Accidents and Deaths on French Metropolitan Roads

BTW. Has anyone else noticed the seeming inability of many drivers here in France to keep to the right of the center line when negotiating a left hand bend.

As for roundabouts, well it seems that either not indicating at all, or indicating incorrectly is the usual practice. I have even seen driving school cars containing two people failing to indicate correctly, so what hope is there for the student driver when the instructor can’t get it right.

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Crikey, that would be quite impressive for here. In the four years we’ve been here, I’ve only seen the Gendarmes once, and that was two of them sitting in a car in a layby, both of them glued to their phones. I walked straight past the drivers door and didn’t get even a flicker of recognition.

My observation is that a not inconsiderable ammount of French drivers here seem to regularly straddle two lanes on motorways, or drive in the middle of the road on single lane roads. I’ve nearly been hit several times by an oncoming car in the middle of the road. The OH was hit last week, fortunately she managed to avoid a serious collision and only lost the wing mirror.
Edit: In saying that, most drivers here seem to be very considerate, happily giving way to other drivers and pedestrians.

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What is this business of continuing to signal when on the fastest lane of ‘A’ roads? Is it part of the French highway code?

It’s what French drivers do, at least some of them. I think it’s got less common over the years. Also, signaling left at a roundabout unless you’re taking the first exit (then signal right) is also a French thing, at least for those that signal at all :grin:

They mistakenly believe that if they are indicating (to the left) that they will get away with speeding as indicating to overtake…

Are you sure? I have observed people doing this when they are driving at/under the speed limit. I wonder if at any time in the past there was guidance to leave the indicator on.

Straight from the horses mouth (metaphorically speaking). He is always getting fined and occasionally banned but still insists its ok to do.

I continue to indicate left when I am in the outside lane in order to give information to the car behind.

The information I am giving is that I am NOT moving into the inner lane once I have overtaken this vehicle because I can see immediately up ahead that there is another slow vehicle and I can see that the car up my exhaust pipe behind me has a line of cars behind him, so if I move in I will not be able to move out again. So just stay where you are mate while I continue to overtake.

Seems perfectly clear to me. And I’ve certainly seen other drivers do this.

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Whether it’s right or not… I was once told to keep the lhd indicator flashing to show you are progressing along the outside lane…
someone in the inside lane, checking their mirror (first action) will note flashing light and either judge there is still enough space to pull out without making the other car slow down… or …holdback until all clear…

(now I’ve another topic of discussion for the next club meeting.)

We did touch wing mirrors with another vehicle on a narrow road last time we visited, but they were only a bit over. :stuck_out_tongue:

France is large enough that it’s likely there are regional styles of driving, just like there are accents. Wonder if I’ll be accused of being a racist daily mail reader on the back of that comment?

I’ve always thought that you indicated as an intent to change direction (mirror - signal - manoeuvre), not to signal that you’re not going to

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That would be a UK understanding.

The French seem to struggle with roundabouts which have two lanes - often entering in the right hand lane, and going the whole way around in that lane, even when intending to turn left.

Which can make it a bit of a nightmare if you enter in the left hand land as you have to be especially careful about traffic in your right hand blind spot when trying to exit.

Which, actually, is one advantage of having a RHD car in France.

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This is a complication from the “Priorité à droite” system, and is particularly prevalent on large roundabouts such as that around the Arc de Triomphe. The driver in the lane closest to the center of the roundabout feels that they have to give way to the traffic in the outer lane(s) who are on their right, and the drivers in said outer lane feel no need to give way in order to allow the driver in the lane to their left to leave the roundabout at the next exit.
Therefore, some drivers will not use the left lane closest to the roundabout’s center (especially when traffic is heavy), for fear of being trapped in the circle forever.

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Might be so. Our area, outside of the towns, seems to have some who still feel there is, or should be, the ‘priorité à droite’ everywhere. At unmarked and marked alike intersections everyone waits and looks at each other before proceeding. @Robert_Hodge is also spot on about the roundabouts of fear.

Except for white vans and big trucks who barrel along in their own priorité

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This is for information

I have experienced priorite a droite a couple of times. There’s also a turning in Autun that needs it for a RHD car to pull out safely.

In the early days, we were caught out a couple of times by priority… happily without damage… very pleased to see more and more STOP signs for those little roads… but, of course, there is always the plonker who insists on pulling-out regardless… :roll_eyes:
and we now know that the roadsign X not only means priority- right… but “abandon hope” :rofl:

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I lost a mirror but the perpetrator was a GB campervan driving down the middle of the road, we’d actually pulled over as far as we could and stopped to let it past. They didn’t stop after wrecking my wing-mirror either, tosspots.

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