Driving In France: Round-Points, White Lines, and Lead Feet

Speed Camera

I’ve driven in more than 20 different countries around the world on five different continents and have learned that there are plenty of differences in driving habits and laws, France is no exception.  There are many things to like about driving in France and some things that I’m still scratching my head wondering why.  Here are a few things that I have observed.

The feisty French drive with a real sense of urgency.   People seem to accelerate harder when entering onto highways, even older people who tend to be slower drivers are still speed racers.  Prior to the arrival of the sub-freezing temperatures, I rode my father-in-law’s Goldwing quite frequently, a six cylinder beast with plenty of go-go.  I was passed on several occasions by cars that were following behind me as I entered onto the highway as if to say get out of the way slow poke.  Granted, it was not my motorcycle and I was still adjusting to the new environment so maybe I have some justification, but even so, the other cars were accelerating peddle to the metal.  Knowing how good my French wife cooks, maybe they were rushing home for dinner.      

Once you get off of the interstate and onto the rural roads, it is a real pleasure to drive in France.  The roads are narrow and wind through a patchwork of fields and picturesque villages.  The best part is navigating the round points which I think are fun and practical as they replace traffic lights and stop signs in rural areas where there is less traffic.  That doesn’t mean that you never stop at an intersection, just a lot less with round points.  How many times have you waited at a stop light when there was no traffic coming the other way or stopped at a 4-way stop sign even when no one else was approaching at the same time?  It also saves gas, as much as 10 percent, because you just decelerate prior to entering the round point but do not actually stop.  With gas prices over $7 per gallon, that adds up to real savings.  That reminds me of something that I read recently that I thought I would interject into this dialogue.  Ford is going to be transferring Stop-Start technology from their hybrids to their conventional cars as early as 2012.  This technology automatically shuts off the engine when the vehicle is stopped and is estimated to save as much as 10 percent in fuel costs.  Nice on the wallet and the environment.           

Priority-to-the-right intersection

There are a number of other differences between the U.S. and French driving laws, some are perplexing to me.  For example, the centerline is a single, white painted line which is the same color as the white side-lines.  This is confusing in low visibility situations as it is not as obvious that you may be driving on the wrong side of the road.  It is also difficult in urban settings when trying to decipher if a street is a one-way or not as all of the lines are white so you have to scan quickly for signs indicating the flow of traffic.  The other thing that seems strange is the “priority-to-the-right” rule at certain intersections.  Let me explain.  Say you’re on the main road that is intersected by another road on your right, (i.e. a T intersection).  In the U.S., when you’re on the main road that continues straight through the intersection, you have the right-of-way.  Not so herein France.  At these intersections, which are thankfully marked with signs, you have to yield to traffic coming from the right even though you’re on the main road and are going straight. 

The French drive on the same side of the road as the U.S. and most of the laws are the same or similar.  But there are definitely different concepts used to guide traffic from one village to another.  In a later post, I hope to explore how navigating from one place to another is like navigating a labyrinth.  Google maps hasn’t figured it out either, terrible directions.  I’ll also see if I can capture a few images of road signs.  Wow, some of the names are tongue twisters.