Bank Holiday French Driving

[alittlebitfrench]

It was Formula 1 today driving back to Paris.

I was up for for it to be fair. I knew what is was going to be like today and I was ready for the fight. Everyone was driving at 160kph +...undertaking and overtaking to gain a place...or not.

Picked a fight with a bloke...who was a bit bigger than me to be fair (but I would have had him if he got out of his car) and an elderly woman in an Audi A5 who just carved everyone up. I stuck the the obligatory 1 finger at her....because she won.....ON THIS OCCASION !!!!

What fun....and we did not die today which was a bonus.

So why do the French drive like arses on bank holidays ?

Any ideas ?

[woolybanana]

Mainly those resident round Paris, I fancy, and 59 numberplates.

Last I heard there was a 45 minute delay at the peage - bludy fools.

[alittlebitfrench]

Wooly 69 & 38 plates are worse. Believe me these people are mad.

[NormanH]

Those of us who live in the real France do not see many of any of those plates....

[andyh4]

I see lots of 69 and 38 plates.

I rather thought 13 drivers were the ones looking to prove whether the number was unlucky or not.

[Gardian]

Its Parisiens who are despised around here.

Oh ...... and the Dutch. They bring their own spuds with them and take back the peelings.

[idun]

Once my being truly terrified had sort of numbed, then I used to love driving in mad France. And then I had kids, and babies in the car meant that it did not feel quite so much fun.

I have memories of being on autoroutes at least three lanes wide, I would say every lane was tailgating and all going 160kph and I used to be sat in the passenger seat braking into the carpet and clutching the hand rest just to the side of my head. Husband didn't like me driving, because he said if I drove, then that healthy space  I would leave between cars, was just an invitation for others to believe that they could fit in and carve us up......... quelle joie these journeys were.[:-))]  So I would arrange our travel times to avoid such journeys as much as possible and fortunately sometimes managed.

Who was hated most, the parisiens an easy cible really. As I lived in the Alpes, we never hated anyone actually local.  And I do not believe that driving was any worse in the Savoys or Isere than the other parts of France we visited.....

Still the champions for me are those malicious nasty xxxxx's in Antibes, cannot think of anywhere worse in the whole of France that I have driven and the parisien lady who ran the hotel we stayed in agreed with me!

[NormanH]

[quote user="andyh4"]I see lots of 69 and 38 plates.

I rather thought 13 drivers were the ones looking to prove whether the number was unlucky or not.[/quote]

You are hot far from them in the Ardèche...

 but 13 true...[:-))]and the lorries with Spanish or Eastern European plates...

[Judith]

But since you don't have to change the plate any more when you move you cannot now always be sure that they are not locals either!!  I have the wrong number for the dept we now live in, though must admit the border is only just down the road, and  there are loads of both down here, including, now summer is on it's way, lots of others as well.

[alittlebitfrench]

Good point.

Another unknown fact is that the '92 plate' (region Parisienne) is often used for company cars. So may think you are being carved up by someone from Paris but in fact it could be your neighbour with a company car.

[andyh4]

Plus 60 is widely used by hire car companies.

Rumour had it that many living in Ile de France chose to take plates with numbers relating to other departements (ie not 75 and 91 - 95) - especially if they had a maison secondaire deep in the country and could justify the department number on that basis.