KIRKY Posted 7 January , 2012 Share Posted 7 January , 2012 Anyone heard about this http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/autoexpressnews/276232/breath_tests_made_easy.html coming into force in the Spring according to this article you will need a breath test kit to check alcohol levels!! Tony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Lees Posted 7 January , 2012 Share Posted 7 January , 2012 Sounds like a mixture of poor journalism and opportunist marketing to me. The writer doesn't seem to know anything about the law. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auchonvillerssomme Posted 7 January , 2012 Share Posted 7 January , 2012 Wait and see what the exact law will be, Sarkozy did make an announcement that he supported the proposal, but all the web sites appear to give exactly the same story in English and point the same make of breathalyzer. It doesn't seem well thought out, whats the point to start with? and I have checked the French sites for info but can't find anything more except for a first offence it will only be a 17 euro fine. Can anyone find the exact details from any official French site I'm missing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
healdav Posted 7 January , 2012 Share Posted 7 January , 2012 I've seen this story for months. No idea what it means and no one else seems to know either. Wait and see. One version has a breathalyser fitted to the ignition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Lees Posted 7 January , 2012 Share Posted 7 January , 2012 I wonder if we'll have to breath test ourselves and report to the nearest police station if we believe we might have committed an offence. We could also complete the necessary documentation, get it stamped and proceed directly to the court and conduct the case for the prosecution. Think of the savings in admin costs and the reduction in bureaucracy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 7 January , 2012 Share Posted 7 January , 2012 I've seen this story for months. No idea what it means and no one else seems to know either. Wait and see. One version has a breathalyser fitted to the ignition. Maybe its targeted to the Brits only for some reason? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auchonvillerssomme Posted 7 January , 2012 Share Posted 7 January , 2012 It was only announced on the 30th November 2011, so not much planning taking place if it is going to happen in the spring. Maybe its targeted to the Brits only for some reason? I've always suspected Nicolas had it in for me personally, damn his proposals on sewage! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Bennitt Posted 7 January , 2012 Share Posted 7 January , 2012 This was in a speech by Sarkozy on November 30, when he proposed that every driver should be obliged to carry a breath tester in the car, with an €11 fine if you're caught without one. The idea seems to be that you use it if you feel you've drunk too much, but experts are sceptical about the accuracy of such devices. Presumably if you're caught drink driving after failing to use the device it would weight against you. No date on when it might happen, both the spring and September this year have been mentioned. Penalties for using a hand-held phone at the wheel, watching a movie while driving and having a speed trap detector aboard have also been toughened. cheers Martin B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veklee Posted 8 January , 2012 Share Posted 8 January , 2012 This was in a speech by Sarkozy on November 30, when he proposed that every driver should be obliged to carry a breath tester in the car, with an €11 fine if you're caught without one. The idea seems to be that you use it if you feel you've drunk too much, but experts are sceptical about the accuracy of such devices. Presumably if you're caught drink driving after failing to use the device it would weight against you. No date on when it might happen, both the spring and September this year have been mentioned. Penalties for using a hand-held phone at the wheel, watching a movie while driving and having a speed trap detector aboard have also been toughened. cheers Martin B hi martin pity they didnt mention doing your makeup (female i hope ) reading a book, parking on roundabouts, zebra crossings and any other junction near the bakers.parking in gaps 2 foot smaller than your car , the great law of giving way to traffic on your right when its a blind corner or your on a main road and the farm track is on the right,the cars in paris with battle scars etc ,other than these what a pleasure it is to drive on the roads of paris cheers barry (hope your well) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hedley Malloch Posted 8 January , 2012 Share Posted 8 January , 2012 Just regard it as another piece of kit to take with you along with your warning triangle, spare bulbs, fluorescent yellow jacket and headlight masking tape. We do carry all these with us when we visit the battlefields - don't we? €11 isn't much of a fine. What might be a greater inconvenience is being stopped by the police on the A26 at 02h00, not having the ready cash with you and being hauled off by them to the nearest ATM to pay your fine. And then finding your card is not accepted ... . Or, when rummaging through your boot, the police find you don't have any of the other aforementioned items of kit. Their absence attracts much heavier penalties. Let's be fair to Sarkozy, the road safety measures he has introduced (tougher rules on drink-drving, speeding, traffic cameras) have had led to a much needed improvement in France's road safety figures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Bennitt Posted 8 January , 2012 Share Posted 8 January , 2012 Just regard it as another piece of kit to take with you along with your warning triangle, spare bulbs, fluorescent yellow jacket and headlight masking tape. We do carry all these with us when we visit the battlefields - don't we? Of course, apart from the masking tape. The light bulbs are usually totally pointless these days, unless you've got a fairly elderly car, as modern headlight design makes it impossible to change them at the roadside. cheers Martin B (happy new year barry -- I agree with all of that) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest exuser1 Posted 8 January , 2012 Share Posted 8 January , 2012 With all the other pressures the little twit is under you would have thought his sights would have been on something more than driveing with a breath tester ,i am convinced here that i am allways toweing a French car behind me ,on a 6 inch bit of rope ,tractors driven by 8 year olds (i know his dad ) on main roads, if he wants to save lives get rid of priority on the right . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Broomfield Posted 8 January , 2012 Share Posted 8 January , 2012 Pleased to see parking on roundabouts is not allowed. I suppose there's no chance that French drivers will start indicating, obeying lane discipline and not bimbling on roundabouts in the near future? No. I thought not ... Of all the stupid interventions of the past 20 years, the man who introduced French road planners to roundabouts takes the biscuit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auchonvillerssomme Posted 8 January , 2012 Share Posted 8 January , 2012 Does anyone seriously believe there is any difference in the standards of drivers in France and the UK? I think the biggest difference is how long the emergency services will take to get to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
centurion Posted 8 January , 2012 Share Posted 8 January , 2012 Pleased to see parking on roundabouts is not allowed. In Cairo it certainly used to be - if your son was a police inspector as one business associate used to explain (it also covered double parking and all other traffic offences) Wonder if its changed there after recent events - probably not. After experiencing driving in the ME and the Sub Content I'd just shrug my shoulders at the pint sized president's tinkering. A minor inconvenience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keithfazzani Posted 8 January , 2012 Share Posted 8 January , 2012 Pleased to see parking on roundabouts is not allowed. I suppose there's no chance that French drivers will start indicating, obeying lane discipline and not bimbling on roundabouts in the near future? No. I thought not ... Of all the stupid interventions of the past 20 years, the man who introduced French road planners to roundabouts takes the biscuit. Are we talking from personal memory Broomers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
healdav Posted 8 January , 2012 Share Posted 8 January , 2012 Just regard it as another piece of kit to take with you along with your warning triangle, spare bulbs, fluorescent yellow jacket and headlight masking tape. We do carry all these with us when we visit the battlefields - don't we? €11 isn't much of a fine. What might be a greater inconvenience is being stopped by the police on the A26 at 02h00, not having the ready cash with you and being hauled off by them to the nearest ATM to pay your fine. And then finding your card is not accepted ... . Or, when rummaging through your boot, the police find you don't have any of the other aforementioned items of kit. Their absence attracts much heavier penalties. Let's be fair to Sarkozy, the road safety measures he has introduced (tougher rules on drink-drving, speeding, traffic cameras) have had led to a much needed improvement in France's road safety figures. If he really wanted to cut down on road accidents he would ban 2 wheelers in the Provence. Just 2% of all road users are 2 wheelers in France as a whole, and they are involved in 26% of all accidents (mostly in the Provence). "Involved" means knocked off or killed. It does not include the idiots who bang the side of your car because you are in front of them and not driving into the ditch to let them get fast (and exceed the speed limit) - got the dents. Nor does it include the idiot who deliberately drove into the side of my car because I was trying to avoid a lorry that was shedding his load and prevented (accidentally) him getting past and being flattened. They have a club called "Angry Motorcyclists" and they have votes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 8 January , 2012 Share Posted 8 January , 2012 Does anyone seriously believe there is any difference in the standards of drivers in France and the UK? I think the biggest difference is how long the emergency services will take to get to you. I believe there is a big difference - the Brits drive on the wrong side of the road. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auchonvillerssomme Posted 8 January , 2012 Share Posted 8 January , 2012 I believe there is a big difference - the Brits drive on the wrong side of the road. You may have something there, in all the years I have driven on the continent I have probably had to seriously think only about twice what side of the road I'm on, when I get back in the UK it doesn't feel right and I often have to remind myself especially if I haven't seen another car for some time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Lees Posted 8 January , 2012 Share Posted 8 January , 2012 If the producers of "Grumpy Old Men" saw this thread they would surely see another series in the offing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce Posted 8 January , 2012 Share Posted 8 January , 2012 Having watched the entire series of Grumpy Old Men, I found myself in agreement with all of it. I then went on to watch Grumpy Old Women and agreed with most of that too.....with the exception of their apparent problems of the menopause (no experience of that!) It just seems that nowadays, there is just so much more about which to be grumpy. (Had to retype that....I almost ended a sentence with a preposition!) Bruce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 9 January , 2012 Share Posted 9 January , 2012 All that you have heard is true. One new one though.r/h drivecars will be illegal in france from the 13th feb,this year. It's true Our postman/woman(not sure yet) told me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auchonvillerssomme Posted 9 January , 2012 Share Posted 9 January , 2012 Our postman/woman(not sure yet) told me. You can't even rely on the adams apple check these days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest exuser1 Posted 9 January , 2012 Share Posted 9 January , 2012 They dont drive on the wrong side of the road here ,just down the middle ? what should be banned are those washing machines with engines that do 30 mph ,or so your banned so you can have one of those ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marilyne Posted 9 January , 2012 Share Posted 9 January , 2012 Hi, I just informed myself by the responsible of the French motor pool here on base, and he CONFIRMS that those devices will be mandatory from spring on ... so it's not a joke !! Marilyne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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