Automated toll tags

We are here in France on holiday and today had a confusing experience with the peage.



Set off from near Matha to have a day out inLa Rochelle. We entered a toll road using our automated tag (aprr). But on arriving in LA Rochelle there wasn't an exit peage booth. We figured it would balance out when we made our return journey. However we ended up taking a different route home so didn't pass through a peage at all.



Anyone know how this will pan out? We have used this tag successfully for a few trips now and its generally simple. But today has baffled me.

:)

If you see anything as impolite as your example, please report it and we can take appropriate action. Cheers.

I quite agree that discussions digress, indeed that is part of the fun of any discussion. I even sometimes choose dinner guests on the basis that I know that they will amiably disagree precisely because it makes for a much more interesting conversation....

I don't know about the other sites, I don't really join in the discussions on them. However there is a tendency on SFN for what starts as a general query to end up with the person asking the question to be lambasted for their decisions / preferences. A question about what to do about rotting timbers is soon likely to attract an answer to the effect "what did you expect when you bought a run-down old house. If you'd wanted a house in mint-condition you should have bought a boring square bungalow off plan". The person asking the question frequently knew full well what to expect when buying an old house and they aren't complaining about it, just asking for advice from those with experience of a similar problem.

It can all get a bit like that Harry Enfield character "you don't want to do that......you want to....."

Oh crikey ! I've mentioned UK TV.....I'd better duck !

Kwashie,

To add further irony the inbox on my email system had an email from APRR two down from yours telling me that my Direct Debit had bounced and they'd be jolly grateful if I could regler mon facture.....

I've never had my 'tag' suspended but can you imagine the rumpus if you got to the "t" barrier, with a queue behind you, found that your tag didn't beep and had to get everybody to reverse to let you through to the normal barrier ?!?

Geoff it’s very satisfying isn’t it. I take a diesel people mover and I have enhanced the engine with a tunit device and enhance the fuel with Miller oil cetane improver. I get 50mpg on a run and have an enjoyable cruise at 70/75 doing two six hour drives stopping around Chateauroux for the night. It’s 640 miles from tunnel to house. It’s fun to watch the show off in the range rovers who go flying passed prob doing about 20mpg stopping frequently to fill up and paying cash or credit card at the tolls. I have seen the same car on the second day over take me for about the third/ fourth time giving me a quizzical look :slight_smile: I fill up at Auchan near the tunnel and top up at J37 of the A20 at the large supermarket chain amused that my fuel has been upto 20 cents per litre cheaper than the motorway! It’s not being mean it just planning and a relaxing drive which I include as part of my holiday.

I think that is one of the things that makes SFN unique Richard!

As long as the discussion remains civil, digression is absolutely within the SFN ethos. Also, as I've said (until I'm blue in the face!), SFN is NOT a forum. It's a social network. When people get together and are sociable, the conversations meander all over the place.

And as you know, there are plenty of 'other' sites where if you don't remain absolutely "on-topic" you get zapped. Not my kind of thing but I'm sure there are people who prefer that :)

I'm with the tag team - I'm no longer a boy racer, and try to drive at a constant and economical speed, and just love it after being overtaken by people who appear to be in such a hurry, then to see them sat is a long queue as I pass serenely by in the 30kph lane. My fuel saving more than compensates for the price of the tag.

Actually if you break down on the motorway and the tow truck takes you off on one of the secret side exits so you don't go through the toll gate you don't pay anything, even if the tag beeped as you came on the motorway.

Been there, done that, would rather have paid the 20€ toll in the circs but it was some compensation.

you must see the irony of your post... :), you have moved the discussion even further from its original topic to a discussion on why topics get moved away from their original topics..... (perhaps answering your own question in the process)...

we are all human :) :) :)

This thread certainly has moved on from my original question. But that's how discussions on forums can go. All very interesting reading regardless.

I like using my tag - as it does save on queues, not so much on this last trip as the roads were quiet. In high season though it's a definite bonus. Also I can see how much we have spent quite easily by looking at the bill. 97.90 euros for Dieppe to Matha and back. Even on just a once or twice per year trip to France it has been worth it for us -only a small monthly charge for those months it was in use.

Anyway, my bill is now online, and I see that there was a small charge for that stretch of road.

It's all a good learning experience into how things work I suppose.

Thanks for all the replies.

I agree. It's interesting when things take their own course but also useful to have a "how to" posts as well. I think there's room for both.

Glad you found it educational Paul :-)

I agree that the discussions digress, my recent starter for 10 was a query on the effectiveness of 'weedy weed killers', we ended up with the human race being doomed!!

However, if you take the premise that discussions on here are like any other group chat, ie; around a dinner party table, then it's inevitable that once the original question is answered, as in this case', the subject matter will expand.

Also, I have learnt an awful lot from the discussions on this website, and a lot of it from the digressions!

Anyway, back to the weedkiller problem...

Well said

Why is it that a discussion on SFN so quickly veers from a reasonable "how does this system operate" type discussion to a discussion about the rights and wrongs of the system or the choices made by the person posting the discussion ? Surely it puts people off posting a discussion topic ?

This discussion is a classic example: Anne's question wasn't about whether the tags are good value for money, useful or worth having it was a question about the OPERATION of the system. Presumably Anne is an intelligent person and has already weighed up the pro's and con's of investing in a tag (like me - I have one) and decided it was worthwhile....but before long the discussion turns into a mini "pro-tag" vs "anti-tag" war !

Woe betide anyone that dares to ask a question such as "Has anyone else noticed that BBC News has dropped off their FreeSat box and how do I re-tune it ?" which will inevitably spark nuclear-level exchanges firstly about the different methods of receiving English TV (internet options vs satellite options) and then pretty quickly about whether one should dare to live or holiday in France and watch English TV at all and ultimately whether expats that don't integrate 100% whole heartedly in Francophile habits should be shot at birth......the person asking how to re-tune their Freeview box will remain mystified as to how to re-tune it however....

Absolutely! The only annoyance is if you go out during one month and come back the next!

It only costs €1.60 extra if you use it in a month and there’s a refundable deposit for the tag itself. Regarding benefits, I wouldn’t use the autoroutes without one, with the 30km barriers it saves a lot of time and if you ever travel on the Southern autoroutes in the summer it’s a must due long queues. Finally, why hold everybody up having to get out of your RHD car when a tag costs you nothing. You loose some of the benefit of using the autoroute by faffing around at the toll booth.

I live in the UK and travel to my holiday home in France. The tag cost 2e a month only for the months you use it, a very small cost for the convience of not having to lean across the passenger seat (RHD) and holding up the traffic behind. Also some have 30kph drive through so you don’t even have to stop. When it’s busy the Q for tag booths are lighter and it’s fun to pass all the hurry up’s that over take you and then spend minutes in the pay Q. The bill goes to my credit card on which I get a top rate of exchange and I clear every month. All in all a good investment.

It's a big help when you are a bit on the short side!

I am glad you enjoy extending the queues at the toll by stopping, getting out of the car to pay and use up extra fuel in the queue. I think the small one off payment a month, for the month you use the tag, is less than the fuel I use queueing AND I don’t wait to go through ever so save about 20 minutes on my journey. No brainer