Renato1
Established Member
- Joined
- May 1, 2015
- Posts
- 1,730
After my brother got three 120 Euro fines last year in a couple of minutes trying to find a car park in the local small city, first thing I did this year was ask my cousin what signs I have to look out for.
She said "ZTL" meaning Zona Traffico Limitato. It took me several weeks, but I finally spotted one - a pale yellow circle with the ZTL in it, stuck on the side of a building inside the road one is entering. Later I found that there are also electronic signs on carts placed on the road one is entering, with either green "Non Attivo" (I can use the road) or red "Attivo" with times in little writing (drive through and get a fine).
The two big problems are,
A. Car navigators don't know about ZTL, and
B. There are no warning signs saying you are coming to these no-drive zones, you only find out about them as you attempt to turn into them.
Two days ago in Ravenna, my car navigator took me into a big roundabout, with a park in the middle. I went over 10 meters down the one-way exit my navigator said to go, when I came to the red ZTL sign on a cart. So I pulled to the side of the narrow road, made room for cars to pass me, and proceeded with the hair raising task of reversing back against on-coming traffic and back into the round about. Then I took off and tried the next exit, where there was yet another such sign - so I swerved out of that lane, cutting across on-coming traffic heading toward the stop sign on the other side of the road. Very warily, I approached the next exit - which also had another ZTL sign. The only way out of that roundabout turned out to be the way I had come in.
I later asked an Italian friend about ZTL, and he said he had gotten 50 Euro fine in Turin last year, where he too had had the difficult choice to make - go forward and get a fine, or stop and probably have a pile up on top of him because of the heavy traffic.
Plainly, ZTL isn't an issue for locals who can adjust for the signs. But the lack of easily visible warning signs indicating that one is approaching a ZTL sign, or that streets one is approaching have ZTL signs in them, makes it a great revenue booster from out-of-towners and tourists.
It certainly takes some of the pleasure out of driving around Italy. Not everywhere, though. In Rimini I asked the hotel desk attendant about ZTLs in Rimini before going there. She said yes, that there were ZTLs in Rimini, but that I need not worry, as I'd have a tough time making my way to them.
Anyhow, now I will wait and see if any fines turn up when I get back home.
Cheers,
Renato
She said "ZTL" meaning Zona Traffico Limitato. It took me several weeks, but I finally spotted one - a pale yellow circle with the ZTL in it, stuck on the side of a building inside the road one is entering. Later I found that there are also electronic signs on carts placed on the road one is entering, with either green "Non Attivo" (I can use the road) or red "Attivo" with times in little writing (drive through and get a fine).
The two big problems are,
A. Car navigators don't know about ZTL, and
B. There are no warning signs saying you are coming to these no-drive zones, you only find out about them as you attempt to turn into them.
Two days ago in Ravenna, my car navigator took me into a big roundabout, with a park in the middle. I went over 10 meters down the one-way exit my navigator said to go, when I came to the red ZTL sign on a cart. So I pulled to the side of the narrow road, made room for cars to pass me, and proceeded with the hair raising task of reversing back against on-coming traffic and back into the round about. Then I took off and tried the next exit, where there was yet another such sign - so I swerved out of that lane, cutting across on-coming traffic heading toward the stop sign on the other side of the road. Very warily, I approached the next exit - which also had another ZTL sign. The only way out of that roundabout turned out to be the way I had come in.
I later asked an Italian friend about ZTL, and he said he had gotten 50 Euro fine in Turin last year, where he too had had the difficult choice to make - go forward and get a fine, or stop and probably have a pile up on top of him because of the heavy traffic.
Plainly, ZTL isn't an issue for locals who can adjust for the signs. But the lack of easily visible warning signs indicating that one is approaching a ZTL sign, or that streets one is approaching have ZTL signs in them, makes it a great revenue booster from out-of-towners and tourists.
It certainly takes some of the pleasure out of driving around Italy. Not everywhere, though. In Rimini I asked the hotel desk attendant about ZTLs in Rimini before going there. She said yes, that there were ZTLs in Rimini, but that I need not worry, as I'd have a tough time making my way to them.
Anyhow, now I will wait and see if any fines turn up when I get back home.
Cheers,
Renato