Friday, March 17, 2006

Info about Driving in Italy

(LAST EDITED/UPDATED: 14 May 2009)

Here are the links about Driving in Italy:

AUTOMOBILE CLUBS
AUTOSTRADA
COMMENTS/OBSERVATIONS
 DISTANCE BETWEEN CITIES
DRIVING
INTERNATIONAL DRIVING PERMIT (IDP)
LIMITED TRAFFIC AREAS
OBSERVATIONS
  • The following are personal observations and opinions of the blog writer based on driving in Italy:
    • There are many 2 lane roads in Italy. Some roads are marked with lines in the center of the road and others have none.
    • Many Italian drivers will drive in a manner to take up two lanes or drive in the middle of the road.
    • I have seen too many Italian drivers not come to a complete stop for Stop signs and Red Stop lights at intersections.
    • Many Italian drivers will pass your vehicle when there are solid white or yellow lines indicating a No Passing zone.
    • Outside of many Italian cities, there are NO sidewalks. People will be walking along the side of the road wearing dark clothing and will be difficult to see at night and during inclement weather: snow or rain.
    • In many small towns, you will see a small 3 wheeled vehicle called an Ape. They are slow moving vehicles. Please exercise caution when passing these vehicles especially going up and down hills and on curves.
    • The distance to the next exit, service area or a town/city off of the Autostrata is posted on a green colored sign in white letters on the divider barrier by the left lane in kilometers. These signs are the equivalent of mile markers usually found on the right side of the road on Interstates in the USA.
PARKING
ROAD CLASSIFICATIONS
ROAD/TRAVEL CONDITIONS
ROAD SIGNS
WEATHER
  • Italy – Select from list of cities/towns in Italy – "Weatherbase is your one authoritative source for finding monthly weather records and averages for more than 16,439 cities worldwide." – Source: Weatherbase
  • italy-weather-and-maps.com – home to maps of Italy, current Italian weather conditions, and six day weather forecasts for every Italian region and province.
MISCELLANEOUS
* = Blog entry has been updated.

The above links are current. If anyone has any suggestions for other sites, please feel free to post your comment and I'll update this blog entry. For your specific interest, please search the web for further information using Google .

Please note: If you want me to reply by email, please include your email address in a separate comment. I will NOT publish any comments with an email address.

It is important to note that while many rental car web sites do not state that you should have an International Driving Permit (IDP), it is required to avoid paying a fine in the event you have an accident and/or are asked to show it along with your drivers license issued by the state (USA) you reside in to the Italian police. The risk by not having an IDP is having your rental car impounded and being detained by the Italian police. For the $10.00 fee paid to American Automobile Association (AAA) or to the National Automobile Club, its a small price to pay for piece of mind if you are renting a car in Italy. Please note: Only 2 organizations in the U.S. are authorized by the State Department to offer an International Drivers' Permit, the National Automobile Club and American Automobile Association.

You'll hear a lot about driving in Italy. For some individuals it will be a challenge because of the various types of vehicles that are on the road in Italy and the behavior of some of the drivers. I have driven in Italy since the late 80's on vacation and have had no problems and more importantly, no accidents. UPDATE: On 16 January 2008, I had my first accident in Italy and Europe. If you hate city driving in the States, I can tell you it is a lot worse in the medium to large Italian cities.

Remember take you time to go from to place to place and be careful. I would suggest and recommend picking up a good map for the specific region(s) you are driving in Italy. You do not need a book of maps to carry around with you.

Several rental car companies and travel agencies offer GPS units for rental cars. While they are a nice to have item, most of these GPS units cover only 80% of Italy. However, note where you are traveling to in Italy. Normally, you can get to most major cities and town but if you go off the beaten path, you'll find out how much is NOT covered by the GPS unit.

That's it for Friday, 17 March 2006: venerdì, 17 marzo 2006.

Ciao, Ben

Moving2Italy2 – #1 source of links About, For or On Italy for those individuals moving, traveling or already living in Italy.

Today’s quote is an Italian proverb, author unknown.

"Più che le parole persuadano gli esempi."
"Actions speak louder than words."

Please read my wife's blog about our life in Italy:

Friends and Family in Italy

Going to Spain, read my new blog:

Info About, For or On Spain – a source of links About, For or On Spain for those individuals traveling or already living in Spain.

(LAST EDITED/UPDATED: 14 May 2009)
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