Tolls, hidden tolls and other driving concerns

We drove in southern England from Bath to Devon, up to the Cotswolds, down to Salisbury and on to Heathrow, on our 2013 trip. We even ventured into Wales for a couple of hours and did not encounter toll roads on any part of our journey. We managed to avoid the speed cameras too, probably because I am a very conservative driver and was aware of them. You can't hardly help be aware of them with the signs that warn you, but when you get ticketed for one mph over I still worried about it for a while after returning.

Where are the reports of huge bills for routine tolls coming from - what source, what countries? Many countries in Europe are making it harder and harder, it's probably not on purpose but as an American tourist that's the way it feels. The more experience I get as a traveler, the more I look for ways to stick to public transit.

Thanks for the report. The reference to sneaky automated tolls (sometimes without warning) + outrageous extra fees (hidden deep in the fine print) tacked on by the car rental agencies are actually from the US. My own home town/state (Seattle/Washington) does this, and it is increasingly common across the US. The rub is that it's possible to not even know you have entered some kind of a toll road/bridge/tunnel (some have bad signage, some have none), and in a rental car, this can trigger some "service" that was part of your agreement, which then charges you a fee every day.

I know London imposes a "congestion fee" (I'm sure that's coming to my home town soon - there's nothing we love to do more than criminalize driving). I know in Italy there are the dreaded no-driving zones in many city centers.

Just trying to be forewarned about any similar pitfalls waiting for drivers in the UK. Thanks.

there are next to no road tolls in the UK - one part of the M6, which is avoidable, and a few bridges and tunnels
https://www.gov.uk/uk-toll-roads
there's the congestion charge in central London - just don't drive in central London
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/modes/driving/congestion-charge

"are there any other cities or towns that make driving through a crime?"
not if you stick to the speed limit - there are many cameras across the UK so watch your speed and you'll be OK

if you want specific answers where are you going?

If you haven't driven in the U.K. before, a bit of research on using roundabouts and other "traffic protocols" would be prudent. As you noted, speed traps are also a concern, so watch your speeds closely. You may find it useful to pack along a GPS unit (I always do) or at least a good map.

Please read the relevant sections of the Highway Code before driving in the UK:
http://www.highwaycodeuk.co.uk/uploads/3/2/9/2/3292309/the-official-highway-code-with-annexes-uk-en-12-04.pdf

(downloadable PDF).

Thanks, all good to know. I have downloaded the Highway Code and took a look - mostly common sense stuff, a lot more detail than I would expect, I'll review it on the plane when I need some sleep. :) Yes, I will approach the roundabouts with care.
Sounds like there are very few toll roads, which is nice to hear.
I do see that Durham (which is on our itinerary) has followed London with their own "congestion fee" - the charge is just £2, but if you don't pay it by 6 pm that day, they fine you and extra £50.00 just so you leave Durham with clear memories - ouch. We will steer clear.

Most towns and cities have a pedestrianised town centre through which you cannot drive (except deliveries in a restricted time period, disabled). But, unlike London and Durham absolutely nobody can drive, and they are obviously pedestrian areas, with bollards or other barriers. It is virtually impossible to accidentally drive into one.
For example this is the centre of Nottingham.
This is Launceston, Devon, showing the bollards blocking off the pedestrianised street

P.S. When you learn to drive in the UK you have to learn the Highway Code (including the traffic signs, very important), and you are tested on them as part of your Driving Test. There is no legal excuse for not knowing the Highway Code.

Also stay out of bus lanes, which are clearly marked. There are some places in cities where there are bus-only short-cuts to cross junctions more directly than other traffic, and are marked as such, and contra-flow bus lanes where a street is buses-only in a single direction but open to all traffic going the other way.

This doesn't sound so much like a question as a chance to have a rant at earning a ticket at home last week.

Rant away, but going on at great length about becoming a criminal isn't very productive. Traffic fines are civil, not criminal. If you get caught pay the fine.

I'm not sure what the comment that London goes to extreme steps to punish drivers is all about. If you drive into a particularly busy small part of London on a work day there is a charge to drive there. It is clearly marked by large red letter "C"s and the wording in large letters below it with the times it is active below that. Most people can read the sign from nearly 100 yards away. It is written on the road too, in huge letters. It doesn't punish you - where did you get that idea? - it is there to discourage usage of the already congested roads and keep them from getting even more congested.

It is only roughly south of Euston Road, north of the River, west of the Tower of London and east of Park Lane.

That area is full of one way roads and extremely slow traffic. I, who regularly drive in London, don't go there except on weekends. 20 years I've been driving in London and never once have I owed a Congestion Charge.

The Queen Elizabeth Bridge on the M25 at the Dartford Crossing and the Dartford Tunnel going the other way have electronic payment. It is clearly signed and you can pay online or by phone. It is there so the queues don't back up onto and beyond the bridge.

One Severn crossing between England and Wales has a toll, at a toll booth.

A few small private roads or bridges have a few pence toll, fully attended.

I think that the comment you made about reading the Highway Code to put you to sleep on the plane says a world about you and your attitude.

If you want to receive excellent advice aimed at keeping you out of trouble and not only ignore it but say you will ignore it, how do you think people will come to help you.

Let us know the next time you get a ticket, OK?

The reference to sneaky automated tolls (sometimes without warning) + outrageous extra fees (hidden deep in the fine print) tacked on by the car rental agencies are actually from the US

I remember reading about the same thing in San Fran - perhaps the Golden Gate Bridge? There was an article I read warning people renting cars about the bill they will most likely get in the mail from the rental company. We did rent when leaving SF but left by the Bay Bridge (and I could be wrong, but I think you only pay if you are coming into the city?) Anyways, if you missed that one little thing in your travel prep, that bill in the mail would be a shocker for sure!

I don't think David came on just to complain about getting a ticket - it happens to most of us at some point - hey, my husband got one a few years ago that cost $185! You seem to be doing your due diligence.

And I think reading about a highway code could put an insomniac to sleep - I'm sure it's very dry (if necessary) reading. I'll most likely be asking the same thing soon enough when we are getting ready for our car rental in the South of France in Oct.

My my...apparently my attempt at humor failed utterly and instead I touched a nerve. Apologies. The UK driving code is a lovely publication, thorough and impressively exhaustive in its detail - I was just expecting a less comprehensive reference as most US states typically provide (we don't usually see instructions on how to park your car, rules about riding your horse, etc.). Ours tend to be a quick read and light on the details; the UK obviously takes a very different approach (we have a lot of terrible drivers who probably shouldn't be on the road at all, maybe the UK system addresses that - I'll see in a few weeks).

If UK cities want to take steps to keep people from driving private cars, that's their business, and as a visitor I will certainly respect those choices and will try my best to heed other laws, too. I won't be driving anywhere near London, for a list of reasons. I will be driving through Durham, although I suspect I won't get anywhere near their "congestion area" but I'm glad I found out about that now, rather than upon arrival (or after I've violated it). I just want to know about such restrictions before I find myself on the wrong side of them. And while I do have my own opinions on the fairness and appropriateness of automated systems that act as judge, jury and executioner and how those systems are used, that's not an appropriate subject for discussion here.

Here in the US, there are indeed automated systems that will levy a fine on unsuspecting drivers, who simply made the mistake of driving a rented car in the wrong place, otherwise in full compliance with all traffic laws, and the car rental agencies appear to take this as an opportunity to add their own non-trivial fees to that, and the resulting bill can be huge and unexpected. The electronic tolling of the Golden Gate Bridge cited above is one example, we have another here where I live. From what I've read elsewhere, there are toll highways in Florida, Texas and multiple US east coast states that can trigger large after-the-fact charges for unsuspecting car renters. I'm just trying to become informed and not stumble into such a situation.

The advice and opinions shared here are appreciated, and no offense was intended.

Don't drive like this plonker though:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gngODTnc7Ec

Last September we drove from Bath to Cornwall, then to Tintern, Wales there was a toll going into Wales. We drove up into Wales then over to Yorkshire, then to Manchester and didn't have any other tolls.

david, thanks for creating the post, I was after similar information myself. it appears that sometimes on this forum certain people are all too quick to get 'picky' and about a question ( particularly if the words or phrases used are not the usual ones used in that country etc) rather than take the questions/comments as being general in nature. which is a shame, as most times people are just trying to be helpful.

You can generally assume that all roads in Britain are toll free. On the main road system, the Dartford Bridge on the M25 crossing the Thames east of London is tolled as are the Severn Bridges crossing the estuary into Wales - where you pay a toll of £6.50 at a manned toll booth. (No toll leaving Wales on the M4/M48 bridges). Free motorways pass through the Birmingham area with the exception of a faster M6 'Toll' route to the north of the city. Most drivers refuse to use it and so the government have learnt their lesson that tolled expressways is not the way to go.

As British towns & cities developed from medieval times, you will often find their centres to be compact and unsuitable for everybody arriving by car. You will therefore find extensive pedestrian areas where you can wander around shopping zones / historic sites without the noise and pollution caused by vehicles. (Signs indicate early times of the day when deliveries can be made). You will also find Park & Rides (P&R) marked around the edges of towns & cities. This is where you can drive into a car park and catch a shuttle bus which will take you into the centre - often along designated bus lanes. (Cameras take photos of cars in these lanes - which usually have green tar).

Britain has high traffic volumes but is one of the safest countries in the world in which to drive. You should not overtake in any lane or hog the middle lane on 3 lane divided highways if the inner lane is relatively empty. However, generally you will find the inner (left) lane to have slower moving traffic and it is also a good idea not to be in this lane (if possible) where traffic is joining the highway from a slip road. The speed limit on divided highways is usually 70mph - though you will often see people doing around 80mph. (They generally know where the cameras are located). The cameras on motorways (like interstates) are usually on overhead gantries and on other roads, they are yellow boxes. All non divided roads have a speed limit of 60mph (denoted by a black bar on white background sign) unless a lower limit is shown.

Do not break temporary speed limits at roadworks as they always have cameras.

On country lanes, you may find some are so narrow that should you meet a car coming the other way, you need to reverse to a passing place. Most Brits are skilled at this. Make sure you can drive backwards!

At roundabouts, you give way to the traffic already on the roundabout.

Try and look at the routes you will be using on Google Earth to get some idea of what to expect.

David... I have driven in UK a number of times, but it sounds as though things are getting more complicated all the time. Just learning the signage is probably the most important... and learn to back-up or turn around!:)
As far as the US... I drive in Fl. a lot and yes, those toll roads are also becoming crazy... very hard to understand exactly what you need to do as a tourist... especially in a rental car. Bad enough to look out for the slow drivers hogging both lanes, now I have to worry about fines!

If you are headed as far north as Scotland, Glasgow recently started some new laws about bus lanes and such. You can get fines if you drive in them and they are not that well marked per some earlier discussions. I just don't drive in Glasgow. Edinburgh is okay now that the trams are done, I hear. Scotland has managed to abolish tolls on its bridges....You used to have to pay to go to Skye, cross the Firth of Forth and the Tay, but no more. The great website Undiscovered Scotland has a nice piece on driving in Scotland and this lovely one on Single Track roads.

Any stretch of road with speed cameras has to have clear signs telling you there are cameras, and the cameras themselves are painted yellow so you can spot them easily--the idea is not to generate fines but to moderate speed. Some traffic lights also have cameras to catch red light jumpers, but again there will be signs telling you (though these cameras aren't usually yellow).

Long stretches of motorway road works often have average speed cameras. These register when you enter and leave the area (sometimes with intermediate cameras too) and work out your average speed over the distance. In these places (again clearly signposted) it is important to keep your speed at or below the advertised limit, usually 50 mph. Driving fast and only slowing down when you see a camera won't help. Not that you should do that anyway.

david, we are driving around some of South west England at the moment. one thing I have picked up ( compared to Australia) is on the small streets and roads, they park facing in any direction. this is strange to us. so driving down a small suburban street you have parked cars ( sometimes both sides of the street) and you see cars parking in all directions. at home we would get fined if the cars were not parked facing in the correct direction. eg: in the direction of the lane they are nearest to.
this could be a bit strange also for someone who is use to driving on the other side of the road.
hope this helps.