Riding in Europe.

storm42

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After a recent trip to Belgium I have tried to find out what the current laws are relating to riding in Europe. (I am always prepared:) )

One of our group was stopped and told that he had to wear boots that cover his ankles, CE approved groves and to cover up his arms and legs, he was sent back to the campsite to dress appropriately. New law apparently. (obviously there are those who feel the need for covering up but as I never have accidents :), I don't, and to make it law seems wrong, it was bloody hot out there)

There also seems to be a blanket 70 KPM speed limit when not on a motorway and there are a lot more speed cameras around.

A bit more research, although it has been illegal for some time to have speed camera warnings active on your sat nav, now it looks like if it is capable of camera PIOs then the French can confiscate it.

In Spain it is seems to be illegal to have audio in your helmet, so no music, no intercom, no bike to bike coms and more importantly, no satnav audio. It looks like helmet audio is OK in other parts of Europe as long as they are not in ear devices.

France is introducing air purity laws in certain cities and everybody must comply, a Crit’Air sticker must be displayed.

It looks like France has now allowed filtering but like the not enforced breathalyser and reflective helmet sticker, who knows.

I for one don't want these laws filtering into the UK. Hard Brexit anyone?
 
That is the site I found, I too have done a lot of miles on the continent but as it is now, a routine tug has the potential to wreck a holiday.

I once got pulled for speeding in France and didn't have any French money as we were on our way to Spain (long time ago) the guy pulled out the daily news paper from his van and found the exchange rate and charged me a fiver on top of the fine because he would have to go to the bureau de change himself, I didn't like it but i suppose it was fair considering what he could have done.

Whilst we were there another Britt bike was pulled and as soon as the female passengers feet touched the floor, her mouth came wide open moaning about the French collecting extra taxes from the foreign motorcyclists and they didn't have enough money to pay the fine, obviously not a wise thing to do but I found the result of this quite funny, the guy demanded their passports and then sent them off to get enough money to pay the fine, it was Sunday and in the middle of nowhere so that could have been fun.

Now I know it isn't wise to antagonise the Gendarmes when pulled, but now that same incident could have resulted in a confiscated satnav, mobile phone and motorbike plus heavy fines to boot, and all for stuff we are allowed to do at home.

That website seems to be fairly up to date but it is not an official site so who knows what is right or wrong.
 
If you think it's bad now, what do you think will happen if the UK quits the EU? They may decide to ban British-registered motorcycles altogether. Glad I'm over here in NW Washington., even though I'm too old to ride any more.
 
Frank ... to quote a fellow east coast Ducati club member ....

“You don’t stop riding because you get old ... you get old because you stop riding “

.... just sayin ....
Craig
 
If you think it's bad now, what do you think will happen if the UK quits the EU? They may decide to ban British-registered motorcycles altogether. Glad I'm over here in NW Washington., even though I'm too old to ride any more.

I can’t tnink of any country in the world that has outright banned vehicles from a neighbouring country!

That’s the type of scaremongering nonesense that gets no-body anywhere.
 
Craig:

When we emigrated from England in 1968, I was considering buying a new Commando to bring with us since I'd been riding one every weekday for almost two years in my N-V job, but finally concluded we couldn't afford to. Once we arrived in the Seattle area, I saw all these elderly ladies driving enormous (in my eyes) cars at 45 mph on the freeway while peering through the steering wheel because they weren't tall enough to see over the rim.

I decided to delay getting back on a bike and finally concluded that it would be too dangerous. In a car, you're sitting on the opposite side than in a British one, so there's a continuous reminder, though I did screw up a few times. I've never owned a bike since 1968, though I've ridden bikes occasionally, mainly off-road. I've passed the 75-year mark now, and I'm definitely done.
 
Like I said , just sayin’ Frank .... Plus I kinda liked my friends guote and saw a place to use it .... today after not being able to ride much this year because of severe lower back pain , I went to see my Doc , I was told my right hip needs replacement immediately and the left almost as bad , that without x-rays just physical exam .... right now that surgery is a 3 year wait and I thought it was my back since the ton day back in May .... going to let the news sink in a couple of days ,but , damn it , looks like I may be joining you on the sidelines , at this point very , very pissed off .....anybody riding on replace hips out there ?
Craig
 
Sorry to hear about your hip problems, Craig. Artificial hip implants are considered fairly basic nowadays. A couple of friends had them done and they say the difference in agility and total lack of pain was well worth the trouble. A 3-year back-up is ridiculous - one of the "benefits" of a national health system, I guess. Around here, you could be in hospital within a few days of diagnosis, but it sure isn't cheap.

I took to the sidelines because of the risk of being "opposite hand", since all my riding had been in the UK.

I wish you the best.
 
“You don’t stop riding because you get old ... you get old because you stop riding “
I have uttered that chant a few times myself, but there is a time when you realize that you should not ride. I would be capable of handling everything that is involved with riding except I am not sure that I could hold up a big bike (Norton/ Goldwing) if I stopped on uneven ground and it started to get away from me. I still ride my son's XT 225 occasionally. This is the 3rd summer that my Goldwing hasn't left the garage. 800 mile days were common at one point and I have done 1,500. My Norton is in pieces. At some point...… Hard to do.
 
Thanks Frank at this point , the 3 year wait looks impossible ... as is getting on a bike today , by time hip fixed my days on 2 wheels may be over as well ....
Crakig
 
That is the site I found, I too have done a lot of miles on the continent but as it is now, a routine tug has the potential to wreck a holiday.

I once got pulled for speeding in France and didn't have any French money as we were on our way to Spain (long time ago) the guy pulled out the daily news paper from his van and found the exchange rate and charged me a fiver on top of the fine because he would have to go to the bureau de change himself, I didn't like it but i suppose it was fair considering what he could have done.

Whilst we were there another Britt bike was pulled and as soon as the female passengers feet touched the floor, her mouth came wide open moaning about the French collecting extra taxes from the foreign motorcyclists and they didn't have enough money to pay the fine, obviously not a wise thing to do but I found the result of this quite funny, the guy demanded their passports and then sent them off to get enough money to pay the fine, it was Sunday and in the middle of nowhere so that could have been fun.

Now I know it isn't wise to antagonise the Gendarmes when pulled, but now that same incident could have resulted in a confiscated satnav, mobile phone and motorbike plus heavy fines to boot, and all for stuff we are allowed to do at home.

That website seems to be fairly up to date but it is not an official site so who knows what is right or wrong.

A few years ago me and my mate were driving to Switzerland , to Lausanne to visit friends.
Anyhow we were just out of Besancon? when we were pulled over by the cops in a Renault, these guys had sub machine guns over their chests and obviously thought they were hardcases . We were asked if we had any drugs in the vehicle, to which no was the reply. Then .....One of these pricks whistled and a sniffer poodle jumped in the car to find any contraband. I just started pissing myself laughing, just couldn't help it,at least in England we would have used a frigging Spaniel !
sam
 
Ohh dear, dodgy plate, no GB sticker, reflective bits on helmet?, gloves - not sure,155 dB silencers. Plan is Tuesday afternoon shoot up the coast into Belgium and into Germany then into Austria - where you have to pay visiting road tax (we should do that here) and yes they stop you when leaving the country, so much for the borderless EU. The sooner we leave that shower of crap the better - these are the same chimps that were going to ban two stroke engines, remember that one, they soon realised their error when it dawned on them winter was coming and the imposing law was withdrawn.
The roads in France are dire, no surprise they lowered the speed limits, after being in Sedan back in May I am surprised that they have not gone on strike to protest that this social state has not got any social manpower to fix them. April last year my brother had an accident with an overhead power line In France, plenty of witnesses as the slow coach in front of him caught the line and snapped it, Carole Nash paid out within a week, French authorities admitted blame from the start and it took them 16 weeks to pay out which apparently is quick for them.
 
As a UK citizen resident in Denmark, I don't quite understand some of the comments here. Regarding the original post, irrespective of the UK's membership status of the EU, national laws (e.g. those mentioned in France & Spain) will continue to apply to everybody, including visitors. I don't know of any impending EU legislation which will force every country to adopt these national laws.

In fact, if the current soft Brexit plans actually get adopted, the net result may be that the UK will not be able to influence legislation but may be required to adopt it anyway. I keep thinking of babies and bathwater here....
 
A few years ago me and my mate were driving to Switzerland , to Lausanne to visit friends.
Anyhow we were just out of Besancon? when we were pulled over by the cops in a Renault, these guys had sub machine guns over their chests and obviously thought they were hardcases . We were asked if we had any drugs in the vehicle, to which no was the reply. Then .....One of these pricks whistled and a sniffer poodle jumped in the car to find any contraband. I just started pissing myself laughing, just couldn't help it,at least in England we would have used a frigging Spaniel ! sam

I see the amusement, but contrary to what a lot of people believe about the poodle being a lap dog, it’s actually a hunting dog! woof-woof!
 
After 2200 miles in 7 days, not an issue, German roads nice and un-potholed, Belgium it is a mix, not stopped once. Petrol bloody expensive compared to the UK, this seems to have gone up from when I was there in May. On the way back we were sided up with some Swiss riders on the tunnel - they were gobsmacked as to why we thought they are mad to visit the UK roads.

Ride in Europe, go for it, ride in the UK forget it.
 
In Australia, some guys carrying drugs on bikes have been chased at about 280KPH on the Hume Freeway and have easily escaped from the police. The speed limit is 110 KPH for all vehicles and well enforced. Of course there are about 3 tight bends between Melbourne and Albury and there might be kangaroos about at dusk.
The last guy who did a runner was found by police during one of their drug raids.
 
Some rambling on this topic, I've recently returned from the mainland after a week there in my Z4 (so ironically travelling top down at motorway speed quite legally in t shirt, shorts (& Norton Cap :) with the iPod hammering out Bring ME the Horizon & Enter Shikari, it was so bloody hot.

I noted that my Garmin does not give speed camera warnings n France, it warns of 'dangerous stretches of road' - this is perfectly legal; that said, if you miss the roadside warning sign, the the French camera's are harder to spot (being grey). I'm currently on 9 points so believe me I'm tense when driving in a 'spirited' manner - though it seems to me that it's falling foul of the 30/40mph stuff on unknown roads that gets you (also helps if your V5 is registered at your current address!).

I don't have an issue with carrying bulbs & wouldn't buy a pair of non CE gloves (the mark has been around for a very long time) - although I just checked my 5 year old Lewis Leathers jacket & it's not CE marked - so let's hope the coverage of this law is not expanded! Those helmet stickers are awful, they will ruin the finish if applied & then removed (so no, I don't have them).

The Criti'Air requirement appears to be being adopted in an increasing number of rural departments potentially complicating travel, 4e for a sticker looks a safe bet - personally I think this falls into the quiet life/carrying spare bulbs area. I'm sure that I read somewhere that historic vehicles were exempt from emissions restrictions in France (but I may be confusing this with emissions al la London Congestion Zone).

When stopped I try to exercise British charm & politeness (worked for an attempted mugging @ knifepoint in New York in 1978, has continued to be useful & costs nothing). When I fell off on diesel on a French roundabout the 2 Gendarmes ignored me until they realised that I was actually trapped under the bike (saved major damage to the bike ;-) ), they grudgingly helped me to my feet & then disappeared as fast as possible whilst I replaced a smashed indicator bulb & taped the pieces of the lens together. I figure if you have the little things they are less likely to try & find a bigger problem, that said if they're having a bad day your going to suffer!

Mike
 
frankdamp
"If you think it's bad now, what do you think will happen if the UK quits the EU? They may decide to ban British-registered motorcycles altogether. Glad I'm over here in NW Washington., even though I'm too old to ride any more."

Always a remote possibility, but more likely that once we,ve left and the dust settles politically, it will be business as usual.
You,re never too old to think positive and not an excuse to pack up and avoid some of the best biking roads and countries around.
On a recent Austria trip I visited seven euro countries, 2800 miles of friendly, helpful faces and fabulous scenery from Alsace down through Austria, the Dolomites and Alps, not to mention France and of course, the welcome home English countryside.
A vintage Britbike makes many friends.

I would have loved another few days but my large (Euro) Aerospace employer doesn,t consider a Norton rally good enough reason for unpaid leave.
One of my best trips and totally unaware of toll or smog stickers, CE regs etc but will do more homework for a Flanders Poppy weekender next month.
 
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