Greek driving Laws
Accident In the event of an accident or
altercation bear in mind that it's always your fault. Carry a camera and/or
video and immediately start photographing everything and everybody. Photograph
any signs of unroadworthiness as these may not be present next time you
see the vehicle. That will normally cause people to start taking you seriously.
Hit and run is not uncommon here. The police may or may not be impartial.
The courts can be similarly unpredictable. Family ties, opportunism, corruption,
fast-talking or simple stupidity are often the dominant factors in a dispute.
In this country truth is a negotiable commodity. The police can be infuriatingly
unhelpful, lethargic, bureaucratic or again merely stupid. Of course they
can also be wonderful, helpful above and beyond the call of duty but it
is very much a lottery so keep your wits about you and take nothing for
granted.
My personal experience having received a speeding ticket (30€) for driving
60km in a 40km zone (30mph in a 20mph zone) was a friendly, professional
police attitude if not for the complicated experience in paying the
fine. One has to buy tax vouchers (a little like raffle tickets) from
the TAX office, you then take these to the police station to pay your
fine. You have 10 days to do this in Keep the receipts safe!-Sometimes
the police loose the tickets and you get a court summons for non payment!
The big bummer is that apparently the points get sent to England, I
hope not, we shall see! -not so far!
Drinking Breathalysing is just beginning to catch on
here so watch out. It has finally been accepted that the driver has the
right to refuse a roadside breath test in favour of a properly administered
blood test. Greek officials have expanded random checks and speeding surveillance
to try to improve its road safety record. Greece and Portugal are routinely
listed as having most dangerous roadways in the EU. Under the new limit
0.1 milligrams of alcohol per litre of blood, Greece joins Sweden with
the strictest codes in the European Union.
But in Greece, the new level applies to a selected group: drivers of commercial
vehicles, buses, ambulances and those with licenses for less than two
years. It also covers motorcycle and scooter operators.
Greece's current blood-alcohol limit of 0.25 milligrams of alcohol per
liter of blood (approx to small beers) will continue to apply for all
other drivers. Fines should be paid to the public treasury, not to a police
officer.
Seatbelts are compulsory in the front seats and advised in the rear. Children
under ten years of age must travel in the rear.
It is advisable to carry your driving license, insurance certificate and
vehicle registration, along with your passport.
As in all of Europe, you must carry a first aid kit, a warning triangle,
and a fire extinguisher in the car. Kefalonia roads
Road Conditions Poor to atrocious. Hardened
readymix concrete roadspills, craters, disappearing kerbs, redundant white
lines that suddenly veer off the road into the shrubbery, raised manhole
covers (often protruding to radiator height) and worse are all common.
There is little awareness of the concept of adapting one's driving to
road and weather conditions. In fact it is common for rainfall to cause
a kind of mild hysteria to set in, causing drivers to actually increase
their speed and start taking unnecessary risks (like pulling out of junctions
without looking) to get out of the rain.
Particularly on Kefalonia the roads are constructed(?) (thrown down) using
marble instead of granite. This allows the roads to perform better in
the sun but also has the undesirable effect of turning them into a permanent
equivalent to BLACK ICE. Thus, even if you meander around, you may occassionally
find the rear end twitching on bends. At speed you may get thrown out
of a curve into the path of an oncoming lorry in a rush to get to the
ferry. Having said that, if you drive with due caution or when you get
to know the roads and can anticipate the conditions better you will not
encounter many problems.
Recently some roads have been resurfaced and the conditions
are better, most notably the route through Katelios to Skala and around
Myrtos. The solid white lines now used all over are because they didnt
spend money to commission where it is safe to pass and then use dashed
lines- Consequently the double white lines are ignored everywhere!. Useful driving information
Telephone numbers
Police Service - 100
Ambulance service - 166
Fire Service - 199
Speed limit on Motorway: 120kph/74mph
Speed limit in Towns: 50kph/31mph
Speed limit on Major roads: 110kph/68 Kefalonia- Final points
Don't get into a race with another driver.
If someone wants to pass you let them, you're on holiday take your time,
enjoy the trip, enjoy the views.
If you do have an accident remain calm, if you have a camera take photos
of the scene, damges and postion of any vehicles record number plates
and details of any witnesses. Follow the advice in the Law section above.
Check you know where the petrol stations are on your route
so that you don't become stranded.
Probably the car is unfamiliar to you, take a few moments
to adjust mirrors, seats and familiarise yourself with where the switches,
fuses, spare tyre, jack (and wheel brace) and washer fluid are. Check
the tyres are in good order and all the lights are functioning.
Read our car rental page for
more information on greek driving law
Some of this article was penned by the late Martin Rothery.
His material is reproduced with the generous permission of his brother
Adrian, whose website gives the full humourous (but accurate) article.
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