That English charm

last updated 8 January 2015

Paris

French officials this week urged French drivers to adopt the “legendary civility” of the British on the roads. The road safety association said that road rage, the normal state of drivers in France, could be alleviated if everyone attempted a bit more courtesy. British drivers, the group pointed out, don’t cut each other off at every opportunity, and they even allow pedestrians to cross the street. “It is not about exchanging our Latin temperament for British phlegm,” the association said. “It is more a case of looking to the British model to learn a few things on driver attitudes.” In France, the average yearly road mortality rate is 9.5 deaths per 100,000 citizens, compared with 6 per 100,000 in Britain.