I just got the chance to do a regular (ish) run to Milan, Italy. I have driven on Continent previously, but many years ago. I have over 20yrs driving exp.
If any one can pass on any good sound advice it would be appreciated, such as route info ? border info ? and anything else you guys think would help me on my first ‘‘nervous trip’’ next week !!!
Hello Adrian and welcome.
No doubt your boss will tell you which way to go. Lots go via Switzerland these days as they have upped the weight limit.
If you go through Switzerland, you need T-forms (which you will get at Ashford or Dover) , and you need to declare them at the border, in and out. You also have to register for a smart card to pay transit tax.
If you go via Frejus, then basically there is nothing to do at the border, you just go straight in, and you won`t carry T-forms.
Park sensibly in Milan, there are problems with truck crime.
Whichever way you go, it`s a beautiful drive. Enjoy.
Vince
Several things will have changed since you last went over I think.
You don’t say which route you are intending to take, via France or via Swiss so I’ll mention a couple of things about both ways.
The weight limit in Switzerland is 34 tonnnes so if you are over that you will have to go via France and that will usually be either the Mont Blanc or Frejus Tunnel to get into Italy and you should note, in case you are driving an older vehicle, that EURO 0 vehicles are not allowed through either tunnel.
Going that way I would normally go Calais - Reims- Troyes then on towards Lyon before going either the Blanc or Frejus.
If you do go this way you don’t have any border procedures to worry about, you don’t even have to stop at the borders so it is a staright forward drive.
If you go via Switzerland then you will have borders to deal with and also the Swiss Road Tax system. For the latter you will need to register the vehicle as this will, I assume, be the first time you have used it. You will need to have the original V5 with you to do this, but you should carry that anyway, and it doesn’t take long to register.
The office where you register is usually pretty well signposted otherwise someone will tell you where it is. When you register you are given a credit card sized plastic card and you then need to visit one of their machines, insert the card and enter details such as kilometre reading and method of payment, you can use most fuel cards, credit cards or cash.
You will also need a transit T-form and you can get that before you leave the UK at Ashford or Dover and you can also get them on the Swiss border. Going via Switzerland sounds a little complicated but it is pretty straight forward and someone will always help if you get confused/stuck.
Going this way I would, normally go Calais - Brussels - Luxembourg - Strasbourg - Basle - Chiasso - Milan.
A lot of guys go Calais - Lille - Mons - Charleroi - Namur - Luxembourg - Strasbourg - Basle - Chiasso - Milan.
Not much in it either of those two ways, just personal preference really.
Advice much appreciated !! I’ll let you know how it all goes !! Thanks again.
as an aside do you lads remember “fingers” at Aosta
I wonder what he is doing now to subsidise his existence■■?
(He was a border customs officer who took backhanders)
i remember they were the most miserable bunch of baskets going at aosta, even up to the ones in the cabin at the exit gate who spent their careers scowling and studying jazzmags 
we used to have to do the “vet” at aosta with wool, a thorough analytical inspection it was not - i’ve seen them pass separate loads of matress wool, unscoured rough stuff and merino tops - all from the SAME sample we provided 
just watch out for the potholes between torino and milano some are so deep i saw miners coming out of them this week just gone but they are building a lovely new motorway between the 2 cities.
Glad to see you got back safely, Neil… had my works phone off so never got your text about Frehus till today… a matter of me sulking lol
Just done a Malaga and Valencia back to back and am knackered
Adrian, you’re not going to be alone. I’m also going to be starting running out to Italy on a weekly basis in the next few weeks and I haven’t even been abroad before, ever Just waiting for my passport to arrive
Had instructions from the boss to go through France and over Mont Blanc. Certainly looking forward to the drive as I’m sick of seeing the same old UK roads and motorways and I’m assured the scenery is spectacular, but not looking forward to driving on t’other side of road, trying to find places in a different language, the language barrier itself, sorting Euro money out and perhaps most worryingly, wondering if they’ll find drugs in my load and end up getting locked up like poor John Vasey 
also, worrying about whether there’s an illegal immigrant hiding in my fuel tank or something on the way back
I’d perhaps be looking forward to it more if it was say, one drop and one collection, but there’s often up to 10 deliveries and perhaps half a dozen collections and I don’t want to stuck out there over a weekend if I run out of hours
Does Italy have like counties like we do and have an equivalent of the Ordnance Survey county maps to find your way about ? I don’t want to have to do what the foreigners do over here and stop in the middle of a roundabout, jump out of cab and wave notes under the nose of an Italian hoping he’ll tell me in perfect English where I want to be
It’s all very daunting.
The map you need is called “atlante stradale d`Italia” and covers the whole of Italy in minute detail at 1: 250,000. It has a blue cover (well, mine has anyway but is a few years old) and is available at all motorway services.
It will not be nearly as daunting as you think once you get underway, and as said before it is a beautiful drive, up over the Alps.
Any specific advice you want, then fire away- someone will know the answer to your query. All the best!
Vince
What, you’re saying that this one map book covers ALL of Italy down to side-street and farm track detail like the OS County Maps do over here ? Surely not, it would be as thick as 20 Yellow Pages ■■? 
The maps you want are the ‘Atlante Provincia’ such as Atlante Milano e Provincia or Atlante Torino della Provincia. These maps are like our county A-Z. They cover the whole province and are very good.
The map Vince mentioned is an atlas of Italy and is probably the best you will get.
Parking: I would not advise you to park anywhere in Milan. You will be better off using another hours driving and parking elsewhere. There was 2 places I used when in Milan area. 1 was about half hour away and the other was about 45 mins.
The nearest to Milan is Arluno. Exit the Autostrada at the junction signed Arluno, go through the Peage(toll) to the r/about, turn right, next r/about turn right, follow the road for about a mile and just before the 2nd bridge turn right into a fuel distribution depot. You wont actually go into the depot as the restaurant is on the right before you get there. You will always find other British trucks parked there. The woman that runs it is Phil and she is from Poole in Dorset, so her English is fairly good.
The 2nd is, Exit Carisio, through the peage up to T junction turn left and 50 metres on your right is the entrance, again there will be British trucks there. If I remember rightly, Carisio is closed on Mondays.
Both of these places are on the A4 Torino to Milano Autostrada(motorway)
On your way down, if you meet up with any drivers from E.M.Rogers, green trucks(volvo) with yellow writing, see if you can tag along with them. They’re not a bad bunch and will help you out.
If I can help you in any other way feel free to ask.
I’m turning green with envy now, I’d love to get back on the Italisn work. Enjoy yourself over there it’s a beautiful country and the people are ok too.
Hi , I don’t know how true it is but , if you are driving too and from Italy via the blanc , you have to have snow chains, more so the Italian side , I was told this on friday night by a driver at transmarck who had just come back that way, also there is another resteraunt just up the road from phil’s , called The glass House , better food ,better showers , but not much english spoken ,Phil’s is better known as the , Sisters or Alkatraz.
Cheers guys for the advice and help, mucho apreciado. However, although it didn’t mention it in the first mail, I’m undecided whether I’m going to go or not
I was happy on container work in my Scanny 530 topline but because of a large ■■■■ up by the local dealer after it brokedown it’s still very poorly despite Scania telling the gaffer it’s working fine, so he’s parking it up and selling it much to my disgust. We nearly came to blows over it because it was only a few months back that he assured me I’d be keeping it, hence getting all my kit wired up properly in it : CB, tely, DVD, laptop, fridge, hob, flash curtains, lights and carpetting it out. He’s selling it to get a 4-leg XF 430 or 480 to run to Italy and he’s given me a choice of having that and running to Italy (which I’m not happy about, neither the motor nor the european job) or having the 400HP Premium space cab 
Now I hate those things and I think it’s an insult to be offered it after the Scania but I don’t particularly want to be “forced” to go abroad either.
I could leave and do agency work as I fancy a bit more time at home at the moment and less nights out, but 1) I won’t get my own motor and 2) it’s getting to that time of year where the work runs out.
I just don’t know what to do.
Rob K if you’ve never driven over the water before give it a go you will love it. Vince said the Atlante stradale d`Italia is the best map book you need and he is spot on. You say you could do agency work but Italy is better, I live in the Southwest and euro work is slow to say the least. If you don’t like Italy, you can always do agency work.
Cheers Clint.
PS Give it Three months and you’ll never and I promise never be happy running up the M6 again.
Rob K=first time running to italy you will be scared to death,but enjoy its awonderful country.Some little bits of advice if they see you trying the langage they will help you no end so if you are lost,which you will be just ask==say dova por fer por=meaning where is this please say dover and put an a on the end.And like everone else do not park in milan stay at carisio or santhia,and from a personal thing stay well away from the glass house unless its change since i was last there its abit dodgey there thats my thinking. And finally dont judge it on your first trip do 8 or 10 trips get to enjoy it then judge it if you dont like it then jack it in but go and see for yourself.Personaly i loved it there.
there is a safe and secure parking area at milan, just after pero services follow the signs for viale certosa, as you come into the 4 lane section keep right and take the slip road, the parking is on the right, you drive past the back of it then take the next right and that will bring you to the entrance, you will have to pay for parking here but it is secure and it is normally full up by 8 pm with dutch and scandinavian trucks.
the restaraunt isn’t too bad but they close too early, about midnight.
drink wine instead of beer or drink a quality beer in a bottle, they have some awful beer out there that you think is ■■■ ends that have been soaked in water and crushed to extract all the fluid from them.
johnny the parking area in pero is that the one behind the services near the refinery by the esso or texaco garage
RobK, all I will say cos you have had plenty of advice here form people far more knowegable than me is GO FOR IT!!!
After you have driven in Europe for 3 months, you will simply hate returning and driving in the UK!! as I do and luckily it is very rare that I have to.
Although people that don’t really know say the drivers abroad are terrible etc, they are far more aware of big trucks than the clowns in this country. Of course, you will get ‘cut up’ but it won’t be an idiot who cuts you up and then slams the brakes on. Of course they drive rather rapid… but at the same time, if a car is joining the autoroute and he sees you don’t move over, he won’t force his way out like they do here!! You often see a car brake and wait till you are out the way before he joins the autoroute. Then he will fly by you lol It is a whole new ball game driving in Europe and don’t worry about drivng on the wrong side… it will come naturally after a couple of trips. Don’t forget when you come off the ferry in France or whereever, you are following loads of other trucks so you automatically find yourself on the correct side of the road… unless you are really really unlucky and he don’t know where he is going either lol
GO AND ENJOY, MY FRIEND… YOU WILL LOVE IT!!
no, you pass pero services, go over the bridge then turn for viale certosa.
you follow the road around and it goes from 2 lanes into 4 and you have to be in the right hand lane, take the first slip road via stevenson i think it is and the park is on your right, just follow the road to the right and that takes you to the entrance.
it is just a dhust bowl with high fencing around it and a security guard who patrols now and again, i used to park there a lot and never had any problems other than arriving too late and struggling to find a space.