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Hello we are leaving the Costa Blanca to drive back through Spain up into France and to Cherbourg, is it law to carry snow chains in certain regions in France at certain times of the year?
Yes.
www.wandering-bird.com/france-winter-law/
Scroll to the end however and you'll find this!
NOTE: The French Government clearly say here that there will be no fines for breaching this law in the first year (so up until March 2022). I have no clue why, but there it is!
Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2022 7:21pm
Darro wrote on Thu Jan 20, 2022 5:31pm:
Yes.
www.wandering-bird.com/france-winter-law/
Read more...
Scroll to the end however and you'll find this!
NOTE: The French Government clearly say here that there will be no fines for breaching this law in the first year (so up until March 2022). I have no clue why, but there it is!
Interesting it mentions the Loire in the list but on the map it’s not blue, can’t think why you’d need snow chains in the Loire?
Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2022 9:23pm
Super helpful member
In the last 50 years I travelled through France (always on motorways) in winter never needed chains. In some areas (massiv central) better mind night times.
Posted: Fri Jan 21, 2022 7:43am
killjoy wrote on Thu Jan 20, 2022 9:23pm:
In the last 50 years I travelled through France (always on motorways) in winter never needed chains. In some areas (massiv central) better mind night times.
It’s a new law, nothing about needing them.
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Posted: Fri Jan 21, 2022 1:29pm
Legendary helpful member
The worst and most frightening experience of our lives was driving one January through the Massif Central about 20 years ago. We were on that very long motorway and were suddenly hit by an unexpected blizzard, freezing onto the roads and into solid blocks of ice on the wipers which we had to try and clear from the inside as we darent stop. We passed a huge service area and drove in and immediately out as it was overwhelmed with lorries and nowhere at all to park .So we kept going. We owned at that time a Citroen C5 , but didn’t have snow chains. That car was amazing it just kept on going. We passed huge Range Rovers and other SUVs as well as normal family cars which had given up, unable to go any further. The Citroen just kept rolling, slowly admittedly, but never skidded or failed. My partner was really frightened for the first time in his life and I was a wreck. We made it eventually to the next town, where fortunately there was a Campanile with a room.
We were so relieved we wrote to Citroen to tell them how impressed we had been with the vehicle performance. But would not try again to traverse that kind of area in winter without chains!!!
Posted: Fri Jan 21, 2022 4:19pm
Stephanie86 wrote on Fri Jan 21, 2022 1:29pm:
The worst and most frightening experience of our lives was driving one January through the Massif Central about 20 years ago. We were on that very long motorway and were suddenly hit by an unexpected blizzard, freezing onto the roads and into solid blocks of ice on the wipers which we had to try ...
Read more...
...and clear from the inside as we darent stop. We passed a huge service area and drove in and immediately out as it was overwhelmed with lorries and nowhere at all to park .So we kept going. We owned at that time a Citroen C5 , but didn’t have snow chains. That car was amazing it just kept on going. We passed huge Range Rovers and other SUVs as well as normal family cars which had given up, unable to go any further. The Citroen just kept rolling, slowly admittedly, but never skidded or failed. My partner was really frightened for the first time in his life and I was a wreck. We made it eventually to the next town, where fortunately there was a Campanile with a room.
We were so relieved we wrote to Citroen to tell them how impressed we had been with the vehicle performance. But would not try again to traverse that kind of area in winter without chains!!!
Hi thanks doesn’t answer my question about the list and map being different particularly in relation to the Loire.
Posted: Fri Jan 21, 2022 5:34pm
Legendary helpful member
So sorry if I have annoyed you.
Having checked on a French govt website, which as you say, lists Loire, I would have assumed that the govt of the country knows what it is doing and if it says Loire included, suggedt you invest in snowchains.
Posted: Fri Jan 21, 2022 6:20pm
Helpful member
Stephanie86 wrote on Fri Jan 21, 2022 5:34pm:
So sorry if I have annoyed you.
Having checked on a French govt website, which as you say, lists Loire, I would have assumed that the govt of the country knows what it is doing and if it says Loire included, suggedt you invest in snowchains.
That must have been horrific for you both. Thanks for sharing that for future ref. (should just have answered her question then haha. )
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