New French Driving regs - 2011

[X5Sport]

This may be of interest to those who plan to drive on Le Continent, and especially France...

[size=99px]Tougher penalties to cut road deaths May 12, 2011[/size]

TOUGHER road safety measures are being introduced to cut road deaths and are aimed at speeding motorists, drink drivers and motorcyclists.

In all, 18 measures are being introduced. They include:
• A ban on radar detectors
• The end of signs giving advance warning of speedtraps (and the published maps of speedtrap sites)
• Speeding at more than 50kph above the limit is punishable with jail
• More points to be taken off the licence for drink driving
• A heavier penalty for mobile phone use and for using DVDs or computer screens while driving
• Motorcycle and scooter riders must wear reflective or high-visibility jackets
• Two-wheeler numberplates to be made larger.

The measures follow four months of increasing numbers of deaths on the roads with 331 dead in January (up from 273 in 2010), 273 in February (254), 308 in March (300) and 355 in April (296).

Reducing road deaths was a major plank in President Sarkozy’s election campaign in 2007 and the interior ministry said that road safety improvements had saved 23,000 lives since 2002 when more than 9,000 were dying each year.

Interior Minister Claude Guéant said the new measures would be introduced before September.

Radar detectors will be banned with importers and manufacturers facing up to two years in prison and a €30,000 fine while anyone with such equipment in a vehicle will face a class 5 contravention and is liable to a €1,500 fine and the loss of six points.

Warning signs for radars – which at present are fitted within 400m of older radars and up to 2km from new installations – will be taken down and drivers will not be alerted to the presence of speed traps. Maps publicising the placement of radars and speed controls will no longer be published. Plans have already been announced for an extra 1,000 speed camera sites across France.

Drivers who speed at more than 50kph above the set limit will, from the first offence, be liable to three months’ prison, a €3,750 fine and six points from their licence. In 2010 there were 25,046 such offences.

Drink drivers face losing eight points from their licence rather than the present six if their blood/alcohol limit is higher than 0.8g per litre. Nurses will now be allowed to carry out the tests, rather than only doctors. In all, 30% of road accidents involve someone whose alcohol level is above the limits.

An alcohol tester is to be developed to stop drivers over the limit driving a vehicle with more than nine seats.

Users of two-wheeler of more than 125cc face having to wear jackets with reflective bands or high-visibility jackets to make them easier to see if they fall off their machines. Non-use will mean the loss of two points from the licence

Motorcycle numberplates will be made larger so they can be traced more easily for speed offences. New plates will be 275x200 mm and will be fitted to new or newly-registered vehicles. Any numberplate that does not conform to regulations (car or motorcycle) will face a €135 fine.

Riders who have not ridden for five years will face an automatic retest.

Driving while using a mobile phone will cost a €135 fine and three points off the licence. Phone use is implicated in one in 10 accidents and there were 506,000 such offences in 2010.

Driving while watching a DVD or computer screen will become a class 5 offence instead of class 4; and will mean a €1,500 fine instead of €135. Three points will be lost, instead of two. This measure is aimed mainly at lorry drivers who drive while watching a video.

Driving on the hard shoulder will result in an increased penalty of €135. In 2009, 225 people died on Autoroutes, including 26 on the hard shoulder. Eight of them were pedestrians.

Noise bands will also be fitted to hard shoulders to stop drivers from falling asleep.

Now let's wait and see what the UK does......

[gmc15]

Thanks for that, we are going over there this summer for a couple of weeks

[Raj]

Interesting info. Thanks for that as a few friends are doing the Ring again this year.

[Denis O]

I thought the ban on radar detectors or speed camera databases was already in operation. Neither my OEM or Tom Tom sat nav have speed cameras for France. Get to Italy or Germany and the Tom Tom finds it's bong though.

[X5Sport]

The difference now is that it is not the users only, but the manufacturers and importers who can be prosecuted. Previoulsy I believe it was only the 'use', or having 'available for use' that was the offende. The UK has a similar line for non-GPS based systems. We don't prosecute the manufacturers or suppliers as having the kit in a box is not an offence. Having it 'available' whether running or not, in a vehicle is an offence under Section 1 of the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949, as Amended. The courts used to decide whether the item was 'available', but usually it meant power was laid in and the unit connected, or could be within a couple of minutes.....

And yes I used to do that for a living once.............in a previous and occasionally hairy existence.

[AW8]

In UK since a ruling in '98 non GPS detectors are legal if they don't have jamming, (transmission), ability. S1(1) as mentioned superseded by Reg's which exempt detectors from the need for licences. Road Safety Act 2006 would make non GPS detectors illegal, though I dont believe it's live yet.

Not trying to be clever & I stand to be corrected

[X5Sport]

We never used to prosecute in any event as for us there was no point, but yes Sect 5 which covered the interception was what the Police did use. I didn't know about the '98 ruling - probably coz we had much better targets to chase and as far as I know the 2005 Regs are not yet in force

[X5Sport]

We never used to prosecute in any event as for us there was no point, but yes Sect 5(B)(i) which covered the interception of communications was what the Police did use. I didn't know about the '98 ruling - probably coz we had much better targets to chase so it didn't appear on our SOP, and as far as I know the 2006 Regs are not yet in force. It is to be hoped that they never are as I have a Road Angel in each car.

I suspect that these days radar detectors are a slowly dying technology except on certain fixed camera systems. Laser Jammers, sorry Garage Door Remote Controls, are a definite no-no as the current laser systems tell the operator they are being jammed. I have no idea how effective such devices are anyway because it must depend upon the jammer actually working on the same IR wavelength as the emitter. Whether all the Police devices run in the same part of the IR Spectrum I don't know.

[pvr]

Is that the road angel that also updates "mobile" units by other road users?

The non retified road act (cant remember the year) was going to ban any unit which had as a function, or side effect, that it was jamming a police laser gun.

Remember that this is France though, they have had a very tough limit on drink driving already and they are the heaviest drinkers in Europe so I doubt anything drastic will happen here.

[pvr]

[quote=""X5Sport""]W Whether all the Police devices run in the same part of the IR Spectrum I don't know.[/quote]

Yes, 904 Nm, public wavelength which has always mystified me. Why not use a protected wavelength and make it illegal for anyone else to use it, problem solved.

The proper garage openers actually provide a non reading, which is common on the gun anyway. I tested a LTI 2020 a few years back and I got a lot of non readings on anything as the slightest shake was enough to get a non reading.

[X5Sport]

[quote=""pvr""]Is that the road angel that also updates "mobile" units by other road users? .[/quote]

Yessir. But that assumes you can find the units remote contol and remember which buttons to push.........

[pvr]

hmm, I do like that feature. I am still running an Origin which is just GPS based.

[dubbers]

[quote=""X5Sport""]
• The end of signs giving advance warning of speedtraps (and the published maps of speedtrap sites) ..[/quote]

Very useful info - thanks for this Richard - The Limousin in my experience has always had lots of patrols and static speed cameras, perhaps its the French approach to job creation. Wonder if it'll stop the other French drivers gesticulating as is their way to alert oncoming drivers of the Gendarmes?