MacSid

Just arrived in Paris after an early-morning drive from Amsterdam, with a little adventure on the way. Was happily cruising down the French A1 motorway when I noticed blue lights behind me, which turned into 2 cops on their BMW bikes motioning for me to pull over. I did, of course, and was promptly told that I had been clocked at 168km/h (104mph). Speed limit was 130 km/h (81mph).

I knew I had my foot down, but had not realised just how fast I was going - definitely a testament to the 530d's engine and ride qualities. The car was very quiet, and I really could not hear the engine at all at that speed. I had felt no different from a when I do leisurely cruises at 60-80km/h. The thing is, I must have been doing that high speed for quite a distance for these guys to have nabbed me the way they did. I should add that it's been a while since we took a really long drive in the car.

I got back into the car after paying the EUR90 fine (cash on the spot for non-French cars), expecting a stern word or two from the wife. Instead, she commented that she thought we were going only about 140 and then really surprised me with her next two comments... "Well, no point driving a car like this if you aren't going to get a ticket now and again" and "okay, now the Beastie's all warmed up for the BeNeLux meet/drive on Saturday" Made it all worth the EUR90 hole in my pocket!!

So, we are indeed all warmed up for the BeNeLux meet - shall be driving to Maastricht from here Friday night and exploring it a little (I've been there once before, many years ago, and the wife has never been).

Russ1974

How quick do you need to be going before they will put you in jail or manage to put points on your licence (can they??) in your home country. For 90 Euros and no other punishment, it's well worth the risk!! In the UK, for 100mph+, you are looking at points, court, possible ban, etc etc on top of the fine.

MacSid

In the Netherlands, it only gets serious if you exceed the speed limit by 30km/h or more (that gets you a court date and a record), or if you exceed the speed limit by 50km/h or more (which loses you your licence and gets your vehicle impounded). With highway speed limits here of 100km/h and 120km/h, you could end up losing your licence and car at 150 (90 or so mph). There are different rates for non-highway offences, and there is a multiplier for offences in roadworks areas (where you're considered to have endangered the lives of the work crews).

No idea what the rates and penalties are in France, which is where I got nabbed, but I do consider I got off pretty lightly for having exceeded 100mph. I suppose it would have been very different if I was French or had produced a French drivers' licence.

At the moment, non-Dutch authorities cannot put points on my Dutch licence, but I am sure we'll end up with some EU directive that allows this sooner or later. I presume however that there is a point at which they could haul one into court or even ban them altogether regardless of the country of issue of the licence, but I have no idea what that limit is.

BigMike

cash on the spot? hmmm.... does that cash actually get back to the police station...?

i've had that experience in other countries which i thought meant 'cash in cops pocket'.

just curious...

MacSid

The authorities definitely got their pound of flesh ... I was escorted by the bikes to the nearest motorway police station, where I paid at the counter and received a ticket and receipt that I signed. My French is practically non-existent, but I am sure that signature on that form is some form of admission of guilt too.

Just as an aside, traffic cops in most parts of Scandinavia carry credit card terminals for such situations!

Russ1974

It's funny how they think a fixed penalty will be a deterrant. Surely somebody driving a big BMW should have to pay more than somebody driving a battered old Citroen. A lot of people would just happily speed everywhere knowing they had to pay the occasional 90 Euros ... they would see it more as an "I'm allowed to drive fast tax" than a deterrant. What they should do is taser people, 1 second for every 5 mph over the limit. THAT would be a deterrant!

MacSid

Four seconds of tasering for me it is!

As far as I know, the Netherlands is the only EU country without a points system, and there is currently much pressure to bring it in. It will certainly be much more of a deterrent although, I have to admit, stupidity/bloody-mindedness is much more of a problem than speeding on the roads here - on most Dutch highways, you'd be lucky to even get to the speed limit!

The French system has confused me a little: there are 3 speeds noted on the ticket I received:
Vl: 130km/h (81mph) - the speed limit, obviously
Vr: 168km/h (104mph) - the speed I was told I was clocked at
Ve: 159km/h (99mph) - no idea what this is

The fact that the "Ve" figure is noted, I guess, means it is some sort of threshold below which the fine would have been smaller, or I'd have got a warning, or they would not have bothered (perhaps given the light, dry, empty road conditions). I was too mortified to ask. I know UK cops are very proactive in considering the road conditions and the drivers' behaviour when deciding whether or not to pull someone over (although I know 100mph is a barrier you NEVER cross over there).