Many residents of the Alpes-Maritimes are inundated with fines for speeding committed across the border, in Italy.
The inhabitants of the Roya valley, located on both sides of the Franco-Italian border, received very bad news just before the end of year celebrations and the start of this year 2024. And for good reason, in these small villages located to the east of the Alpes-Maritimes department, many received very bad news in their mailboxes. Thousands of fines are raining down on the inhabitants of these small towns according to information from France Bleu. All are ordered to pay fines for the same reason: speeding violations committed not far away, but on the Italian side.
This is because, at the beginning of 2023, two new radars were installed in the territory of Ventimiglia, a city in Liguria known worldwide, particularly for its famous market. On the SS20 road, between Porro and Truoco, a radar keeps flashing on a section of road where the speed is limited to 50 km/h. Problem, for French border crossers used to taking this route, some to go to their place of work, they have never received any fine. Until they all arrive at once at the end of the year.
Moreover, no motorist in the Roya valley disputes the facts, but rather the interminable delay between the date of the offense and receipt of the report. A resident of Tende, one of the border towns with Italy, even created a Facebook page and an association to raise awareness about this administrative dysfunction. “I received a fine of 210 euros to be paid within five days for an offense committed on July 9, 2023, plague in comments relayed on the France Bleu website this nurse used to taking the SS20. In the village we do not talk about that! I don’t know a person who hasn’t received a fine apart from those who don’t have cars.”
For some, the bill is very steep since the fines add up, not to mention that the fines for speeding are higher in Italy than in France. The amount claimed rises to 3,000 euros for those who have been cheated the most. And residents now live with the fear of receiving new tickets. Faced with the annoyance of his constituents, the mayor of Breil-sur-Roya, a small town with barely more than 2,000 inhabitants, wrote to his counterpart in Ventimiglia to ask him to find a solution.