Author Archives: driveeuropenews

18 September 2013

Last updated 19:00 BST.

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NEWS: Range Rover hybrids in Uzbekistan – Putin’s new new limo – Italy fuel cut – Norway winter tyres – Finland speed laws – Brussels long tunnel spruce.

Channel delays: Brittany Ferries 1h45 late Portsmouth-Santander this evening. Also, Santander-Plymouth delayed by bad weather.

Weather alerts: Amber alert for high winds/heavy rain southern Germany and west Austria.

Weather: unsettled north and west, dry and sunny across the south apart s.Italy.

Traffic: see @DE_Traffic from 09:30 BST.

See Travel/Traffic/Weather for more.

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The Range Rover Hybrid Silk Trail expedition is by now deep into Central Asia.

The Range Rover Hybrid Silk Trail expedition is by now deep into Central Asia. Having already crossed Kazakhstan – on their 10,000 mile journey from Birmingham to Mumbai – the cars are pictured here in the shadows of the ancient city walls of Khiva. Established more than 2,500 years ago, now a World Heritage Site – and former staging post on the Silk Trail – Khiva lies close to the Turkmenistan border in south central Uzbekistan. All we can say is that in our next life we hope to come back as a Range Rover development engineer. Follow @LandRover to find out what happens next.

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Italy. Major retailer Eni has reduced its recommended retail price for petrol by 1c, confirming at least the downward trend for the country’s very expensive fuel (£1.52 unleaded 95 and £1.42 diesel in the latest AA fuel price report). Norway. The Public Roads Administration (www.vegvesen.no) says it’s already time for winter tyres after a truck skidded off r55 on Monday in snowy conditions. Finland. A quick run down of the important traffic regulations from What’s Up Finland. Mainly says watch out for the (nice) police, that speed limits drop by 20kmh in the winter and that speeding fins are proportional to income. Brussels. The 2.5km Leopold II tunnel, the longest in Belgium, will be renovated in 2016. Since it’s the major north-west south-east route through the city centre it will inevitably cause major disruption. No word yet on how long it will take but it will be financed by shadow toll. A private company will do the work and then be paid an annual management fee by the city council.

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NUMI - the Central Scientific Research Automobile and Automotive Engine Institute - a state-owned corporation in existence since 1918 - has been tasked by prime minister Dmitri Medvedev

NUMI – the Central Scientific Research Automobile and Automotive Engine Institute – a state-owned corporation in existence since 1918, has been tasked by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev with designing President Putin’s official limo according to the Moscow Times. Speculative designs, above, have been floating around on the internet for a few years but this is the first concrete step we are aware of to finally replace the iconic cold war Zil limousines. Medvedev is on a mission to make the Russian car industry more internationally competitive. The idea is that the basis of the new car can be used for a new range of vehicles to be sold in Russia and abroad. See www.numi.ru for more.

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17 September 2013

Last updated 18:45 BST.

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NEWS: First snow Transfagarasan – Ukraine Prius Police.

Channel delays: MyFerryLink 21:00 Dover-Calais could be subject to 30-40min delay. Eurotunnel Freight UK, 30mins delay before check-in due to earlier problem now resolved. Condor Ferries UK-Channel Islands services rescheduled due to weather.

Weather alerts: Amber alert for high winds south west Germany and central Slovakia.

Weather: Windy. Showers/rain. Fine, dry and sunny Iberia, cooler/showers moving east.

Traffic: see @DE_Traffic from 09:30 BST.

See Travel/Traffic/Weather for more.

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First snow.

First snow on Transfagarasan. For the first time this season, temperatures dropped below zero on Saturday night followed by 2cm of fresh snow at Balea Lake, at the top (2,034m) of the famous Transfagarasan road in Romania. It doesn’t officially close until 31 October so in theory you have plenty of time to drive it this year, obviously though the sooner the better. According to AGI news agency, the first snow fell in the South Tyrol last night too.

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Ukraine. The Ministry of Internal Affairs has invested in 1,200 Toyota Prius hybrids, thirty of which were delivered to the Kharkiv force yesterday according to an official statement.

Ukraine. The Ministry of Internal Affairs has invested in 1,200 Toyota Prius hybrids, thirty of which were delivered to the Kharkiv force yesterday according to an official statement. The cars will be used on regular patrols, by traffic police and Berkut ‘Golden Eagle’ special militia units. Significantly reduced fuel consumption is cited as one of the primary benefits. And distinctiveness too, no doubt.

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Roundup – Brussels. 24 cars have been burned out in apparently random arson attacks in the suburbs of Ukkel and Vorst in the past fortnight. Police have no clue as yet to the culprits or motives. This Sunday is Car Free Sunday in the Belgian capital – aka ‘World Day Without Cars’ – when private vehicle use is banned. Seems like somebody might have started early. Moscow. Authorities expect to remove 1,300 cars each day now that new rules on parking have been introduced. 100 flat bed trucks will do the shifting with another 205 due on stream by the end of the year. Drivers are subject to a reasonable $30 per day charge for stored vehicles, on top of an initial $90 fine.  Bulgaria. The southernmost section of the Struma Highway, Lot 4 between Sandanski and the Greece border at Kulata, will be delayed by four months until July 2014 it was announced today. A newly discovered cable network needs to be relocated. Ultimately, Struma will connect Sofia to Thessaloniki and the Aegean Sea. We’re still waiting to hear about the status of the technically tricky Lot 3, just north, across the Kresna Gorge. Ireland. Two diesel laundries have been discovered in a raid on premises close to the border. What’s a diesel laundry? A facility for washing the dye out of agricultural diesel, fuel not subject to the same high tax as the regular stuff, so it can be sold on a vast profit on the Black Market. Police also discovered a mobile diesel laundry, a completely fresh concept for us.

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The GREAT Britain bus parked outside the UN building in Vienna this morning. According to

The GREAT Britain bus parked outside the UN building in Vienna this morning. According to Andrew Pike, head of the campaign at Number 10, the GREAT tour of Europe has so far pulled in £600m of business.

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Gotthard II: an extra tunnel but no new traffic.

Switzerland. A highly controversial new tunnel will be built alongside the existing Gotthard Tunnel.

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The southern entrance of the Gotthard Road Tunnel in Ticino, Switzerland. Photo DriveEurope.

The southern entrance of the Gotthard Road Tunnel in Ticino, Switzerland. Photo @DriveEurope.

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The new Gotthard II road tunnel will not increase traffic capacity on the A2 motorway, one of the major routes across the Alps.

The Swiss government has approved a plan to expand the access tunnel running alongside the Gotthard Road Tunnel to use while the latter is being refurbished.

Renovation starts in 2020 – at the earliest – and will take the best part of the following decade.

In addition, the government announced that the number of trucks allowed in at any one time will be limited on safety grounds. Meanwhile, a plan for a separate Gotthard toll has been ruled out.

There was immediate reassurance that the new tunnel will not breach laws which ban the upgrading of transit roads. Like the existing tunnel, the new one will be single lane only.

‘Our project is not aimed at upgrading the tunnel. It is purely a renovation project,’ says transport minister Doris Leuthard.

Nevertheless, campaigners Alpine Initiative will fight the plan – which still has to be approved by parliament – saying the money is better spent upgrading rail services.

What happens to the new tunnel when the refurbishment is complete will be put to a referendum.

The existing Gotthard Road Tunnel opened in 1980. At 10.5 miles it is the world’s third longest. It lies just over half way along the A2 motorway from Basel in the northwest to the Italian border near Lake Como in the south.

Over six million vehicles pass through each year including 900,000 HGVs. While Gotthard is one of the busiest trans-Alp routes – with regular queues of up to 10km long at each end during busy periods – A2 is notably one of the quieter motorways in Switzerland according to figures from FEDRO, the Federal Roads Office.

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16 September 2013

Last updated 19:00 BST.

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Channel delays: Condor Ferries UK-Channel Islands services tomorrow rescheduled due to weather.

Weather alerts: Amber alert for heavy rain/storms southern Italy/Siciliy and western Greece.

Weather: Fine in Iberia/South of France/Turkey otherwise windy/rain/showers.

Traffic: see @DE_Traffic from 09:30 BST.

See Travel/Traffic/Weather for more.

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Back in blighty. Havr to hand it to P&O, we checked in and drove staright ontot he boat.

‘Twas a rough night in Dover. From mid-afternoon yesterday it was a bit blowy. By tea time the wind was so strong all three ferry operators suffered hour-long delays on services across the Dover Strait. Such is what you expect at this time of the year. All is calm now though the weather is expected to worsen again this week. Much more surprising yesterday was the traffic in northern Italy, by far the worst we’ve seen all summer. For several hours in the evening the entire westbound A14 between Rimini and Bologna was chock-a-block with slow and stationary traffic, 75 miles worth. Was it a freaky one-off as storms hit the west coast, or are recession hit Italians taking their holidays – much – later this year?

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The Range Rover Hybrid Silk Trail Expedition, Odessa-Astrakhan.

The trio of Range Rover Hybrids prototypes have just finished stage three of their journey from Solihull to Mumbai, India. Part of the new model’s final development phase, the expedition has covered 4,250 miles in 15 days via the Low Countries, Germany, Poland, Ukraine and Russia.

The trio of Range Rover Hybrids prototypes have just finished stage three of their journey from Solihull to Mumbai, India. Part of the new model’s final development phase, the expedition has covered 4,250 miles in 15 days via the Low Countries, Germany, Poland, Ukraine and Russia.

In the past week, the cars have driven 1,417miles from Odessa in Ukraine to Astrakhan in Russia via the Crimean Peninsula and the prairies and grasslands of the Russian Kalmykiya region. On rain washed mud tracks progress has inevitably slowed but the cars have really been put through their paces. The only damage so far has been one puncture and a cracked windscreen.

In the past week, the cars have driven 1,417miles from Odessa in Ukraine to Astrakhan in Russia via the Crimean Peninsula and the prairies and grasslands of the Russian Kalmykiya region. On rain washed mud tracks progress has inevitably slowed but the cars have really been put through their paces. The only damage so far has been one puncture and a cracked windscreen.

Astrakhan, located on 11 islands in the upper part of the Volga Delta, close to the Kazakstan border, is on the crossroads between Europe and Asia with the eastern influence clear to see. This week, the expedition will venture into the deserts of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and then into Kyrgyzstan, accumulating another 2,000 miles on the Silk Route proper as it continues east into Asia.

Astrakhan, located on 11 islands in the upper part of the Volga Delta, close to the Kazakhstan border, is at the crossroads of Europe and Asia with the eastern influence clear to see. This week, the expedition will venture into the deserts of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and then into Kyrgyzstan, 2,000 miles on the ancient Silk Routes proper as it continues east into Asia.

Click to see a rough route. Click to see the pictures from earlier in the trip.

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roundup – Portugal. As in Luxembourg and Turkey fuel prices have fallen in Portugal. Diesel is down to around €1.40 and unleaded 95 to €1.57. Switzerland. A convicted rapist on day release, alone with a female therapist, has been arrested at the German-Polish border near Dresden, four days after her body was found in woodland near Geneva. The man was reportedly still driving the therapist’s car.

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15 September 2013

Last updated 20:15 BST.

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Channel delays: strong winds mean all P&O Dover-Calais services delayed 30-60mins. All DFDS Dover-Calais/Dunkirk delayed by up to 60mins.

Weather alerts: Amber alert for heavy rain/storms substantial area of west/central Italy, Sardinia and Sicily.

Weather: Mixed. Best weather in Iberia, next best south east. France and Belgium dry with sunny spells.

Traffic: see @DE_Traffic from 09:00 BST.

See Travel/Traffic/Weather for more.

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Random: assorted Aston Martins

Assorted Aston Martins gathered in Belgium earlier in the summer to celebrate the company’s centenary. It was also the second memorial rally of Rene Michiels, the mechanic who rose to become Aston’s dealer in Antwerp (they currently have a silver 007 1964 DB5 for sale for €460,000). Still trying to work out what the car fourth from right is.

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14 September 2013

Last updated 18:40 BST.

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News: Taksim underpass opens – Luxembourg fuel falls – Antwerp LEZ plan – Glam group travel MFL.

Channel delays: none reported currently.

Weather alerts: Amber alert for heavy rain north west Denmark, and for fog, Poland Baltic coast and north Montenegro.

Weather: rain north, showers in the south.

Traffic: see @DE_Traffic from 09:00 BST.

See Travel/Traffic/Weather for more.

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Taksim Square, Istanbul. The underpass - part of a highly controversial redevelopment of the centre of Istanbul - finally opened to traffic yesterday.

Istanbul. The underpass linking Cumhuriyet Avenue and Tarlabasi Boulevard, underneath the newly pedestrianised Taksim Square, opened to traffic yesterday morning. While not directly implicated in the widespread protests in the early summer, the new tunnel is obviously a central part of the square’s redevelopment plan. However, the highly controversial shopping mall at Gezi Park has now been cancelled. Meanwhile, students at ODTU University in Ankara clashed with police over construction of a new road through a forested part of the campus last weekend. Sympathetic protests broke out in other places around the country, including Taksim, on Tuesday but all has been calm since. See www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/turkey for the latest. Photo via @LeighTurnerFCO.

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Luxembourg – presumably as a result on lessening tensions over Syria, fuel prices have fallen says wort.lu. Diesel now costs €1.244/l, unleaded 95 is €1.331/l and unleaded 98 €1.386/l. Both Italy, Portugal and Turkey all announced fuel price rises due to the Syrian crisis last week. Will they now fall too?

According to figures released last night by Dutch touring club @ANWB, one litre of unleaded 95 sells for €1.70 in France, €1.67 in Belgium and €1.37 in Luxembourg.

update: prices in Turkey have also been cut today, by 0.12TL/l. Unleaded 95 now costs €1.79 in Ankara and €1.80 in Istanbul.

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Glamorous group travel. MyFerryLink hosted a group of German BMW enthusiasts enroute to Goodwood this weekend, including this rather delicious 328. So far so good but it did catch our eye on the accompanying press release that MyFerryLink provided a ‘private area on board the ship and tailored menu options’. For more info email groups@myferrylink.com

Glamorous group travel. MyFerryLink Calais-Dover hosted a group of German BMW enthusiasts enroute to Goodwood this weekend, including this rather nice 328. So far so good but it did catch our eye on the accompanying press release that MyFerryLink provided ‘a private area on board the ship and tailored menu options’. For more info email groups@myferrylink.com.

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Belgium – despite Brussels rejecting the idea last year recently for being ineffective, second city Antwerp will create a Low Emission Zone (LEZ) from 2016. Cars over fifteen years old will be banned from the city centre east of the River Schedlt while those between 10-15 years will need a pollution trap. Authorities say particulate air matter should be reduced by 41% says deredactie.be. The system will be policed by number plate recognition cameras and could be a pilot for other schemes around the country. Gent has similar plans.

Meanwhile, from mid-2014, Amsterdam authorities will refuse parking permits to diesel cars built before Jan 2005 and petrol cars built before July 1992 says DutchNews.nl.

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Romania. After initial reports that a woman shot a man in the head during a road rage incident in upmarket Bucharest neighbourhood Dorobanti on Thursday, it has now been revealed the weapon was in fact a gas-powered pepper spray. A 21 year old woman has been arrested. The man is recovering. Belgium. Figures show the number of teenagers taking driving tests has fallen 20% in the past five years while the number of learners in their twenties has risen by 30% in the same period. Netherlands. Possibly the world’s first drive-in cherry booth has opened in Geldermalsen, just off the A15 in the centre of the country. Also, stretches of the often five lane A2 motorway currently limited to 100kph will be upgraded to the national speed limit of 130kph. A2 runs north west-south east from Amsterdam-Maastricht via Eindhoven-s’Hertogenbosch-Utrecht. The final stretch to the capital is a notorious cash cow for the authorities with hundreds of thousands of motorists caught out. And, diplomats owe €700,000 in unpaid traffic fines from the last four years according to Justice Ministry figures. The Russians are the worst reportedly. In Berlin, however the Russians are beaten into second place by the Saudis. In the first quarter 2013 unpaid fines for all diplomats totalled nearly €80k for 4,800 incidents including six hit-and-runs reports thelocal.de. Rome. An angry mix of protestors blocked Via Merulana in the city centre yesterday to complain about Mayor Ignazio Marino – aka Mayorino – banning private traffic from around the Colosseum last month. Local business says trade is suffering but residents object to the extra traffic diverted past their homes.

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13 September 2013

Last updated 19:00 BST.

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Channel delays: P&O Dover-Calais, delays of 40-60mins on some services.

Weather alerts: Amber alerts for heavy rain south east Germany, east Poland and east Romania.

Weather: cloud and/or rain except across the south.

Traffic: see @DE_Traffic from 09:30 BST.

See Travel/Traffic/Weather for more.

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Neunelfer.

Everyday super car. The secret of the 911’s success, if I may be so bold, is not the steering, handling, traction or intoxicating savage wail of its exhaust note. What many people – particularly other car manufacturers – still fail to grasp after all these years is that the reason the 911 sells is because, on top of its dynamic qualities, it’s compact and practical. The 911 isn’t just a great car for a memorable long trip it’s the ideal car. A decent boot in the front, rear seats for any overspill, plenty of room in the cabin, a comfortable, upright driving position and 30mpg economy. It does make me laugh whenever a rival launches a low slung, two seat ‘911 killer’ with a tiny boot. It’s what we in the business call ‘missing the point’. Similarly, smug armchair engineers who dismiss the 911 as having the ‘engine in the wrong place’. None of what the 911 is would be possible without it being rear-engined. Take it from us: the 911 succeeds because of its rear engine, not inspite of it.

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12 September 2013

Last updated 18:00 BST.

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NEWS: Happy Birthday 911.

Channel delays: none so far today.

Weather alerts: Amber alerts for heavy rain south east Germany and southern Italy, and for storms central Greece mainland.

Weather: unsettled across Europe though warm and sunny in Spain, Greece and Turkey.

Traffic: see @DE_Traffic from 09:30 BST.

See Travel/Traffic/Weather for more.

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Happy Birthday 911.

Happy Birthday 911. Fifty years ago today the first 911 was presented at the 1963 Frankfurt Motor Show, sort of. Actually it was called the 901 at that stage and not renamed 911 until the year after. That’s fine by us, plenty more opportunities to recall one of the all time great cars, one that we were lucky enough to own and take on some amazing journeys like, above, to Limfjorden in northern Denmark. This year has been packed with official events to celebrate the 911’s fiftieth though Porsche has been very quiet about any plans to mark this specific day. We wonder if it has anything up its sleeve??

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11 September 2013

Last updated 17:30 BST.

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NEWS: Austerity Pope – Greek car recovery – Let the ‘Ring decide.

Channel delays: DFDS Dover-Calais/Dunkirk. Delays 60mins Dunkirk sailings and 30mins Calais. Eurotunnel Freight, 2hrs delay at UK terminal.

Weather alerts: Amber alert for heavy rain/storms north east Italy.

Weather: unsettled in north and central with rain spreading south through Italy.

Traffic: see @DE_Traffic from 09:15 BST.

See Travel/Traffic/Weather for more.

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Austerity Pope.

Austerity Pope. Are we the only ones to think the poverty drive at the Vatican is going a bit far? Pope Francis has accepted the kind donation of a 20 year old, 300,000km Renault 4L from a priest in Verona. He’ll reportedly use it to drive himself around the tiny city state. You have to admire his taste, the cheap and chic R4 is an icon of a golden age of simple French motoring, but whatever next? Half a wafer at Communion? Wine turned back into water? Pic via @Javier_quimera, boss of the EV racing manufacturer.

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Exotic car registrations in Greece. Via @Hekimoglu, retweeted by @NickMalkoutzis, deputy editor @Ekathimerini

Exotic car registrations in Greece. Via @Hekimoglu, retweeted by @NickMalkoutzis, deputy editor @Ekathimerini.

Greece – the bottom may have dropped out of the luxury car market but there are signs of recovery overall. Total registrations, new and used, were down 6.5% in August compared to the same month last year though that’s significantly less compared to the year previously when sales fell 44%. Similarly, year to date figures are down just 3% on 2012 which itself had seen a 40% drop on 2011.

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The Green Hell.

Let the ‘Ring decide. So, Porsche’s new 918 ‘hybrid hypercar’ has lapped the Nurburgring Nordschleife in 6m57, breaking the magic seven minute barrier for the first time. We reported rumours last week that McLaren’s own P1 hyperhybrid had only managed 7m04, despite being lighter than the 918, more powerful and quicker in a straight line. You have to assume that Porsche is well aware of everything that happened at the Ring when McLaren visited, why else risk their glorious announcement? The question is, despite its on paper disadvantages, how did the 918 manage it? One possibility is the brakes, a brand new blending mechanism invented by Bosch that seamlessly mixes the mechanical force of the callipers with the retardation of the electric motor for super stopping power. Makes McLaren’s earlier boasts about its mirrored Akebono discs suddenly look a bit hollow. All of a sudden, the 918 – which had looked the cheap loser beside the more exclusive P1 and La Ferrari – is making a late dash for the line. McLaren will have to respond, but how? The only certain winner so far is the Nordschleife, reborn as the spiritual home, and objective judge, of this new breed of sportscar. That could be the best timing of all considering it’s due to be sold at any moment.

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10 September 2013

Last updated 22:00 BST.

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NEWS: French Day of Industrial action – Drive Europe for free – FormulaE unveiled.

Channel delays: DFDS Dover-Calais up to 3hrs delay due to industrial action (see below). Also, DFDS Amsterdam-Newcastle departing 19:00 arriving 13:00 tomorrow.

Weather alerts: Amber alert for heavy rain north east Spain and heavy rain/storms north east Italy.

Weather: n/a.

Traffic: see @DE_Traffic from 09:00 BST.

See Travel/Traffic/Weather for more.

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French Day of Industrial Action October 2010: services still ran with minimal disruption.

Don’t panic. Strikes in France, October 2010. Services still ran albeit with some disruption.

France Industrial Action.

The National Day of Action in France is expected to have limited impact on travel services. The (massive) CGT union is striking over pension reforms. Some flights were delayed overnight. So far only Calais seems to be affected, none of the other ferry operators are warning of delays. Eurotunnel is expected to operate as normal. Disruption is expected last until 07:00 BST tomorrow.

20:30 – @MyFerryLink, ‘We are currently experiencing delays at Dover due to Industrial Action in France.’ Like all the other operators it says to check in as normal.

17:50 – DFDS Dover-Calais operating up to three hours behind schedule. No reports of specific delays from other operators though P&O Dover-Calais has consistently warned passengers to be prepared for disruption.

15:15 – The MyFerryLink 13:15 was delayed by 1h40, an increasing delay but there’s no sign of that being repeated with other operators at the moment.

12:00 – no cancelled services but P&O Freight and MyFerryLink sailings to Calais are delayed by 40mins+ due to berthing restrictions.

10:00 – @BrittanyFerries tweets to say its services are running as normal. @MyFerryLink says its 08:30 Dover-Calais service actually left one hour late due to the strike.

08:00 – DFDS says no delays to Dunkirk but apparently ‘slight’ delays to Calais. The MyFerryLink 08:30 Dover-Calais is delayed by 45mins.

07:00 – P&O has cancelled its 08:40 Calais-Dover sailing but says all other services are operating to schedule. MyFerryLink 07:00 Dover-Calais delayed by 40mins.

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Drive Europe for free. By the end of 2014, 100% of people living in Germany, the Low Countries, Switzerland, Austria and Denmark, and 90% of those living in England, Wales and Sweden, will live within 320km of a Tesla supercharger, i.e. an electric power point that half-charges the Model S in 20 minutes, for free. According to the map at www.teslamotors.com/supercharger that puts London within reach of Rome, Berlin, Lisbon and the Arctic Circle. Tesla says its superchargers will always be free for Model S owners to use though filling up from a domestic circuit costs just £4.50 according to Autocar, enough for 260 miles. The maths just stack up and up and up.

Drive Europe for free, forever. By the end of 2014, 100% of people living in Germany, the Low Countries, Switzerland, Austria and Denmark – and 90% of those living in England, Wales and Sweden – will live within 320km of a Tesla supercharger, i.e. an electric power point that half-charges the Model S in 20 minutes, for free. According to the map at http://www.teslamotors.com/supercharger that puts London within reach of Rome, Berlin, Lisbon and the Arctic Circle. For free. Tesla says its superchargers will always be free for Model S owners to use, though filling up from a domestic circuit costs just £4.50 according to Autocar, enough for 260 miles. The maths just stack up and up and up.

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The tech is interesting – power from the McLaren P1’s electric motor, batteries by Williams – but with the equivalent of just 270bhp (180bhp in the race) in an 800kg chassis, and a generic single-seat racer look, we can’t see too many top flight racing drivers getting too excited about FormulaE, never mind the punters. Perhaps whooshing through the streets of the world’s major capitals will swing the deal. There’s still a year to go before the first race.

The tech is interesting – power from the McLaren P1’s electric motor, batteries by Williams – but with the equivalent of just 270bhp (180bhp in the race) in an 800kg chassis, and a generic single-seat racer look, we can’t see too many top flight racing drivers getting excited about the FormulaE car, unveiled today, never mind the punters. Perhaps whooshing through the streets of the world’s major capitals will swing the deal. There’s still a year to go before the first race.

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