Do the Swiss and French Share Car Details?

A snowHead

After a very enjoable weekend in Tignes we had a horrible journey back to GVA. Both my TomTom and the in-car Sat Nav started to warm us of long delays en-route. It was very slow through Bourg and then we basically can to a halt on the road out. Both Sat Navs suggested diverting but at the time it was only suggesting a saving of 7-10 mins. I've had my fair share of Sat Nav alternatives being worse than the original route so decided to stick with it. As we crawled along in stop start traffic the sat navs kept suggesting alternatives. Eventually I succumbed to one suggestion and it effectively only cut-out about 1km. rolling eyes

Out estimated arrival at GVA kept climbing and climbing and I once again succumbed to a suggested alternative. Wrong move this time. It took me to a road that was blocked off and had been for a considerable time. Quite a few others had done the same and were turning around. After that I decided to ignore the alternatives.

As we went along a dual carriageway section outside of Centron I could see the issue: a set of traffic lights whose only purpose seemed to be to reduce the flow of traffic. WTF???? They were causing a 20km traffic jam and as far as I could serve no purpose other than to wee wee off thousands of motorists and their passengers. I am sure there must be a reason for them but I can't see what it is. Anyway, 4.5 hours after leaving Tignes we arrived at the Ibis at GVA. However, as I was going through a 90km/h section on the Autoroute I was flashed by a camera. There were 3 lanes across and as I was flashed I was overtaking 2 cars on the inside. I was doing 100-110 km/h at the time. I was in a hire car with Swiss registration. Do the Swiss and French share details?

A snowHead

@Gaza, Glad you had a good weekend. Those lights are to control the flow of traffic through the tunnel that comes just after. Basically, they don't want standing traffic in the tunnel causing a build up of fumes (all those evil VWs and Audis Toofy Grin

). The actual reason for the jams beyond was the works in the Ponserand Tunnel - which is the one as you leave Moutiers - outbound traffic goes through the tunnel, inbound is normally outside on the expressway. Did you end up on the expressway outside with 2 way traffic? The situation was obviously compounded by the 8000 people leaving the Racing in Val. Clearly the Maitre D'Oeuvre (Master of Works) didn't check the events calendar!!

As to your question on transferring data - I don't know - but I will ask someone who might know if I can find him.

By the way the local paper said some people were stuck in the jams for 3 hours - so it must have calmed down by your arrival from its peak.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

@Gaza, Glad the weekend went generally well snowHead

According to my wife, who typically intercepts the post before I do... yes they do, but I'm not convinced it's consistent. I've been flashed by the camera in Servoz (route out of Cham) a couple of times that didn't seem to coincide with a ticket. The sister-in-law managed to get flashed 3 times in one trip (the A40 has reduced speed over winter) and collected fines and points Shocked

Which is not helping you at all. Annoyingly, I believe that if the ticket does get passed on, the rental company may add a fee for processing Sad

Fingers crossed.

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@Gaza, I've been stuck in that jam on a couple of occasions. Frustratingly the road on the other side of the tunnel was completely free flowing, so traffic would not have been backed up in to the tunnel if the lights were not operational. I think it is for the air quality issue that chocksaway said, although the operation of the lights is only occasional and seems haphazard.

Yes, speeding camera info can be passed to Swiss rental companies at GVA, but I'm sure I've been flashed on a few occasions in France with no follow-up from the rental company.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

@chocksaway, thanks for that. No, we didn't go outside the tunnel. It was single lane but free flowing in Tunnel and in the works after. The other direction was very quiet and not being held up in any way.

@rob@rar, and @under a new name, I suppose I'll just have to wait and see if anything hits my credit card from Europcar. Annoyingly my TomTom had warned us of a Danger Zone and up to that point I'd slowed down when the warnings showed but was too busy chatting to Oscar and didn't notice it. rolling eyes

You'll need to Register first of course.

I had a fine through from Europcar for a speeding incident in France - over the limit in a 70 kph area. Taken from my credit card. I was only a few km over, and it wasn't too big a fine but yes, there was a small additional charge. Sad

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

I've definitely been flashed in France in a swiss-plated rental car from GVA and received nothing - also on the route blanche down from Chamonix - was 3 or 4 years ago though so they may be sharing details now...

After all it is free

I was flashed near Annecy in October, and received a bill for transferring info from the Swiss car hire company a month later. That was three weeks ago, and I'm waiting to see if the French authorities send me a bill Crying or Very sad

Got done last year in France having hired in Swiss side. Whats happens is the police inform the car owner (hire company), the hire company writes to you to tell you they have passed your details to the French police. The hire company then hits you automatically with an admin fee (think it was about £30). I then got a summons from French police. I did pay up as I wasn't so much worried about the French police as the efficient Swiss hire side having police waiting for me next time I was through. The police summons I paid on line, it was around £40. Where I go nabbed was Moutiers.

If in France in my own car I try and accumulate as many speed camera and parking fines as I can. Maybe they can (they can't now but allegedly they will in time) be able to come after you but a hire car is different.

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Brother-in-law got a ticket passed on by a Geneva-based hire company for a speeding offence which happened in France 2 days after he'd got back from his holidays.

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

@Gaza, We got stuck in the same jam, when we saw the lights at the tunnel we assumed that the blockage was at the other end and they were preventing queuing traffic in the tunnel by regulating the traffic. We were surprised to eventually come out the other side to clear roads. We did get held up for a short time in the roadworks at Moutier a few km's further on where the dual carriageway was reduced to one lane. I think we were probably delayed around 2-2.5 hours in the end and only just made our flight. A couple of the chaps on our minibus ended up having to switch their flights to a later one at considerable cost. I have no idea about the speeding fine thing.

snow reports

@joydivision, by the time we got through the tunnel, the dual carriageway stretch that was down to single carriageway was pretty much free flowing. Either someone couldn't bothered to switch the lights off or they were having a day where they felt that they would exercise their power and wee wee of thousands of people. Evil or Very Mad

Help!!

Do the Swiss and French Share Car Details?

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