Nine more French departments to have unmarked speed radar cars
An increasing proportion of the cars will be operated by private contractors
The speed radar cars look like normal vehicles but stick to certain key routes
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Unmarked radar cars will be on the roads in nine more French departments from this month, with drivers from private companies replacing police and gendarmes to catch speeding drivers on many routes.
The system of discreet radar cars, which has been in place in some parts of the country since 2018, has been progressively rolled out to every region of mainland France in accordance with the longstranding plans of the Interior Ministry and S茅curit茅 routi猫re.
However the nine new departments are to be primarily covered by private companies allocated from neighbouring departments, France鈥檚 road safety body has confirmed.
These cars, which look like ordinary vehicles but are equipped with near-invisible infrared speed detection equipment, are already active in around 60 departments.
In the coming months, they will also be deployed in:
June: Ard猫che, Cantal, Bouches-du-Rh么ne, Ari猫ge
July: Ain, Haute-Loire, Pyr茅n茅es-Orientales, Tarn-et-Garonne, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence
Each department will typically receive two or three cars that follow routes set in advance by the local pr茅fecture.
The vehicles can operate day and night, seven days a week, and record speeding violations in both directions - without flashing visibly or stopping the driver.
Motorists will only find out they have been caught when the fine arrives by post.
Read more: How to spot an unmarked speed radar car in France
The role of private radar cars
Although the total number of radar cars nationwide is not expected to increase greatly by the end of 2025, the proportion operated by private contractors is increasing.
The Interior Ministry said this change allows police and gendarmes to focus on other priorities, as part of a broader 鈥渢ransfer of responsibilities鈥�.
Four private firms now share most of the outsourced contracts and continue to recruit salaried drivers for the scheme. Their contract is for performing the role, firms are not per fine issued.
According to RMC, a majority of the radar cars in operation by late 2025 will be privately operated.
Targeting speed on dangerous roads
The expansion is part of a wider road safety strategy aimed at curbing excessive speed, particularly on roads identified as high-risk for serious accidents.
鈥淲ith fixed radars, drivers learn where they are and change their behaviour only at those points,鈥� said Jean-Yves Lamant, president of La Ligue contre la violence routi猫re. 鈥淏ut just because you are not caught does not mean you are not dangerous. We need people to know they can be flashed anywhere, at any time.鈥�
Radar cars have already been deployed this year in Aveyron and the Lot, with further departments expected to be added later in 2025 as part of the national rollout.
