In several European cities officials have recently created restricted driving zones, and that translates into major traffic fines if you don’t follow the rules.

In London, there’s a fee to drive in the downtown Congestion Zone weekdays between 7am and 6 pm.

If you visit cclondon.com you’ll find out where those zones are and you can actually pay the fee ahead of time.

In Italy, those restricted zones are in most cities’ historic centers. They’re usually marked by poor signage, and the rules can vary. Hey, it’s Italy.

It can mean that you can drive but not park, you can’t enter after 8pm, or you can’t enter even on a pogo stick on the night of a full moon. Yikes!

And then to make matters worse, video cameras record your license plate number.

But there’s hope: if your hotel is located within a restricted driving zone, they can get you a permit.

The problem is, you can’t claim ignorance to get out of the fine.

This is an easy way for cities to make money from unsuspecting visitors.

Get more driving advice in our Car Rental section.

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