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Driving in Greece Tips Page 1

Driving in Athens on the weekend can be extremely rewarding or entail hours stuck in traffic. Greece also has the worst drivers (most show off, speediest, reckless and dangerous) in Europe and in 2005 there were 1,614 traffic fatalities (worst in Europe for its size). That's 4.42 people dying everyday in a country with the population of Manhattan, N. Y.

Sunny Sundays and most weekends are a nightmare of bumper to bumper exhaust fumes as people try to leave or enter the city. Weekend rush hour times should be avoided whenever possible. Drive everywhere as early as possible like 6 am! Failing that take back roads. Sometimes you just cant avoid it and then you pay. Still its awful nice to get away!

Driving can also be very dangerous in Greece, not so much in Athens where, its when you are on foot you should be more concerned, but out of Athens on the National Roads. Pedestrians were the largest group of those killed in road accidents.

Greece has some of the fastest show off drivers you are going to see anywhere! The Greek psyche is revealed when they get behind the wheel and it 'aint pretty. Most Greeks are great drivers but its the ones that aren't that you have to worry about.

The National highway system is good in some areas because the E. U. has been opened handed with Greece but its also where you find the speeders. I mean the people going 120 mph or more in their fancy BMW, Mercedes, Saab's, Skodas, Toyotas, Mitsubishi's or Hyundai's.

Since there are usually only two lanes each way on a major road they sometimes have a another lane which a Yank like me would call the 'break down lane'. This lane serves dual use: as a brake down lane and and as a lane the slower cars and trucks are supposed to drive in but only half way. As you go around corners you want to make sure there is nothing blocking your path or the other guys path either as he will swerve into the adjacent lane if he cant slow down. Because Greece has lots of mountainous terrain and winding roads caution should be exercised.

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