French road signs - ma French Life (2024)

Learn the most common French road signs to stay safe while driving in France. In this visual list, French road sign pictures are displayed next to their corresponding American road sign with meanings in English.

Compared to the United States, traffic signs in France use symbols rather than words to convey their message. Get familiar with French (and European!) symbols on traffic signs to become a better driver.

Feel free to download a printable version of my American and French road signs pdf file.

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French road signs – Interdictions

Interdiction road signs in France have a circle shape and their color is usually red and white.

Speed limits in France are displayed in kilometers per hour (km/h) because France uses the metric system. If you’re not familiar with the metric system, read French measurements. You can also directly use my Kilometers to miles converter.

French speed limits

When French speed limit signs are located underneath the entrance sign of a city or a village, the speed limit applies to the whole city or village.

Arrêts et stationnement interdits

No stopping and no parking until the next intersection.

Cédez le passage à la circulation venant en sens inverse

Yield to traffic coming the opposite way.

French stop sign

The French Stop sign is almost identical to the American Stop sign.

Unlike in the United States, a Stop sign in France is always accompanied by a bold solid white line across the road. At a French Stop sign, your vehicle must come to a total stop (wheels should stop turning) just before the solid white line. The fine for not completely stopping at a stop sign is €135 along with four points withdrawal on your French driver’s license. Failure to come to a total stop at a stop sign is a 4th category traffic violation in France.

Do you wonder why Stop signs in France don’t say Arrêt instead of Stop? French borrowed the word Stop from English and made the verb stopper out of it. If you’re interested in French anglicisms gone wrong, read Misused English words in French.

French road signs – Obligations

Obligation road signs in France have a circle shape but, unlike interdictions, their color is usually blue.

See Also

Bouchons : 8 astuces pour économiser de l'essenceVoici comment diminuer les bouchons entre Lausanne-Genève

Obligation de tourner à droite avant le panneau

Mandatory right turn before the road sign.

Entrée d’aire piétonne

Pedestrian only area entrance.

French road signs – Warnings

Warning road signs in France are easily recognizable by their triangle shape and their red and white color. In the United States, yellow traffic signs are used for warning whereas yellow signs in France are for temporary signs.

In cooler regions, the French slippery road sign is paired with a Verglas fréquent sign to remind drivers to watch for ice..

Roundabouts are extremely frequent in France and it’s worth taking the time to learn how to enter or exit them. Check out the different types of roundabouts in France and learn how to master them.

Did you know?
The yield traffic sign in the United States was initially yellow like the other warning signs. It was changed to red in 1971 to make it more noticeable and similar to the stop sign.

French road signs – Right-of-way

The following French road signs have no American counterpart but they’re widely used and therefore you need to know them. When there is no road sign, traffic entering the roadway from the right always has priority.

Cédez le passage aux véhicules arrivant par votre droite

At the next intersection, yield to vehicles coming from your right.

Priorité ponctuelle

At the next intersection, you have priority over traffic coming from your right and from your left.

Route prioritaire

This is a priority road. You have priority over traffic coming from your right and from your left.

The yellow diamond traffic sign indicating a priority road is very frequent on French roads.

French road signs – Indications

France road signs with a rectangular shape are not regulatory signs but they provide indications instead.

The following French traffic sign is used in narrow road sections.

Priorité par rapport à la circulation en sens inverse

Priority over traffic coming from the opposite direction.

Freeway signs

French freeway signs are blue whereas they’re green in the United States.

Paiement par abonnement

E-payment only.

Halte péage

Stop for toll booth.

Radar road signs

French radars are signaled with any of the following road signs. By law, radars don’t have to be indicated so don’t assume that no sign means no radar.

Radars road signs translation in English: For your own safety, speed frequently enforced by radar.

The latest radar signs don’t have any text but they show the speed limit at the top of the sign.

Areas or zones

Whereas a traffic sign is valid until another sign changes the rule, French road signage also uses the concept of zone. A zone usually includes multiple streets.

Entrée de zone de circulation restreinte

Low emission zone.

Read about restricted zones in Air quality certificate in France.

Entrée de zone 30

Zone limited to 30km/h (18mph).

Entrée de zone d’obligation d’équipements en pneus hiver

Zone with mandatory snow tyres during winter.

Winter road equipments are mandatory in 48 French departments with mountain areas (Alps, Corsica, Massif Central region, Jura mountains, Pyrenees and Vosges). Winter law is enforced from November 1st to March 31st. Enforced dates are typically displayed underneath the mandatory winter equipment sign.

Voie verte

Green zone, non-motorized vehicles only.

Zone de rencontre

Meeting zone entrance.

A meeting zone (zone de rencontre) is meant to be a shared space open to everyone. Pedestrians can walk on the road, bikes can go in both directions and motor vehicles cannot go over 20 km/h (around 12mph).

French road markings

You must follow speed limit pavement markings in France, even when there is no speed limit traffic sign.

End of zone signs

You know you’re exiting a restricted zone when you see one of the following road signs.

Fin de zone

End of low emission zone.

Fin de zone 30

End of speed limit to 30 km/h (18mph).

Fin de zone d’obligation d’équipements en pneus hiver

End of mandatory snow tyres during winter.

Fin de zone verte

End of green zone (non-motorized vehicles only).

Fin de Zone de rencontre

End of meeting zone.

Temporary road signs

French temporary road signs have a yellow background.

French sentences on the road

You might encounter these sentences while driving in France. Check out their meanings before taking the wheel.

Allumez vos feux

Turn on your lights

Fin d’allumage des feux

Turn off your lights

Un train peut en cacher un autre

One train may hide another

Risque de verglas

Icy road

Roulez au pas

Drive very slowly

Route barrée

Closed road

Suivre déviation

Follow detour

Vérifiez votre distance de sécurité

Keep a safe distance

Vous n’avez pas la priorité

You don’t have right of way

French sentences on freeways

Message boards on French freeways can be pretty wordy. Get familiar with some of the most frequent sentences.

Accident, ralentissez

Car accident, slow down

Attention travaux à 10 km, vitesse réduite

Work zone in 10km, reduced speed limit ahead

Au péage, prudence, piétons

At the toll booth, watch out for pedestrians

Bouchon à 1 km, prudence

Traffic jam in 1km, caution

Des chantiers, des hommes, je ralentis

Work zones, men at work, I slow down

Distance respectée = sécurité

Keeping a safe distance = security

Hommes en jaunes sur les voies, je ralentis

Men in yellow on the road, I slow down

Je respecte les vitesses

I follow speed limits

Par temps de pluie, vitesse 110km/h

Speed limit reduced to 110km/h when raining

Ralentissem*nt à 2 km, restez vigilants

Slower traffic in 2km, proceed with caution

Vent violent, soyez prudent

Caution, high winds

Now that you’ve learned the main French road signs and their meanings, read about driving in France vs driving in the U.S. in Americans driving in France.