It's War - French police vs the Brit's

[rev-erend]

So perhaps - it was not as bad as some of the tales
make out - perhaps the fines were predictably
on the main roads and not the 'D' roads which tend
to be more fun and empty too !!

[ken_smith]

Have to agree with rude girl here.
Seems that some people think its their right
to go to another country and break their laws and speed limits. If that is their attitude they have no
right to start moaning about being fined or having their cars impounded. The nationals of those countries have a far more severe punishment than some Brit find £500 for speeding. Would you expect to drive at twice the speed limit over here and get away with it?
I spent two weeks driving in France and going to Le Mans. Hardly saw any police till I got to Le mans and what police I did see on the way there and the way back just ignored us. They are not intersted in stopping Brits traveling through their country unless they are breaking the law. Its not that every year they just target Le Mans or certain individuals driving certain cars, they target the ones there who are dumb enough to break the law. And being Brits, they know there will be plenty of them!

[chimhunter]

Turn the tables. How would we feel if for the Silverstone GP thousands of Frenchies cam over here, raced around the M25 a couple of times (I know, they should be so lucky to find it that free of cars) and then burn some rubber all around the towns and villages around the circuit? We'd all be baying for Frog Blood.

IMNERHO, if you are stopped for doing twice the limit you deserve a smack on the wrists. Would you do 140mph on the motorways here racing a bunch of other PHers and then moan when you were caught? Probably not. By the sounds of things the French Police behaved themselves and only caught the few that were giving the masses a bad name.



Rob

[simon t]

I have to say I think the whole police/public tolerance at LeMans is a wonder to behold. The behavior on the campsites, in the circuit and in the town itself would NOT be tolerated in the UK. We should all be thankful that we have this event in France. I for one would have been nicked on many occasions for various acts of fun....

Merci!!

Simon

[james_j]

Agree - the driving over there was superb. It seemed to me that if you were fast but smooth and showed care then you were ok. Give me that type of policing over here anyday instead of the zealot / automated policing that we have.

An example: Coming back from Le Mans, I was just behind a French driver, we were both doing the same speed (about 120) overtaking a line of cars, but the French driver was stopped, I assume (I can't think of any other reason), because his driving was clearly dangerous (I won't go into detail, but the point is made). Now that's something that one of our safety cameras couldn't see.

[jpchenet]

I wholeheartedly agree with you James. It really bugs me that they now have these new vans with hidden cameras, parked round blind bends and label them as "Safety Camera" teams when they are nothing less than a revenue making stream for the government.

Let's face it, most people speed, most people know the risks of fines/points, most people therefore accept those risks, however, being told that these mobile camera units are for "safety" is rubbish!! If they were for safety, they would be placed at accident blackspots, long straights to reduce extensive speeding and primarily in high visibility areas so that people SEE the cameras/vans and reduce their speed accordingly, hence the safety aspect!!

[vetteheadracer]

Regarding the sneeky camera vans.

Do what I do, remove your front number plate. The fine for a "sorry officer it must have fallen off" is a lot less than the summons for speeding. Also you get to give the camera the single digit salute without fear of prosecution.