Is it possible to drive in Iran?

 Iran is becoming increasingly popular as a tourist destination. Rightly so, if you ask us, because this beautiful country deserves more positive attention. Although public transport in Iran is well-organized, we chose to rent a car in Iran. The freedom that comes with renting a car guarantees that you will reach places where tourists will usually never come. Traffic in Iran is very chaotic and sometimes unpredictable, but we survived! During our trip to Iran, we got a pretty clear picture of what to look out for and what you need to know before immersing yourself in a game called trafficking in Iran. If you are from the "west", this is something completely different from what you are used to! Read about car rental in Iran and traffic in Iran

Car rental in Iran: Traffic in Iran

Toll roads in Iran

Condition of roads

Road signs in Iran

Car rental in Iran

When we were planning to go to Iran, the idea quickly came to us to check the possibility of renting a car. The freedom we had on the motorcycle in Vietnam and with our Ford Falcon in Australia was wonderful. The number of rental companies in Iran is not very large, so I only had a few photos in a company that had reasonable prices and the possibility of a different place to return. Europecar prices are very high, so this possibility was quickly rejected.

raffia in Iran

At first glance, trafficking in Iran is not really different from many other places in Asia where we have been involved in trafficking. It's a mix of vehicles and there don't seem to be any rules, and that really sums it up. There don't seem to be many rules to keep in mind while driving in Iran.

Car rental in Iran. Car rental Iran. Traffic in Iran. our Peugeot 206 near the salt lake near Varzane

Traffic in the city

Our first experience in Iranian traffic was hasty. Saadat Rent is located in Tehran, so our first drive was to take the car to the city. It seems that everyone goes their own way, without taking into account anything else. You see the strangest things; five lanes, where three are actually meant, reversing cars in the strangest places and parked cars in the middle of the road. You will be relieved when you finally manage to get out of the city.

Traffic outside the city

Everyone seems to calm down after leaving the city. People seem to stay in their lanes and overtaking is mostly on the left side. The highway has a speed limit of 110 km / h, which is provided by many speed cameras. The cameras seem to be active only when the police are actively controlling the speed, because after about twenty kilometers of speed cameras, each car is stopped by a police officer, who then transmits the license plates on the radio. Fortunately, they waved us over.

Car rental in Iran. Car rental Iran. Traffic in Iran. Large old trucks dominate Iran's roads

Car rental in Iran. Car rental Iran. Traffic in Iran. our Peugeot 206 in the desert

Toll roads in Iran

Many roads in Iran are tolled. Make sure you have enough dashboard changes when you go on the road. We were three times on a fee where we had to pay 5,000 and 20,000 riyals. The third time the toll operator just wanted to know where we were from and with a smile withdrew my hand when I wanted to give him a bill of 20,000. Free pass! The Iranians are very kind.

Priority

The law of the jungle seems to apply here. If you want to turn into a side street, then you should not wait until someone is kind enough to let you go, because it will take a long time! Continue forward to the turn and at some point someone has to stop to miss you. Another good trick is to wait for an Iranian to take the same turn as you and then use him as a guide to take you out on the street. It's pretty scary at first, but you'll get used to it. Almost no Iranian uses their indicators, which contributes to the chaos. After all, I've always used them. A little extra indication of direction never hurts.

Light

The lamps must always be on. In the Netherlands, it is believed that we should turn on our lights before starting the car. This is a strange thing in Iran. When, by my Dutch logic, I was driving through the city with the lights on during the day, half the people signaled that I was a maniac. So, you better keep your lights off during the day. It gets even weirder when it gets dark. Only when it is really dark (about an hour after sunset) does everyone turn on their lights. "The more light, the better," the Iranians must think, because one in ten pilots has turned on the high beams. Constantly, even in the city. Very annoying if you ask me. Fortunately, we didn't drive that often after sunset.

Speed

Road signs in Iran are quite clear, although the number of speed limits can sometimes be confusing. There are virtually no "top speed" signs in Iran. When you leave the village, you will not see a sign crossed out "50". You will also notice that the speed limit changes frequently. 80, 110, 70, 85, 95. All within 1 kilometer. Driving with the flow of traffic seems to be the best solution here.

Speed ​​strikes

Highways in Iran pass through villages. Here the speed limit is shown on the signs (usually 50). Pay attention, because there are always inequalities in cities. They are poorly marked and come in a variety of sizes, from low impact to launch size.