cheezemonkhai

Does anyone know what the minimum tread depths are in Belgium and also where to get the new motorway payment discs that have been required since the start of the year?

Ta

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mannyo

I cant find any reference to a payment disc for belgium, I believe that the min tread depth is as here at 1.6mm.

http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice...AA_Belgium.pdf

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philc

I thought the disks were only for HGV's?

Phil

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cheezemonkhai

Ta, that was quick.

When I went at new year I came back on the last day the disc wasn't needed to use the motorways. At the time the tyres all had 6mm plus too.

As of 01/01/2008 apparently you needed them.

Good on the tread as I'm at about 4mm all around, so just good enough for Germany and also for Belgium.

EDIT: found this so far.

Crossroads Blog Archive Belgium to introduce motorway tax

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mannyo

did some digging about the disc does indeed only apply to HGV's.

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philc

Not sure how they'd enforce it -the French Belgian border is just a sign, "welcome to Belgium". By the time they'd caught you, you'd be well into Holland........

Phil

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cheezemonkhai

Road Rules & Driving in Belgium - AngloINFO Brussels (Belgium)

That seems to say all Belgian drivers

"Prices will vary depending on the size of the car's engine and there could be extra reductions for environmentally friendly cars. Tourists and visitors will also have to purchase the vignette."

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Gizmo68

There does appear to be a new tax in situ - for using the motorway:

Note: From January 2008, Belgian drivers will have to pay to use motorways, there will be a reduction in standard road tax to compensate, however. A tax token (vignette/teken) will be stuck to the inside of the windscreen. Prices will vary depending on the size of the car's engine and there could be extra reductions for environmentally friendly cars. Tourists and visitors will also have to purchase the vignette.

Is this the same vignette that you needed in a HGV?

Does anyone know if Germany has also adopted this (i know HGV's now pay per km for use of the Autobahns) as my step son is due to travel to Germany in a few weeks. The old vignette (HGV) used to cover you in Belgium/Germany/Holland.

cheezemonkhai

As far as I know it's totally different from the HGV EuroVignette.

Where on earth you buy these I don't know.

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Gizmo68

The HGV ones can be bought from some service stations (in France as well).
If going Dover Calais then the Elf garage (the one on the Eastenders / Pidou etc exit) sells them, so i would of thought its possible to buy the car ones there also??

Failing that the HGV vignette's are also sold at post offices and airports. (yes been there and been caught out with a vignette that had run out!)
The crazy thing is it was/is a Benelux tax, yet very few places in Belgium actually sold it!!

Gizmo68

Forgot to say that you used to be able to buy it in the port (Dover, Calais and Zebrugge) from the P&O / Seachance office.

postmanpat

From what I can gather the Belgium vignette is only for native cars and is substituting their road tax, at a lower cost, to compensate for motorway tolls. The legal tread depth in Germany is 1.6mm, however bellow 4mm they are classed as summer tyres.

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gadgetman

Which is what we here in the UK should be doing as well!

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cheezemonkhai

Yep and the bold was what I picked out.

Apparently I need it and I'd rather pay 10 Euro for a week pass than try and avoid the m/ways or get fined.

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postmanpat

But that is an 18 month old Blog site, I can find no official mention of 'tourist' tax in Belgium

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cheezemonkhai

Me neither, but when I went there at xmas I remember i came home on the last day it didn't apply.

I'll have to go speak to the Belgian Embassy and find out, or just see what is what when I get there.

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Gizmo68

My wife works for P&O and has heard nothing of this tax, but she will double check tomorrow when she is back in the office.
When are you going?

cheezemonkhai

Thanks, much appreciated

I'll be in Belgium at some point at either the end of this coming week or the weekend.

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Gizmo68

P&O have no information on a road tax, the website they refer customs to is Travel Spot - Motoring Into Europe

On there it states (under Belgium):

Motorways
- There is a good network of toll-free motorways (autoroutes).
- A minimum speed of 70 km/hr applies unless otherwise stated.

Minimum Tyre Depth
1.8mm.

Additional Notes
- A maximum of 10 litres of spare fuel may be carried in an approved can.
- Most petrol stations closed from 20:00 to 08:00 and all day Sunday.
- The flashing of headlights is used as a warning.
- Dipped headlights should be used between dusk and dawn.
- Driving on side lights only is illegal.
- Be prepared to give way to vehicles joining from the right.
- Trams (trolley buses) have priority
- As Dutch is spoken in the northern part of the county and French in the Southern part, there are towns and villages which have two names, one in French and one in Dutch.

HTH.

philc

And one more piece of advice on Belgium, from a friend who lives in France -don't try and talk French to anyone, because the French speakers hate the Flemish and vice versa, so if you get it wrong you'll upset someone.
Just speak English and you'll be fine. Most Belgians speak a minimum of 4 languages.

Phil

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"A good diesel, like a good whisky, should be strong, smooth and slightly smokey"
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cheezemonkhai

Right, got a reply from the Belgian Embasy in London and they say:

So on that note, I've no idea where I got the car permit from, must have been something they were thinking of that didn't happen.

Thanks to Gizmo68 and everyone else on this

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