping]

A few of us did the same thing back in 1984 - rode all along the coast road from Port Grimaud to Nice with out helmets. Bloody awful, flies, knotted hair and headaches.

Hair.... I remember hair....

 

[ricardo]

Be warned !!


They dont wear hi viz coats or vests ....just there normal Gendarme blue.They can be very difficult to spot if you´re trappin on a bit

Or even full camouflage gear and stand halfway up the grass embankments!