June 30 date for new road rules
Ban on hands-free mobile kits in cars, a cut in speed limits on some roads, and higher fines come into force on same day
A BAN on some hands-free kits in cars and a cut in speed limits is expected to come into force in France on June 30, it has been reported.
The hands-free kit ban is one of 26 proposals to improve road safety put forward in January by interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve. It is set to include all wired hands-free kits for mobile phones, other than wireless bluetooth headsets, AFP said.
A spokesman for the ministry told the news agency: “The hands-free kit prevents drivers hearing what is happening outside. The goal is that the driver remains aware of the outside world.”
The penalty for breaking the new law has not been announced. Currently, any driver caught using a mobile phone without a hands-free kit can be fined €135 and have three points on their licence.
On the same day, fines for illegal parking on pedestrian crossings, pavements or cycle paths will increase from €35 to €135, while the alcohol limit for new drivers, with less than three years’ experience, will be reduced to 0.2 g / l of blood.
Also read: French driving ‘getting worse’
The Ministry also told the news agency that an experimental plan to cut the speed limit to 80kph along certain stretches of road will be also introduced on June 30. It will be initially implemented on “three to five” roads where speed has been identified as a major cause of accidents. Where the reduced speed limits will be introduced has yet to be decided, from a shortlist of 15 sections.
Meanwhile, a report on the effectiveness of two-way speed cameras, currently being tested at two sites in Lyon and Lacanau, is expected in June, and testing on traffic light radar systems will begin on December 31.
The timetable for the new rules of the road was announced on Friday, the same day as the Assembly also voted to introduce legislation banning smoking in cars when anyone under the age of 18 is a passenger.
Mr Cazeneuve’s proposals are intended to cut the number of fatalities on France’s roads after figures showed road deaths rose for the first time in more than a decade in 2014.
Also read: Post fines for UK speeders in France
Photo: plantronicsgermany
