French Radar Traps

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Tue 12 Apr 2005 10:28
French Radar Traps - pmh
Having returned from the South of F yesterday using the A75 then Orleans - Rambouillet- Cergy Pointoise - Amiens - Calais route, (not my normal Chartres - Dreux - Rouen) I saw at least 5 mobile installations. 4 were within a 40 mile radius of Paris) The French police have discovered that they can hide (almost completely) their small (Clio sized) blue cars diagonally behind the Large Green barriers at the point where motorway exit slips start. The observer just pops just his head above the barrier with the binoculars. They used to do this but the old vans were always visible!

They were also using white vans and other nondescript small saloons. All were equipped with binocular sited radar(or laser?) that appears to target vehicles from several hundred metres.

Going South 3 weeks ago the A75 had mobile units hidden in the bushes of motorway emergency access points. In the past the oncoming French motorists always used to give flash warnings ( even on the lightly used motorways) but this was not evident. However this amy not be as obvious now a prportion of motorist are driving with headlights during the day. (As an aside I gather French motorcyclists are rebelling against this practice as it makes them (the motorcycles) less visible).

The camera on the A75 S close to the tunnel at Lodeve seems to have been reset to a new 80k limit (was 70). This appears more realistic, can any other local resident comment?

Random Breathalyser checks at night seem to have increased around the Pezenas area. Complete road blocks and pulling everybody for testing. Twice reported in 2 weeks.


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pmh (was peter)


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Tue 12 Apr 2005 12:20
French Radar Traps - Big Bird
We've driven down to the alps and back over the last two weekends. All the talk of more radar traps and cameras meant we took it a bit easier than usual but I have to say I only saw one radar trap in over 20 hours driving in France, and that was a gendarme in a marked car parked visibly by an access gate.

We did stay well clear of Paris though.

Having said that I also failed to spot the now well publicised fixed cameras near the Epine tunnel and near Moutiers on the run up the mountains so maybe the eyesight is going.

Dan
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Tue 12 Apr 2005 12:35
French Radar Traps - SjB {P}
Driving from Boulogne to Brussels a few weeks ago, just inside the Belgian 'border' from memory, the police had parked their car diagonally across the very wide central reservation, in a clearing between the bushes made for emergency (i.e.road closed) U-turn use. In heavy, but very fast moving traffic, they thus covered the outside lanes in both directions very effectively with two laser guns.
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