Blue Parking Areas

[ali-cat]

Can someone please give me a little information about the one hour max, blue parking area's which have recently been introduced in all of our local towns. I apologise for asking, as I know this has been covered previously – but there are still a few areas I'm not sure about.  Although it will hopefully not affect me directly I would like to be able to pass the information on to others & to friends coming over for the summer and don't want to be passing on misinformation!! [blink]

Are the clocks/discs free for locals?  Are they usable in any town i.e. if someone from Jarnac (16) has one, can they use it in Saintes (17)?  Do you need to replace them or just be careful not to lose it?!  Has anyone any idea of cost of the fines, if you don't have one?

I am sure there are loads of rules and regulations regarding them – so if you know of anything else that may be useful, please let me know!

I really don't understand why a town like Cognac has now brought this in – it hardly encourages tourists to stay, have a look around, do a tour and spend their hard earned Euros if they have to leave within 60 minutes.