Nicola Harrington - guest blogger living in France with 7 holiday rental gites
Nicola Harrington

I was chatting to a retired gendarme the other day in the village café, and asking him the usual inevitable questions about speed traps and the subsequent fines, but also where the money from speeding fines goes.

I told him that in the UK, they were generally viewed as an easy way of raising money for the government.

To my surprise, it isn’t so here, as it turns out. Speeding and general driving fines are put into a separate pot and are used for improvements in road safety, among other things. The major part goes towards reducing the State debt, some of it is added to the state budget, but it isn’t all. A large part is also returned to local and regional authorities as well as reinvested in road infrastructures. Millions of euros collected through road fines are used to finance the fight against road insecurity, in particular by improving the road network.

Faceless pedestrian walking on crossing on sunny day

For example, the communes or Mairies can apply to this “pot” to improve the safety in their town by building such things as roundabouts and pavements.

Asking around a bit I found out that this was exactly how three lots of major works were financed here in Reminiac.

Cuts down the pain of the fine a little bit!

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