From January 2015 using all hands free kits on a mobile is banned whilst driving. Also alcohol limits have been drastically lowered for 18-24y so now even the whiff of a wine gum and they will be over the limit.
Parking within 5m of a crossing is also not allowed.
good one
You can still use a blue tooth ear piece.
They'll probably turn a blind eye...
I wonder what the new rules will make of drivers with hearing aids?
Yes
So the update on this is anything that uses an earpiece thus possibly interfering with awareness is banned Bluetooth kits are not so long as it's not an earpiece or headphone.
This is from June 30th 2015
I learned the Portuguese equivalent the year we lived there: If it is forbidden, look to see if anybody is looking before you do it, if nobody is then do it.
John, I definitely don't consider driving "fun" any more and look forward to the advent of driverless cars. Of course, I recognise the convenience of a car, particularly for local journeys but if I can travel by bus, train esp TGV or airplane, even with airport hassles, I will. The only kind of driving I can see as a bit of fun, although risky, is my grey Fergie.
I am not sure I consider it fun any more, as soon as fun starts a civil servant want's their fun!
Yes Howard with all the tech available I would imagine the difference has narrowed.
Exactement...
Takes all the 'fun' out of driving for me Howard.
Could be also for smart men, depending on your mileage :-). My car gives me the best of both worlds and a bit more besides. It has automatic and semi-automatic. Auto is great for long runs at steady speed with cruise control and it's easy to hit the brake in an emergency. Semi-auto gives advantages of gears without the clutch and is great for extra acceleration or descending a steep hill without putting too much wear on the front brake pads. I also have 2 wheel, All-wheel and low speed 4 wheel drive, selectable at the flick of a switch, although there are caveats. Regarding fuel consumption differences, despite the theory that manual should be more economic than automatic, because of higher number of gears, I've found there is little difference between manual 2 wheel drive and auto all wheel drive. The reason for this is that unless you really gun the engine the automatic gearbox is usually much cleverer at changing gears at optimum revs than the driver of a manual is. Besides the auto gearbox only has to focus on changing gears at optimum efficiency and therefore doesn't have the myriad attention grabbers, which the vehicle driver has to contend with, even if she/he is not having a phone conversation at the same time.
Looks like the bus is the only safe answer, John. Sadly, in all the years I've been travelling to the bit of France where I'll be setting up home, I've yet to see one.
Yes Al, but as anything from unwrapping an opal fruit to smoking or having the radio too loud interferes the only solution is silence but that in it's self could cause a lack of concentration and dosing off especially on long journeys.
It terms of having a phone under your ear or txt'ng it's an absolute no brainer. and sweets without wrapping are what I use.
I don't hold telephone conversations in the car, largely because it takes all my attention to open those tricky cigarette packages or chase fallen embers across the floor. Safety campaigners seem pretty convinced of the dangers using a mobile while driving and draw no distinction between hands-free "kits" and built-in systems. They're concerned about the distractions of a phone conversation, regardless of the technology. Campaigners say the reason hand-free systems aren't covered by existing legislation is the difficulty of enforcement. In the UK, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) takes the following position (and I suppose they must have statistics to back it up): RoSPA. I think it's inevitable that all hands-free systems will be banned before long, although the law governing this equipment is likely to be ignored by even more people than the multitude of jokers we now see behind the wheel with a phone glued to their ear.
Exactement...
This aged Neanderthal drives gears of choice. I have my sixth for motorways, I have control over my way of driving, there are situations like getting a trailer to exactly the right position that only first, reverse and gentle accelerator allow that lacks the finesse in an automatic. I also prefer to drive like somebody half a century younger than I am - a combination of still doing what the instructor said and taught and wishing to be free (fast, wherever I can) of what I was taught. Automatics do not do that for me. They are for people who do not yet need a sans permis in my opinion.
If you are in a city it's a lot less tiring in traffic but outside of that autos usually have 1 less gear so are naturally less efficient and then on snow a different ball game although the most modern with traction control and whizz bang software are possibly as good.
As a geriatric driver, l go to some length to forestall any possible aageist criticism of my technique. So I don't make or receive phone calls while on the move. I don't listen to the radio or recorded music either. I have also been very frightened by a driver who was paying more attention to his sat-nav than the road in front of him. In the UK they have caught truck drivers watching movies on laptops while driving. Now that's really scary!
If driving isn't getting your 100% attention, you are a menace to other road users.