[PRCo] Re: European Highway Tolls

[Boris Cefer]

Shall I respond privately? Give me a few hours of a sleep.

B
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Fred Schneider" <fwschneider at comcast.net>
To: <pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org>
Sent: Friday, February 17, 2006 4:29 PM
Subject: [PRCo] European Highway Tolls


> An Open Letter to Boris Cefer
> 
> The rest of you may read or delete as you see fit:
> 
> INTRODUCTION:
> 
> For those of you who have never driven on European highways, most of  
> the expressway networks are not free.   The German autobahns are free  
> to anyone.   So are the Biritish motorways.   The French erect toll  
> barriers almost everywhere and their tolls, by our standards, are  
> nothing short of outrageous.   When the Pennsylvania Turnpike  
> Commission was charging 3 cents a mile, the French were charging  
> twice or three times as much and taking Visa, Master Card, Eurocard,  
> American Express, Diners Club, and so forth because tolls were a big  
> ticket purchase.
> 
> But many countries charged tolls in the form of an annual sticker  
> that you put in your windshield.   And if you didn't have the  
> sticker, you risked getting a fine.   I was lucky that I never got  
> one driving across Austria without the window sticker.   Hungary, the  
> Czech Republic, Austria and Switzerland come to mind as countries  
> that require window decals in order to use their expressway  
> networks.    The decal system worked fine as long ass there were  
> customs stations at borders because the immigration people asked if  
> you planned to use the motorways or autobahns or autostradas, and  
> then directed you over to the building to your right to buy the  
> decal.   But now there are no customs people at the borders between  
> European Common Market countries.   Going from Germany into France is  
> no different from going from Pennsylvania into West Virginia and  
> sometimes they even forget to put up the welcome to France sign if  
> you're not on a major road!
> 
> So you simply need to know which countries require a window decal for  
> expressway or toll road driving....
> 
> NOW THE QUESTIONS TO BORIS:
> 
> Because I don't want to pay any traffic fines Boris, can you explain  
> the rules to me:
> 
> 1.   What is the window decal called in the Czech language?   In  
> other words, what do I ask for?   If I drive north from Linz,  
> Austria, where can I buy one?
> 
> 2.   Is it required for all foreign registered cars or cars driving  
> only on certain roads?
> 
> 3.   What time periods are they available for and at what costs?
> 
> 4    On which roads?
> 
> 5.   The AAA guide book doesn't even mention Slovakia ... not  
> important to Americans I guess.   Is such a decal required to get  
> from Wein into Bratislava and back out?   What do the Slovaks call it?
> 
> 6.   And the Hungarian tongue?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
>