The Free Air Station

The Free Air Station by Paul Howlett

I was driving my little red Citroen along the French motorway when I saw a “free air” station and decided it was time that I checked the tyre pressures in my car.

I was a little surprised that I had not encounter such an air station before so I took a photo, just for the record.

I commenced to inflate or check my tyres on one side of the car, and when I proceeded to try and get the air hose across to the other side, I found that the hose was too short.  So I started pulling on the hose but it refused to give me any more length. I thought that the hose was stuck.

Then the car behind me, waiting to use the air station honked his horn, and a Frenchman started yelling at me!  Then I realised that I had not looked on the other side of my car. The air hoses are designed to use on each side of the car.  So I stopped yanking on the hose, walked across to the other side of the car and used the hose on that side of the car.  I was embarrassed and I guess the two Frenchmen in the car behind me thought I was another dumb tourist. 

All French rent-a-cars have special number plates (coloured deep red), that tell everybody that you are a tourist driving the car.  This is actually a good thing as I found that French drivers would give you some more space on the roads.  

The way the French drove in 1991 you needed all the space on the road that you could get!!