Renting a Car? Do you know what a ZTL is?

ZTL are limited traffic zones in Italy, where only cars with a permit are allowed to enter during certain hours.

Here is a picture of the sign.

The sign is only in Italian, which I think is suspicious because in Italy, anytime they want Americans (and other tourists) to do business with them (and spend money), they find a way to put the signs in English, but here, when they can collect fines by not using English, they only use Italian. If they really wanted to keep traffic out, they would post it in English too, but the don't.

It's a darn international 'No Vehicles' sign with elaboration.

If you don't know what signs mean, don't drive.

Good idea for a post. Too bad so many people log on here after their trip, not before, certain that the Italian police or rental company are scamming them.

The sign is only in Italian, which I think is suspicious because in Italy, anytime they want Americans (and other tourists) to do business with them (and spend money), they find a way to put the signs in English, but here, when they can collect fines by not using English, they only use Italian.

I am stretching my sleepy mind trying to think of any Italian road signs which are in English.

I can't think of any on motorways. I'm picturing the sort of signs denoting parking restrictions and length of parking, and days of road cleaning - I can't remember any of those in English.

I'm thinking of special signs denoting diversions, road conditions, or roadworks - I can't think of any of those in English, either. I can think of a few in the SuedTirol in German as well as Italian, but not in English.

I wonder which signs were being spoken about?

Zona Traffico Limitato really can't be that hard to figure out and yes it has the international symbol attached as well. I don't think the issue is so much not understanding the sign as people are driving around trying to figure out where they are and they are unawares.

Nigel how about Stop ;)

@Lee: It is insulting to say they just want to impose fines.
These signs are clear and unambiguous, no vehicles past this point. They want to keep vehicles out, not fine you.

As Ed says, It is your duty as a visitor to know the signs before you get in the car (and in this case it is the international sign, so nothing to learn).
Why would you expect them to post signs in foreign languages (and if so which, the language of ever member of the UN?). And since the "no motor vehicles" sign is just a red circle no writing on it, there is nothing to translate. The "7,30 - 19,30" underneath also does not need any italian to understand.

Slightly off subject. I would suggest all potential drivers from "across the pond" read this document.
It is the official list of road signs from the British Department of Transport (and is therefore in English). Each country has subtle differences in signs, but they are 95% the same.

• Page 9 is very important. It tells you the vital information that circular signs give orders, triangular signs are information. The "Driving Tips and Road Rules" page on this website misses off this vital fact.
• Page 37 shows the British equivalent of the ZTL, a "Pedestrian Zone", with virtually the same sign.

@Chris: What is insulting is that they just want to impose fines.

Crap!

I wish I hadn't posted right under Lee and put him in a fireball. My point was that anybody driving should know the signs. Lee obviously does.

Something I've been curious about after reading all the posts about the signs. Once a driver comes upon one of the ZTL signs are there also signs directing the driver which way or where to turn to avoid the zone? It's one thing to accidently drive into the area and not know you are violating the law, but if you drive into the area, see the sign, know what it represents but have no idea how to get out of the area or which side streets are okay to drive on that is a whole different matter. It appears that quite a lot of the people that have accidently drove into a ZTL rented in the city center so if it's not currently being done in taking care of their customer base car rental companies should provide a map of the area that highlights where these zones are located.

The signs are at boundary intersections such that you have a way to divert. They're not at mid-block.

Information about Driving in Italy
http://www.slowtrav.com/italy/driving/traffic_cameras_speeding.htm

5 Ways to Get A Traffic Ticket in Italy
http://www.italybeyondtheobvious.com/dont-mess-with-ztl-zones

@Ed, you can say that again (oh, you did).

I've only driven in Italy once (only visited once), but I found the ZTL signs pretty unambiguous. Even if you don't speak Italian, it's pretty obvious that the signs are indicating that you can't drive there.

Italy, like the rest of Europe and many other countries around the world, uses the International signage system established by the 1968 Vienna U.N. Convention on Road Signs and Signals.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vienna_Convention_on_Road_Signs_and_Signals

The US has chosen not to adopt that International standard (and what do you expect from the only country that instead of adopting the easier metric system still measures distances in feet and rods) and instead has decided to use signs written in English language, rather than symbols, such as "No U turn" or "No Parking" or "right lane must turn right". Obviously the US has decided to do so to force everybody to learn English when driving in the US. The fact that I've never seen a road sign in America that is in both English and Spanish is a clear conspiracy against Mexican immigrants.

However, regarding the accusation that in Italy signs are only in Italian, the City of Florence has installed bilingual ZTL signs in both Italian and English (see link below) with even a red and green light to indicate when the ZTL is active or when access is permitted (generally at night).

The signs in Italian and English, plus the green/red lights, have been installed gradually since 2009. But apparently that is still not preventing some Americans from getting fines for entering the ZTL. I'm not exactly sure at this point what the City of Florence can do to help these people. How about not checking in their brain along with their luggage when they travel?

http://www.firenzedabere.it/images/recensioni2/pannello_luminoso_ztl_firenze_2009.jpg

I certainly applaud Florence for putting some signs in English. Assuming they are gong to do this everywhere, I won't apologize for people who enter these zones, nor criticize the local government for giving fines for entering well marked zones. I'm not trying to be jingoistic; although only about 40 million people speak Italian as a first language, over 2 billion speak English as one of their languages. Although I don't necessarily like it, American is the international language of travel, and signs should include a language that most people understand.

As for the US, unlike Europe, where only 75% of the people speak one of five languages as their mother tongue, here, over 80% of the people speak one language, American, as their first language, and most of the other people understand American. So, having to put signs in a second language is not that important.

Lee,

"American is the international language of travel"

I guess that means that I'm not able to speak the international language of travel, as I don't necessarily speak "American". Did you mean to say "English"?

Maybe like most Americans, he meant Canadians too, just elided the North part. Or maybe Canadians speak American - and just spell funny, eh.

When did Germany start putting their road signs in English? And I missed the radio traffic announcements in English - or American.

BTW - the vast majority of people in Italy speak Italian. Tourists are a very small part of the number of people in Italy at any one time.

I am sure Lee meant to say English, not American.

In 1976 I stayed at a private youth hostel in Rome right next to the Ponte Sisto. What a great place, i may have been the only US citizen there. One night back in the bunk room a young man from India was quite drunk; he had just been denied passage through Germany on the train because he did not have enough money on him, and sent back to Rome. He was in quite the foul mood and was complaining to me about American privilege, quite loudly, when another young man from Columbia spoke up and said, "Hey, I am an American too." That defused the situation and we decided to go out and drink more.

ZTL sings are post at intersections. Problem is that many drivers do not actually pay much attention to traffic signaling in general, but just "go with the flow", and "going with the flow" is an assured way to get a ticket in Italy (as neighborhood residents have passes and permits that allow them to drive into most ZTLs).

Actually, 90% or more of "unfair ticketing" complaints I read here are about trying to drive based on "context" instead of regulations. Hence ZTL violations, parking violations, sector control speed violations etc. And many people then forget camera enforcement (of speed, red lights, illegal overtaking, forbidden entry etc) in Europe is much more widespread than in US, hence the claims these tickets are "scams".