Ticket in Turkey! WTF?!
 

So... just so you know...the legal limit for motorcycles, regarless of size is 77km/h yea ****ing CRAWLING! I just got a ticket for going 91 (also ****ing crawling) but the cops wouldn't let me off for all the gold in persia (ok maybe they would have but they wouldnt let me talk my way out of it...but they would shake my hand and say "Obama, Obama" while handing me the 115 lira ($75) ticket!

BOO!

Any reccommendaitons on paying it or not? I plan to come back to turkey...but I gave them the wrong info for me, but they got my licence plate number.

Still in shock!

Could you say more about where you were, what sort of road, within town or not, etc.? Did these police speak English? Is it possible you were within a village or city of some sort, and they were telling you the speed limit once you passed a wee little sign with the town's name on it? This happened to me in Ukraine, and although the police definitely told me (in very fractured English) that the speed limit was always 60 for motorcycles, what they really meant was within towns and cities. It took quite a while to figure this out, though.

I road through parts of Turkey a few weeks ago, passing multiple speedtraps on all sorts of roadways without incident, and I sure wasn't keeping to any 77kph. However, it's hard to keep tabs on all those little signs indicating you're entering a village, and I had some narrow misses on that score.

As far as paying the ticket: did they run a check by radio or mobile phone on your ID or tab number? If not, they probably won't next time (!) either, which suggests not paying. To me, at least. Most places, when they really want you to pay they make sure you do it then and there—either directly, or in the next town while they hold your paperwork.

Big country, Turkey, even at 100+. My condolences and best wishes for speedy, worry-free riding!

Mark

The first time I hear there´s a 77km/h limit for motorbikes. Is there? I believe there are people here, who live in Turkey, and they will probably know this.

I also crossed the entire country from Dikili (north of Izmir) to Kayseri to Dogubayazit, over 2200kms, and usually rode 110-130 kms per hour, and didnt get stopped even once by the police, only by the military, at some checkpoints.

The legal limits are for urban-rural-highways ... 50-70-80 km/hr ... respectively ....

Yes, unfortunately but legaly, these are the limits ...

Mostly police doesnt apply this, cause its really unreasonable, but instead limits for cars ... which is 50-90-120 km/hr

So i guess "tybalt" was just a bit unlucky ... :(

hi tim,

hope you are ok. where about Turkiye are you at the moment?
about the speed limits, i am totaly agree with usl. if you check the following links:
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/cou...y/#SpeedLimits
offical link:
Trafik Denetleme Þube Müdürlüðü

you will see that the speed limits are ridiculus but true.

about paying the bill.. if i were you (a foreing person with a foreign number plated bike) i wouldn't pay the bill.

see you in january.

have fun
ozhan u.

I was just outside of Fethiye - (now I'm in Antalya). They spoke pretty broken english but yea they made it pretty clear that it was a national speed limit (as has been confirmed). Guess I'm just unlucky.

oh well. I think I may let this one pass without paying it. I have a month and I'll be out of the country after a month and they didn't get my personal info correct so I don't think Ill have any trouble coming back...we shall see.

just a shame - to all future riders...WATCH OUT!

BTW anyone know if there are any ferry lines between Israel and Turkey for bikes?

hi tim,

enjoy antalya first of all. about your ferry question, chech link out:
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...t=israel+ferry

hope this helps
ozhan u.

I checked elsewhere and confirmed that speed limits are, in fact, ridiculous for bikes in Turkey. I'm just glad I didn't know this a couple of weeks ago; it would have caused me undue stress while whizzing along at a relatively healthy clip.

Again: big country, Turkey. Bigger still at 70 and 80 kph.

enjoy,

Mark

Hello, I ve just returned fromTurkey. I had a similar problem, speeding on 91 km/h while the cop told me, better wrote me down, the limit was 80km/h. He just said gule gule, and left. Near to Ephesus. The guys from Turkey would know better if you will have a problem while exiting/entering the country, but I assume that you wont have. My opinion about the limits is that if you go fast you dont see anything. Ofcourse for us that we are tourists. For local people is another issue...

They have the wrong bike reg and not your details.

I would use it to go in my album but i wouldn`t pay it first.

Steve

Snap
 

Snap -- I was caught doing 91 last week and fined 115lira too. At least this proves their speed guns are consistant. Or all fixed at 91.

This was a very quiet "main road".. these things are relative.. in a rural stretch of Thraki/ European Turkey heading up towards Vize and then the Bulgarian border.

I saw the sign saying 'Radar'.. even checked my speed, which I'd have said was 80-85, and thought.. "Even if there is a speed trap here today (which is unlikely, as it's just me and a couple of tractors out on the road) I'll be fine a little over the limit.."

Famous last words.

The cops were friendly. Apologetic, even. But they weren't going to let me off for riding so much over the limit which, I learned the hard way, is indeed 70kmph.

Just like Peru
 

Got nailed today on the E80 (main highway running east/west) just outside of Amasya on the way to Erzurum. I had read the above posts a few weeks ago and was being as careful as possible with regards to police cars, radar (they have signs indicating where the radar is), towns, etc.

My understanding was that the E80 was a major highway (it is) therefore 88km/h was OK. On a particularly desolate stretch (no houses, no buildings, nothing but road) I was going about 100km/h. Keep in mind that at this speed we were getting passed by cars doing 120 to 140 on a regular basis. Sure enough coming around a bend a cop was standing in the road indicating that I should pull over. In total, there were 3 police officers (at first). I knew I was speeding so I was expecting to at worst be given a 115 lira ticket and at best be let go with a warning. Helmets off, papers out and immediatly the officer in the car starts writing out a ticket. We ask how much. He writes on a piece of paper (no english whatsover) 265 Lira!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I almost had a heart attack. He indicates my speed (103) to which I nod as in "yes, I was going that fast". He then indicates that the limit is 78km/h. At this point Marie takes over with the officer in charge very eloquently pleading ignorance using sign language. The officer thinks she is contesting our speed so he makes a call and moments later I am summoned to an unmarked car that has just arrived and am shown IMAX quality video of us coming around a bend with 103km/h lit up on the screen. He then shows me a speed limit chart (looks official) which says 78km/h for bikes to which I indicate that I understand.

After a few moments one of the officers opens my passport to the Turkey entry page and puts a pen to it at which point I ask if he can bring the price down. He says if we pay now it will cost 199 lira and if we pay later it will be 265 lira. Not wanting to set a bad Latin America type standard I hesitate for a fraction of a second and the pen immediatly goes back onto the passport so I quickly agree to pay now. My first thought is that these 4 officers will be able to buy their wives something nice but he takes out a receipt (official with emblems and all) and fills it out in the amount of 199 lira!

I am pissed but I always told friends that if we break the law we will pay. But riding on main highways at 78 km/h is not only painfully slow it is dangerous. Needless to say the rest of the day we rolled at the supposed speed limit for this highway (78). Not sure how the cars behind us felt about this! Also, we saw numerous traps (about a dozen) from Amasya to Erzurum. Tactics are identical to Peru (outside of Lima) except here in Turkey this is sanctioned by law. Too bad for Turkey as I am sure this will leave a very sour taste among motoryclist. Certainly did for us!

At one point in all this I indicated that the 78 limit was very low to which one of the officers respond 78 OK 79 illegal as in ZERO latitude.

I have been driving for 23 years and in all of that time I have had 2 speeding tickets (the other one was 22 years ago) so driving dangerously is not a habit. Also, we were beyond polite and in full "sorry" mode throughout. The officers on the other hand (all except one) were condescending.

Long story but the moral is that now they will mark your passport to indicate a pending fine so no more crossing of borders without paying. If you got this far reading this text and are coming here do not exceed these ridiculous and dangerous limits. After what I saw today in numerous places I am convinced you will get nailed if you go anything over the limit on the E80.

Good luck!

While we are on the subject
 

I just got back from a trip to vsit relatives in Nice and Monaco.. Waiting for me was a speeding ticket.
Some years ago I was stopped doing 61Kph in a 50kph zone and let off with a warning. Since then I have been careful to keep sub 60Kph in the belief that was ok. It might work with cops but not machines. I was doing 57Kph corrected to 52Kph... this cost 90 euros... and worse I will have a point knocked off my licence. This will be bit of a logistical nightmare as my licence is a UK one. I think I will have to trade it for a French one to get the points knocked off :(

Try living here with that speed limit... Usually, police do not fine people from their area and those guys do not wear any helmet or any kind of protection and usually they are above the speed limits.

The Turkish Speed Limits made nearly 50-60 years ago and they haven't updated it. Motorcycles have a speed limit of 70 km/h, off-road vehicles (most SUVs belong to this category) and any kind of semi-trucks and trucks have speed limit of 80 km/h. The police are really flexible about SUV that I haven't seen any SUV fined for going over 88 km/h but they are not that flexible about motorcycles. As far as I know, they have a quota which they should control enough number of motorcycles so they usually pick the people who has big motorcycles, wearing helmets from other cities, or countries and control or fine them.

Our Motorcycle federation tried to do something about it but they are not a effective federation. As motorcycle riders in Turkey, we always talk in the our local forums about doing something about it but the result is nothing, all we do is talking. Also, There is no strong civil organization which could rally protest ride against these speed limits. (and Also, some riders agree and like these limits).

What we do is, try to negotiate (namely, bribe) if we get caught but these days it is harder because radars are also recording images or videos of the vehicles and those were checked from time to time cross-referenced with the fines so, the police are afraid of being caught. If we can see the car with the radar and if there is a side road in between the radar car and the check point, we usually take that side road and try to circumnavigate the check point. Also, we usually prefer the side roads instead of main roads because there is small chance of police being on these roads.

Also, fines are rated. If you are %10 to % 30 over the limit, the fine is 128 TL, if you are %30 and up over the limit, the fine is 265 TL. If you pay on site, there is %25 discount on the fine.

Cheers,
Ozgur

Brian and Maria:
I had an almost identical experience as you a few weeks ago - 265 TL fine, and similar thoughts about traveling at 70kph (unsafe). Traffic cops didn't say anything about paying them on the spot though - so I thought I'd have to pay when exiting the country. They actually jumped into the car and drove off as soon as they handed me the ticket, so there was no discussion (I think it was lunch!)

Instead of taking my time, traveling up to Istanbul (spending 3 weeks in Turkey), I headed straight for the border of Greece. With gas at over $2.50 USD a liter, and 70kph speed limits, I had enough of Turkey, which is actually a very nice country (people), very scenic, with good roads for motorcycling.

At the border, no one asked for the money, so either
1) I escaped before the paperwork got entered into the computer?
2) maybe i only got a warning ticket?
3) maybe tickets don't really apply to foreigners?
4) the traffic police and the border police ignore each other?
5) all the above, none of the above?
6) who knows?

Hold on a bit, where did you get the quoted information from? Do you have any link to an official site or a law that says the speed limit for 4x4/SUVs is less than 120 Km/h on motorways, even in Turkish?

Some posts back there's a link to speed limits in Turkey, here's the translated version so we can all speak the same language: Translated version of http://trfdenetleme.iem.gov.tr/(S(klvzeq452uqag155vl11q455))/hiz_limitleri.aspx
Where does it say about 4x4/SUVs?

Not only here did i read, that for some time now, people are being penalized for speeding ........ precisely for 91 km/hr ......... but i also have been hearing from the locals too...

Although its very embarrassing ...i have to admit it....

Every time when the goverment needs some financial support ...they start doing this. If you pay the penalty in 7 days they even give you %15 discount ... no joke!

And they write for 91 km/hr, so that you pay the minimum amount of penalty and it wont hurt too much ...

Thats why for everyone, coincidentaly, is receiving ticket for 91.

:blushing:

Is the petrol in Turkey really that expensive?? $2.50 US for a litre?!

When I'm riding through Turkey next month I reckon I'll be obeying their stupidly low speed limits if only to try and reduce my fuel consumption!!!

yes ... :frown:

I was paying more than US$3 ($3,50 Australian) a litre last year!! It was cheaper to stay put while I waited for my Iranian visa than to travel - even though I was on a bike. At least bus fares around Istanbul were cheap

Here is what I read and not hearing from locals :biggrin:....

This is the law: karayollari trafik yonetmeligi - on the government site ::.. TRAFÝK HÝZMETLERÝ BAÞKANLIÐI ..::- where it says the speed limit is:
Otomobil, M1, M1G (Değişik: RG-05/07/2003-25159) 50 .... 90 ..... 120

M1 and M1G are motor vehicle categories and the above statement means any M1 or M1G motor vehicle is considered "Otomobil".

Here are the relevant bits from vehicle classification:

What you 'heard' from other people might be true if they were pulling a trailer behind their car or there were other particular road conditions or traffic signs.

So, 4x4s or SUVs (like Land/Range Rovers, Toyota Land Cruisers etc) are "Otomobil"s and they are allowed 120km/h on the highways :wink3:


One other thing. "Arazi taşıtlarında ve motosikletlerde" in the above quoted law refers to Motorcycles and ATVs (mostly). That's why they are in the same speed limit category.



Although off topic, here are some links for our friend Nath here, to check the current (live) fuel prices in Turkey:
- M-Oil Fuel Price - choose a station below "POMPA FIYATLARI" (price at the fuel pump)
- BP fuel price - choose a city ("İl Adı:") then choose the station within an area in that city ("İlçe Adı") then click "Bul" (it means "Find").

And just to confuse the issue...
 

I came across this sign last summer; a bit extreme, I thought, even for Turkey!
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_kL4ZseB4TGc/Se.../turkey001.jpg
:eek3: Stephan

The answer to the question "Why isn't the '20' centered in the red circle like '50' and '90' are?" should bring your eyeballs back in place :biggrin3:

The registration paper for my Land Rover Discovery says, in a direct word for word translation, "Land Car" in English, "Arazi Otomobil" in Turkish. Whereas the other normal car that I have it says "Car" (Otomobil).
It clearly falls in the M1G category but, unfortunately, the category (M1G) is not written on the registration paper.

In my opinion, the "Arazi Taşıtı" category is for all the other vehicles with All Wheel Drive that don't fall in the M1G category.
I've also asked a couple of Land Rover drivers in Turkey about this speed limit issue and they also say the speed limit is 90 and 120 km/h, unless the vehicle is registered as a commercial vehicle (for carrying goods, not people) which means they won't fall in the M1G category.

Given this difference in opinion in reading the law among you, the locals, I thing the best way is to ask the authorities and get an official reply to this matter.

So, what authority do you suggest I should write to (website?)? Who is in charge for enforcing this law? As far as I know the state police should do.


On the other hand, I can get a paper from my local vehicle register authority saying the vehicle I have falls in the M1G category. I'll have it translated in Turkish by an authorized translation office and I'll be safe (I think).

I wrote to the Police Dept. and asked them in which category they include my Honda HR-V and what are the speed limits, inspection periods etc. according to my registration. I will post the answer as soon as I have it.

And as i said even if they count 4x4s as Off-Road vehicles, the police is very flexible about "Arazi Tasitlari"-Off Road Vehicles and so i don't think they will stop you for speeding if you are within the speed limits of cars because they never fined me for speeding. Very few of the Turkish Traffic police knows English so even if they look at your registration, they will not understand it. Tell them it is a car. :)

I know they count my Hr-V as off-road vehicle becasue of the legal inspection periods. For cars first inspections is at the end of the 3 years and after that, at every 2 years but for off-road vehicles, it is annual from the start.

Cheers,
Ozgur

Thanks for that. I also wrote to the Traffic Department of the Emniyet Genel Müdürlüðü (but obviously in English) and I'll post their answer if they'll be kind to reply.

I can understand the police flexibility but I can't rely on that. I have to know what the law says and not place myself and my family to the mercy of a policeman, more or less flexible, more or less looking for a bribe. I want to enjoy the ride, not watch for police vehicles.

I wouldn`t worry about the speed limit driving one of them gas guzzlers, or worrying about what class of vehicle it says on your registration, there`s too many SUVs owned by Turks on the roads in Turkey, and they all go fast as hell, so forget it.

It`s about 70kph for motorcycles - too slow to be safe, especially from all them big honkin` SUVs blasting past on the road - never mind the cement trucks, the dump trucks, the other trucks that legally can go faster than a motorcycle.

Best way to ride a motorcycle in Turkey?
 

:offtopic:
From this thread it sounds like the Best way to ride a motorcycle in Turkey is to put it on the back of a truck, kick your feet up and drink cold beer.

I'm not looking forward to doing 200kms at less than 70kph in June/July!

Does Turkey have it's own beer?

Sure, it does. Efes Pilsen is the best (at least for my taste). :) If your way passes through Ankara, let me buy an Efes.

Cheers,
Ozgur.

kobold, have a look at this link: Karar Özeti
Can you briefly translate it, please, in a couple of phrases?

I appreciated your research skills. How did you find this court decision? :)

It says there is a new regulation (issued on 23/07/2003) and 4x4, SUVs are M1G and speed limits are same as all M1 class vehicles. Some people applied to high court asking them to cancel that regulation.

The decision of the court briefly is; 4x4 and SUV should be considered in M1 (M1G) class (as a type of car) and should not be considered as Off-Road vehicles as before the new regulations. So, the speed limits are 50/90/120 for 4x4, SUVs. (M1G).

So, you can safely drive 90+%10 in intercity roads. (me, also) :) Also, thanks that i learned the vehicles classes and the relatively new regulation. :)

Cheers,
Ozgur

Well, I've been using Google since its 5th day of existance in the late '90s (before that I was using excite, yahoo and other metacrawlers and search engines).
If the information is indexed, I'll find it. You won't see me asking questions on forums, speccialy about fuel prices or what kind of beer will I find in a certain country :)

Thanks for the translation on the court decision. I used google to translate it in several languages I know to be sure I don't misunderstand something but I wanted to be absolutely sure. I will print it and use it if the case might be.

I didn't get any reply from EMG yet and I don't think I ever will.

One other thing. I joined the other day a Turkish Polis forum and I asked the same question. Nobody could give a definite answer making excuses they are not traffic police officers.
One moderator there finally posted the simple form of speed limits in Turkey (without the vehicle categories M1, M1G, N1G ....) and said that Jeep's fall in the "Arazi Taşıtı" category so they have the same speed limits as motorcycles. About the same time I posted the court decision on this forum, I posted it on the police forum as well, together with a link to the law, and quoted the M1G category specifications (in Turkish).
10 minutes later another moderator said that I joined there to ridicule them and the topic got locked :biggrin3:
Typical police action and reaction :laugh:

All's well when ends well. At least we got to the bottom of it.

Cheers,
Cip

Lol. Typical reaction of Turkish police to cover up their lack of knowledge. (they usually try to bully when you insist on something.) I don't think most of the Turkish traffic police knows about the vehicle classifications and also I think most of the people in Turkey who owns a 4x4 still thinks the speed limits of their vehicles are as Off-Road vehicles (like me before this post.) :)

Cheers,
Ozgur.