Riding in Europe

[Mabels Old Man]

I told her not to worry her bike's left hand drive after all

[davsato]

riding on the right is pretty simple, most of europes road signs and rules of the road are now standardised so things just look more or less the same. most accidents happen when you get home, you feel all relaxed and happy to be home and lose a bit of concentration and forget youre back on the right(left!) side of the road. be careful at junctions, especially when they are deserted because its easy to go from the right hand side to riding on the left by mistake.

the story about timing between toll booths has been around for ages, bit of an old wives tale because the tickets just happen to have the time on them. i suppose they could do it if they wanted to but officially they have to actually catch you at it, same as here. if you are worried about it have a break between booths, there are loads of services on french and spanish autoroutes.
there are some speed cameras about, but you would have to be an idiot to get caught because there are so many warnings and even distance signs to the cameras, they are proper safety cameras, over windy bridges, outside schools etc. much more common in spain(and far more effective) are speed controlled traffic lights, if you come into a village a bit hot it puts a red light in front of you and stops you. you soon figure out you make better time by staying under the limit.

[Mervinh]

Dave
i can tell ya one thing they are doing, cos i have seen it first hand, is hiding behind the toll booths with cameras/speed guns, and nicking you for not slowing to the marked speed limits approaching the booths
merv

[Darkenbad]

Jay, MoM and myself are going to be taking a little trip from the UK (Portsmouth to Caen) through France and then down into Spain (Andulucia) in August.

Now I have never driven or ridden anywhere other than the UK so could do with some do's, don'ts and rules of the road that kind of stuff


Cheers guys

If you find yourself drifting towards Switzerland, Austria or Slovenia - its worth noting you will need Carnet to use the motorways - big fine if you get caught without one.

European break down cover give peace of mind.

Have a nice one.

[BobA]

My only Euro tips are simple ones...

Make sure you fill your tank before night. French 24 hour stations are usually unmanned and the pump card readers don't always accept UK credit/debit cards. Know your tank range as well.

If you are using toll roads, always put your ticket and toll money in the same, easy to remember/get to, pocket, or get a tank bag.

Carry a can of tyre mousse or slime.

Leaving a petrol station or junction onto a deserted road MIGHT cause you to look the wrong way and head to the left side of the road. BE CAREFUL

France and Spain are big countries, take regular espresso/croissant breaks with your fuel stops.

French roads are perfect, even in the countryside, however Spanish ones leave a lot to be desired in some rural places, so watch out for potholes and gravel on tighter corners.

French bikers (rather sensibly) give nice biker waves with their leg, so get used to them and say hello back!




Bob

[Dee Duble Yuh]

Some advice in the Wiki about preparing forthe trip here:
http://www.xrv.org.uk/wiki/index.php...for_a_big_trip

[StumpyFingers]

Just got back from Normandy.
The roads are in better condition that over here.
Weather was good. the speeds are well marked and are for KPH 50 in towns 70 outside 90 in places and 110 on dual carriage ways.
There are some places around schools where the speed is 20 KPH.
Driving on the right hand side and going around roundabouts the wrong way took a lot of concentration, but I soon got used to it and it was great.

[moon]

if you are on the autoroute they will stop you and check your time on to the route against your entry ticket and know if you have been going too fast,

Urbain legend. The police are not allowed to use times marked on a péage ticket as a basis for a fine or prosecution for speeding.

oh and they hide behind pieces of roadside furniture/under bridges etc with speed cameras that look just like binoculars

But they DO hide behind anything they can find so's you don't see them. They no longer need to stop you in order to prosecute for speeding. (dunno how that would work for a UK plate though).

they may only have had bmw,s in the past but now are using some slightly faster bikes, dont try to outrun a french bike cop cos while you are trying to corner with your knee sliders on the floor he will pass you sitting bolt upright, on the outside,

I concur & confirm. Seen it done.

Hi Sharribee
When in France on the smaller roads look out for the RED TRIANGLES with a BLACK X the traffic joining has RIGHT of WAY

this sign (like a cross roads sign with the cross fallen on it's side) actually means that the next junction is "priorité a droit" (priority to the right) so even if it's a dirt track you must give way to any vehicle to your right. The priority to the right rule also applies in towns or villages if there's a junction with no road markings, then give way to the right.

Dave
i can tell ya one thing they are doing, cos i have seen it first hand, is hiding behind the toll booths with cameras/speed guns, and nicking you for not slowing to the marked speed limits approaching the booths
merv

Yup.

Make sure you fill your tank before night. French 24 hour stations are usually unmanned and the pump card readers don't always accept UK credit/debit cards. Know your tank range as well.

If you are using toll roads, always put your ticket and toll money in the same, easy to remember/get to, pocket, or get a tank bag.

i'd add to that, always go through a MANNED booth, otherwise you'll pay the same rate as a car...

Leaving a petrol station or junction onto a deserted road MIGHT cause you to look the wrong way and head to the left side of the road. BE CAREFUL

been there done that

France and Spain are big countries, take regular espresso/croissant breaks with your fuel stops.

good advice. +, if you're on the autoroute, it can get VERY monotonous, especially with the lack of traffic on some sections.

French bikers (rather sensibly) give nice biker waves with their leg, so get used to them and say hello back!

Usually with their right leg as they overtake, if you pass going opposite ways they'll give a Victory "V" as a biker salute.

one other word of advice about the autoroute, if the traffic gets dense & starts slowing down, the cars will often hugthe side to let a bike through, on a 2 lane bit the inside cars will hug the inside & the outside cars (left lane) will hug the outside to let you up the middle, on a three lane section a bike will usually ride up between the center & outside lanes. This is standard practice though the police are cracking down on lane splitting which is "tolerated" rather than legal.

[Sharribee]

You lot are the best, I know you'd be able to help.

Anything else that springs to mind just keep it coming

[StumpyFingers]

They also have A yellow diamond with a white and black lined surround, this means you are one a Priority route, have right of way.