New road safety legislation introduced
We recently received information regarding new
French road safety legislation which will affect your
holidaymakers as most of them will be arriving by
car and is perhaps worth telling them about at the
time of booking. Incidentally, when I picked my
hire car up at Toulouse Airport recently the items
mentioned in the article below were included in
the cost of the car hire. It is encouraging to see
the French making widespread efforts to reduce
deaths and injuries on roads, with the latest
monthly figures showing a big drop year on year.
On February 13th, 2008, the French Inter-Ministerial
Committee for Road Safety (CISR) decided to make
it compulsory for all vehicles to carry a safety jacket
and warning triangle as of July 1st, 2008 in line
with numerous other European countries which
have already implemented this measure. Beginning
October 1st, 2008, drivers will be fined should they
not have equipped themselves with both these tools.
Why has this measure been introduced?
The aim is to improve the safety of road users who
find themselves in an emergency situation, enabling
drivers to be more visible to other road users when
exiting their vehicle and ensuring that vehicles which
have broken down or have stopped as a result of an
emergency are equipped with improved signage.
Safety jackets, which must comply with current
legislation, must be worn by drivers before exiting
their vehicle, which must be stationary either on
the hard shoulder or on the side of the road.
Jackets must comply with Council directive 89/686/
CEE dated December 21, 1989 relating to the
standardisation of legislation by member states
with regard to PPE (personal protective equipment).
The marking “C E” on the jacket, as well as the
presence of an instruction notice, bear witness to
the jacket’s compliance with legislation in force.
Instructions for use of the triangle:
The warning triangle should be carried on board
all vehicles. Drivers must position it on the road
surface immediately upon exiting the vehicle at a
distance of at least 30 metres from it or from the
obstacle in question. This triangle must be in full
compliance with Geneva regulation n° 27 currently
in force. The marking below bears witness to the
triangle’s compliance with current legislation.
Don’t forget: the use of hazard lights is
compulsory if the vehicle is fitted with these.
Published by Chez Nous Oct 2008