Tuesday 18 December 2012

Travelling around Rome by Car


If you are travelling Europe in a car rental or in your own vehicle and arrive in Rome you may find things difficult. There is no parking in the city and the drivers are a bit crazy. Half the drivers in the city tend to be unpredictable so only experienced drivers should apply, or at least drivers experienced in driving in this kind of environment.

Basically don’t drive in Rome. If you can’t help it and arrive via vehicle, get to your destination ASAP and ditch the vehicle and hop on those legs of yours to move around the place. Rome is best seen on foot because there is simply too much to see at speed. The real issue though of course is that any moment spent behind the wheel increases your chance of being cleaned up by an insane Roman doing double the speed limit on the wrong side of the road. For whatever reason the police are lax in enforcing the law on the roads of Rome, and even if they did it wouldn't matter because the road rules of Italy are a bit on the crazy side themselves. The speed limits are generally much higher than normal, with highway speed limit being 130km/h.

The fast lane though finds sports cars in excess of 150 km/h frequently so STAY AWAY from this lane.
Until recently speed limits were rarely enforced. As a result Italian roads have a reputation of being no limit which is certainly not the case. Occasionally the unfortunate foreigner would be pulled over doing 130 in a 110 zone and to their chagrin receive a scolding and a fine despite protests. Now though, the implementation of speed cameras and a policy change has seen the Italian law enforcement collecting big on speeding tickets. So be warned! Speed cameras are everywhere and the police WILL pull you over and book you. Obey the speed limits, even if the locals do not and get huffy behind you for going too slow. Unless you want to pay the cost.

In Rome central there are parts of the city that are inaccessible to vehicles unless you are a resident. It is important that you get an indication of where you can and cannot drive. If caught in these zones without the proper authority you will get fined and yelled at in a haughty Italian manner. The historic city centre is also closed off to people who are not commercial vehicles or local residents but you can purchase a pass for it. This is just another way that Rome gets an extra few bucks out of you.

There is really no benefit to driving around Rome. It won’t be quicker than public transport and the hair you will lose from the stress of it will be far worse than any stress the public transport system and having to share personal space with someone else will case. Simply put, Rome is probably one of the worst cities in Europe to drive in, so if you have a car rental, terminate it at Rome for the duration of your trip and pick it back up when you leave.
This post brought to you by the car travel enthusiasts at Skedaddle, if you’re keen to hire a car for you next journey, give them a look.