Googs

Does anyone know why drivers in Italy drive with their turn signal on? I believe it's on when they are in the left lane. Is this driving etiquette or law?

logos999

I just love this. You'll get a zillion answers.

We Germans do that too, just because we're such a nice bunch of fellows ;-)

logos999

Did they hurt or harm you in any way or flipped the finger?

Pvoyageuse

We do it in France too and you can even get fined if you don't !

Googs

What is the reason you have your turn signal on? Alert other drivers?

No, we didn't get flipped off. Hee hee.

stfc

Please explain further - indicating left or right? While steady in the lane or just when changing lanes?

logos999

Honestly? I thought everybody knew?

"While steady in the lane, indicating left" means:

"you're going too slow, blocking my way and I'd like to pass. Would you pull over please"

stfc

Not in the UK. Flashing headlights as the car approaches from behind usually gets the message across. If not, brain dead tailgating usually achieves the aim.

If you're unobservant enough not to notice a car approaching from behind, how are you going to spot its turn indicator?

logos999

Flashing headlights was deemed aggessive by the politically correct folks and you could have been sued for coercion. As a result, people today use the turn signal. You'll see it every few seconds on the autobahns and autostadas.

logos999

You'll spot it, as soon as the other guy is 3 meters behind you. Enough time to accelerate and pull over.

I honestly expected everybody to know that.

stfc

Well thanks for that, logos. I'll bear it in mind when I drive in Europe next time. Hope I didn't upset anybody in June - not by flashing headlights at them, which I don't, but by missing their indicators. I don't think I did.

I'll have another look at my guide to driving in other countries.

Googs

Oh, the turn signal is nice compared to tailgating, which we do in the USA. When we were driving in Italy it appeared that drivers would constantly have their left turn signal on whether a car was in front of them or not. Is this accepted in Europe?

dandj

there is nothing reasonable about driving in italy. Dont even try to figure any of it out.

Why there arent car and body parts at each corner, is only a miracle.

"Only by the grace of God go I"

never have I seen such unneccesary rates of speed in highly populated areas.

my sister still hasnt recovered from the day we drove the Amalfi !!

But, you gotta love it.
I have been to Italy 5 times

logos999

>constantly have their left turn signal on
Not constantly, but almost. If there's no car in front, who cares. So yes, it's accepted when you're going fast.
Otoh, wanting to pass doesn't mean, he's respecting the speed limit .

Anyway it's a clear indication of what the other guy wants.

nytraveler

It could be either:

you're in the left land and not passing (a high crime) so move NOW

or

I'm in the left lane and passing and will move right as soon as I can.

If this happens to you a lot you're probably driving in the left lane (which is for PASSING) - or just driving way too slow.

travelbunny

they are just trying to indicate that their testosterone levels...

cathies

Hi Logos999, we had no idea of that when we drove in France in June this year. We are Australian and it takes a while to adjust to driving on the "wrong" side of the road After about 10 mins on a freeway surrounded by lots of horns honking, my HB said "I think all those people are tooting at me!!" Sure enough we were plodding along in the left hand lane which is our slow lane here in Oz. He scooted over to the right lane faster than I care to think about and that's where we stayed for the next 7 days

Jake1

Some people leave the left signal on to make their cars marginally more visible to cars they are passing. Whether or not it's very effective is another issue.

I did read last year that headlight flashing at slow drivers is now considered aggressive driving in Germany and you can be ticketed. But I didn't follow up on any official German websites to see if this is true.

longboatkey

On the AutoStrada; when one has a left directional signal on; it usually means they (the driver) intends to pass cars to the front and return to right lane; as opposed to flying along permanently in the left lane. The conventional thought and courtesy is, you have the right to stay in the extreme left lane only if you are driving faster than all others in sight.

Lavradio

Indeed, this one is great and so true! In Portugal they do the same, it's mainly used on the highways to let you know they want you to move over 'cause they want to pass! One time they were glued to my bumper until I moved over! The first time I thought it was offensive, the second and so on, I thought it was funny! In fact, I began doing the same thing after! In Europe has become very popular and no one cares anymore! It's considered part of the culture now! Love it... haha