Rules of the road: Cars

Aside from driving on the ‘wrong-hand-side’ (which makes roundabouts confusing), there are various rules or quirks with French traffic that are useful to know.

Cars: Every single car in France believes it has more of a right to be on the road than everyone else. They are always in a hurry and easily angered, so each day you spend in France you are guaranteed to hear cars beeping angrily at each other. There is also a widespread lack of respect for basic traffic rules. Like the speed limit. And slowing down when going round corners or reaching junctions. If you need to stop, the emergency brake is very useful. The amount of times French cars come screeching to a halt, their tyres must need to be changed once a month, at least! You’re not in France unless you’ve been nearly run over by some vehicle or another. At traffic lights, as soon as the light goes from red to green (no amber, that would be too leisurely) everyone thinks they own a Lamborghini or Ferrari (nice cars like this obviously don’t exist in France unless you’re in St Tropez, in which case they all come from Monaco.) and they try to make their rusty Ford or Vauxhall go 0-60 in 3 seconds. Even if there’s someone still crossing. (ESPECIALLY if there’s someone still crossing) Like I said, you’re not in France till you’ve been nearly run over. It’s the near-death experiences that make life so vibrant! Indicating is also unnecessary. People will see what way you’re going when you turn.