Beware in Siena

Bill....you'd think that would be the easiest thing for them to do...the cost of a photo printout can't be that steep! But better for you ;)

I'm sorry to hear about that traffic tickets. I guess we got lucky just checked Rick Steves' recommendation for a public parking lot (stadium) followed the instructions of our GPS and the road signs and were fine.

Don't understand though how that could be a reason to never go back to a certain country. So far I managed to get traffic tickets in Germany (incl. a speeding ticket on the Autobahn), France, the US and Canada. It just happens after a certain amount of driving. If I struck those countries from my list of places to go I'd punish myself even more than what I had already received in punishment from the authorities.

When I drove to Siena, we asked directions to a public parking lot then walked from there. I guess I'm lucky because I didn't even know Siena had a restricted area like Florence does.

It brings up a question I've wondered about. Will a GPS keep you out of restricted driving areas or take you through them? I have one now, didn't then, it would be a great feature to know it would help me avoid risking a ticket.

I don't know about the Restricted Zones but our GPS did beep every time we got close to a speed camera in Italy.

I belive most of Siena inside the walls is a restricted area. We drove in through on of the gates and saw the "Traffico limito" signs with the cameras. The was gate near the garage marked "Duomo Parking." I was actually happy that they limit traffic. It makes the town very walkabout without having to worry too much about cars and scooters. I didn't see any signs near the fortezza or soccer stadium limiting traffic.

Becky, the seemingly increasing "limited traffic zones" are one reason I don't usually use a Car in Italy. I've found that public transit is much less problematic in many ways. When I was last in Siena, I watched a young couple search for over two hours to find a parking spot there. They did eventually find a spot, but it was a good reminder on why I prefer to avoid car rentals (expect for very specific circumstances).

In reading some of the previous posts here on the Helpline on the subject of traffic tickets, some have suggested that perhaps they should just ignore the fines and not pay them. I'm not sure what the consequences (if any?) would be with that approach? Most (if not all?) rental agreements have a clause that states that the renter is responsible for any fines, traffic tickets or whatever. When you signed the rental contract, you agreed to pay those.

I don't see any reason to avoid future travels in Siena or all of Italy as a result of this ticket. This could happen in ANY country in Europe, so why deny yourself the opportunity to further enjoy the wonders of Italy. If you also encountered this situation in other countries, before long you wouldn't have anywhere in Europe to travel.

Good luck!

Becky,

You didn't say what you did with the collection agency? We received a notice from some Swiss collection agency, indicating that we were guilty of driving a 92 km/hr in an 80/km zone (apparently caught by radar matched with photo). They contacted the Italian car rental company, who provided our address. I am not going to pay the fine (80 Euros even though it was mailed from Switzerland), since there is no way I could ever know if any of this is verifiable. Won't keep me from visiting any country...nor will it stop me from renting cars when it is advantageous to do so (I generally like trains more)

Bill...did they not time and date stamp it, with the license plate of your vehicle visible?

They didn't provide anything with the bill...(and most of it was preprinted in German...so I had some difficulty understanding everything).

I was very surprised how much traffic there was inside the city walls after reading about their restricted traffic rules. It was almost as difficult walking around in Siena's alleys as it was in Rome. It was one vehicle after another. I was very disappointed with that and I don't have any desire to go back. I was looking for a relaxing, small town we could easily walk around in and that isn't what I found.

Connie said, "I was looking for a relaxing, small town we could easily walk around in and that isn't what I found."

Yes, it sounds like your expectations were a little off base. There are small, quiet towns in Tuscany. Siena isn't one of these. It's a busy living city, with locals going about daily life in spite of the tourists.

Rather than cutting out almost all downtown traffic, I'm thinking the "restricted driving zone" is designed to let locals go about their daily life as normal in their city, with all the tourist cars barred from fouling things up.

I had gotten a different view of what to expect when reading about the restricted traffic. It's actually not very restricted at all, judging by the constant flow of traffic through the alleys, which is where all the shops and hotels are. The piazza was the only place that didn't have traffic, except for the morning delivery trucks. There's not much to do there but sit at a cafe for a little while. That was enjoyable but not something I want to do all day and night.

It is frustraing with traffic in those narrow streets, but you have to remember that what to you may seem a tourist spot is someone else's hometown. Their home is in the center, and they park their car there too. I remember when I lived in the historic center of a town here in Norhthern Italy I had to navigate crowds every Sunday just so I could unload groceries.
As for the ticket, I imagine everyone knows my views on these by now. If I got a ticket in the US I would pay it, so I would expect you to do the same getting a ticket in Italy. Anyone who drives in a limited traffic area gets a ticket--including Italians. And most Italians pay them too!

Several of you have asked for additional information:
The restricted street we drove on to get to the parking garage was Torino. We did not drive into the plaza area. We did pay $120 to the Pennsylvania collection agency and additional $25 to Hertz Italiana for giving our personal address information to the Seina authorities. We charged our rental car on American Express and I cannot say enough good things about American Express. They researched the matter and even reimbursed us most of the fees.

We know we've no desire to ever go back to Siena. We've always loved Italy and have even vacationed there the last four years. It just seems less friendly to us now. There are so many other wonderful countries to visit. We will be exploring new places in the future.