News Digest: Free-Flow Motorway Tolls, Olympics Closing Ceremony & Send Us Your Questions!

A new “péage en flux libre” – free-flow road toll – system has been installed along select motorways in France with fines for those that don’t pay. Typically, péage routes (toll motorways) in France have toll booths situated at motorway entrances and exits, where you either pick up a ticket, pay the applicable toll, or pay a standard fee.

However, these new péage flux libre have no barriers or toll booths – instead, you’ll need to look out for the blue signs designating the route a “péage flux libre”. The new system relies instead on automatic number plate registration, with drivers given up to 72 hours to pay after driving along the road.

Currently, three motorways have adopted the system – the A79 in the Allier department (Auvergne-rhône-alpes), and the A13 and A14 between Normandy and Paris – and it’s designed to cut down on stop times, allowing for more fuel and time-efficient journeys. You can pay the tolls online or at tabacs or Maisons de la Presse using the Nirio app. Frequent drivers can also purchase a pre-paid télépéage badge (find out more here). If you don’t pay within 72 hours, you’ll be issued a fine of €90, reduced to €10 if you pay within 15 days. If you still haven’t paid within two months, the fine goes up to €375.

Full details of the new system and links to the online payment platforms can be found here.

It’s been a jam-packed 10 days for sports enthusiasts as the 2024 Paris Olympic Games took the capital by storm, and the host country has had a prolific start. At the halfway point of the games, France has already taken home an impressive 48 medals, placing the country third on the leaderboard behind the USA and China. These include 13 gold medals (among them triathlon, rugby, judo, and cycling), and a whopping seven medals (four of them gold) in swimming, France’s strongest sport. You can follow the latest medal table here. The local hero of the Games has to be French swimmer Léon Marchand, who claimed four gold medals, becoming the first French OIympian to take home four gold medals at the same Olympic Games.

But, of course, the games aren’t over yet, and the final week will shift focus to track and field events, most of which will be held at the Stade de France. The events will come to a close this weekend, with the “Marathon pour tous” (marathon for all) taking place around Paris and Versailles on Saturday night (August 10^th), followed by the much-anticipated closing ceremony on Sunday (August 11^th). Unlike the spectacular Opening Ceremony, the final moments of the Games will play out in the Stade de France, with the ceremony starting at 9pm. Details of the event are still top secret, although rumour has it Tom Cruise is set to abseil into the Stade de France! With or without Cruise, it’s set to be a memorable evening, and we’ll be tuning in to watch the live broadcast along with the rest of France.

Finally, Olympic fever isn’t over yet – after a short break, the 2024 Paralympic Games will start in Paris on August 28^th!

Join us next Wednesday, August 14th, when we’ll be hosting our first ever FrenchEntrée Members webinar with the FE team, sharing our personal experiences and advice. This time, rather than inviting our expert partners to our panel, we’re going to be answering your questions directly and giving our honest advice about the property-buying journey.

As FrenchEntrée Digital Editor, I’ve had the privilege of following many of you on your journeys of moving to France or buying property, and so often, I see the same questions popping up or the same pitfalls being navigated. I’ll also be joined by FrenchEntrée Property & Relocation Advisor Debbie Nye and French Property News Editor Karen Tait, who have a wealth of both personal and professional experience.

If you have a question for us or a subject matter you’d like to hear us discuss, let us know in advance – you can email me at [email protected].

You don’t have to be a member to attend, so we hope you can all come and join us!

Start Your French Property Journey with Top Tips from the FrenchEntree Team

Wednesday 14th August
4pm UK / 5pm France / 11am USA (EDT)