On Tuesday morning this week, i tipped Eschweiler, and had to reload Duisburg for Amsterdam. Did the MAUT, and went into to Duisburg, wrongly as it turned out on the E34/A40. So, i loaded DHL then found an easier way out(not sure how i didnt see it on the way in), but which took me back to the A57/E31. I had already paid tax for this section of road earlier, but was still within the time limit on the said ticket.
I didnt gain much as i had to get tax to go for when it ran out to Arnhem, but i can see there are occasions where you may be able to gain/save money by using your tax twice.
Doing the MAUT used to be the bane of my life when I went to Germany as my boss was too cheap to fit a box to the truck.
If you went down the wrong motorway, as is understably easy to do in an area such as the Ruhr, I’d only worry if you passed under a gantry on a piece of road you should not have been on.
I used to spend ages re-routing the stupid thing through the Ruhr on to the specific motorways I wanted to take while heading to Venlo to miss all the traffic hot spots and roadworks the maut machine would have otherwise sent me through.
I wish it was compulsory to have a box fitted as per Austria, it would save no end of wasted time and BS.
I imagine that if you passed beneath a gantry, the BAG will have been alerted to the fact that you have used the same section of road twice. Whether this is allowed or not, I don’t know- I expect you’ll find out next time you go there.
Betz:
Bloody Ruhr Motorway network! every time I go there - my sat nav always goes mess up! plus traffic jams!
I used to spend ages re-routing my maut route through the Ruhr to avoid all the black spots. Nightmare of a place when you have to do the maut manually, especially if your doing multi-drop groupage work. I’ve had no end of disasters in the area when instead of simply heading back on to the autobahn after loading or tipping I’ve had to head “inland” to find a petrol station with a maut machine…usually only to find low bridges, weight limits and such like instead, and then upon finding a petrol station, not being able to actually get in to it, getting bollocked for parking on the side of the road, or in bus stops…and then trying to find somewhere to turn around and find my way back to the autobahn again…an absolutely ridiculous system.
Works perfectly well for those who take the effort to install a box. Anyone in their right mind who does Germany regularly or needs to transit Germany and doesn’t have a box fitted deserves to struggle in my opinion.
Works perfectly well for those who take the effort to install a box. Anyone in their right mind who does Germany regularly or needs to transit Germany and doesn’t have a box fitted deserves to struggle in my opinion.
I believe it takes half a day and a good few hundred pounds to install?
Of course, they could have used a far simpler and less expensive system, like the Austrian Go-box, but given that the MAUT was developed by Siemens, a German company…
Works perfectly well for those who take the effort to install a box. Anyone in their right mind who does Germany regularly or needs to transit Germany and doesn’t have a box fitted deserves to struggle in my opinion.
As I’m not an owner driver or the company owner I dont have the power to just go and get the box installed in the truck I drove so quite how I deserve to struggle is beyond me. Care to explain how company policy is my fault?
Works perfectly well for those who take the effort to install a box. Anyone in their right mind who does Germany regularly or needs to transit Germany and doesn’t have a box fitted deserves to struggle in my opinion.
I believe it takes half a day and a good few hundred pounds to install?
Of course, they could have used a far simpler and less expensive system, like the Austrian Go-box, but given that the MAUT was developed by Siemens, a German company…
It takes a couple of hours to fit a MAUT box, that’s all.
The Germans also developed what is now the Austrian Go-Box.
I think it was intended for use in Germany, but wasn’t capable of doing everything they wanted.
The MAUT system is also capable of being expanded to cover almost anywhere. So could be used by the British Government for a Pay-as-you-go road tax system.
anyone who puts a German maut box in the truck must be off his head.
the nazis use them to tell how many hours you have driven before they pull you.
We are in europe, so we should have one road tax.
limeyphil:
anyone who puts a German maut box in the truck must be off his head.
the nazis use them to tell how many hours you have driven before they pull you.
We are in europe, so we should have one road tax.
limeyphil:
anyone who puts a German maut box in the truck must be off his head.
the nazis use them to tell how many hours you have driven before they pull you.
Bull [ZB]
It’s specifically written into the legislation, that they cannot use the MAUT system to track your driving hours, or speed.
limeyphil:
We are in europe, so we should have one road tax.
In France, Germany, Italy and Spain, if you stay off the Auto(whichever), you pay £0 road tax. Are you saying I should now pay even more taxes ?
In some areas, it isn’t possible to avoid road tolls, due to weight limits etc. But in most areas, you can.
BuzzardBoy:
On Tuesday morning this week, i tipped Eschweiler, and had to reload Duisburg for Amsterdam. Did the MAUT, and went into to Duisburg, wrongly as it turned out on the E34/A40. So, i loaded DHL then found an easier way out(not sure how i didnt see it on the way in), but which took me back to the A57/E31. I had already paid tax for this section of road earlier, but was still within the time limit on the said ticket.
I didnt gain much as i had to get tax to go for when it ran out to Arnhem, but i can see there are occasions where you may be able to gain/save money by using your tax twice.
It isn’t a loophole. If they catch up with you, its a fine. Your MAUT ticket is usually only one way. From where you join the autobahn, to where you expect to exit the autobahn, with up to 4 other via-points.
It might be possible to pre-pay a return trip on the same ticket, to exit at the same point you joined. I don’t know because I’ve never tried, but I don’t think so. You can pre-pay from entering Germany at, say Aachen, go by up to 4 via-points in the Ruhr and exit Germany at Arnhem. Before you press the final button, check that you have enough time to do what you have to do.
Those gantries over the autobahn are pretty complicated pieces of gear. They measure the radar return and decide if the approaching vehicle is a car or truck. They then send out a signal to check that your MAUT box is working properly. If there’s no return from a MAUT box, it reads your number plate with ANPR cameras and checks against the MAUT computer database. If it can’t find your registration, it flags you up for the BAG, Police and/or Customs.
They may not catch you this trip, but they’ll catch you eventually. They don’t even have to catch you personally. They will collect the fine off anyone from your company, or someone else driving your truck. They’ll even let you go, but the truck won’t be moving till the fines are paid. I know because one of ours got caught this way and had to pay the fines for a casual driver who’d made a pigs ear of the job. It seems to be a company fine, rather than a drivers fine (going by that).
limeyphil:
anyone who puts a German maut box in the truck must be off his head.
the nazis use them to tell how many hours you have driven before they pull you.
Bull [ZB]
It’s specifically written into the legislation, that they cannot use the MAUT system to track your driving hours, or speed.
limeyphil:
We are in europe, so we should have one road tax.
In France, Germany, Italy and Spain, if you stay off the Auto(whichever), you pay £0 road tax. Are you saying I should now pay even more taxes ?
In some areas, it isn’t possible to avoid road tolls, due to weight limits etc. But in most areas, you can.
limeyphil:
anyone who puts a German maut box in the truck must be off his head.
the nazis use them to tell how many hours you have driven before they pull you.
Bull [ZB]
It’s specifically written into the legislation, that they cannot use the MAUT system to track your driving hours, or speed.
limeyphil:
We are in europe, so we should have one road tax.
In France, Germany, Italy and Spain, if you stay off the Auto(whichever), you pay £0 road tax. Are you saying I should now pay even more taxes ?
In some areas, it isn’t possible to avoid road tolls, due to weight limits etc. But in most areas, you can.
i didn’t say you would have to pay more taxes.
No, you didn’t.
But the people who make the final decisions on taxes are politicians. Politicians are paid from our taxes. There isn’t the slightest possibility that a change in how taxes are charged will lead to a reduction in taxes paid. It’s guaranteed that it would lead to an increase.
thetourist:
Never had a problem with the maut on short hops or long trips. all you have to do is enter what you want it to cover and then stick to it SIMPLES
its easy to use, the only ones who complain are probably too thick to work out where they are going
every time I go there - my sat nav always goes mess up! plus traffic jams! 
