(CS) Some 20,000 drivers with cars registered in Luxembourg were caught speeding by speed cameras in France in the first six months of this year, according to French media reports.

In 2005, the Grand Duchy and neighbour France signed an agreement which allows for the culprits to be tracked all the way to Luxembourg. Prior to then, a speeding ticket from France could not be forwarded to Luxembourg and speeders went scot-free.

But Luxembourg drivers are not the worst speeders among France's neighbours. As LesEchos.fr reports, some 47,000 Belgians were caught speeding in the month of July alone, just after a bilateral agreement on traffic tickets between both countries came into effect.

Swiss drivers, who will also find a speeding ticket in their mail boxes, were flashed some 83,000 times over the course of the first six months of 2012.

EU directive in 2013

But it is the Germans who take home the trophy, with between 500,000 and 1 million speed camera catches per year, according to the paper. There is no agreement on the exchange of information between France and Germany yet, though it is said to be in the works for 2013, together with agreements with Italy, Spain and the Netherlands.

The EU Cross Border Enforcement Directive is also set to come into action by November 2013, which mandates that members states cooperate on the exchange of information on traffic violations, especially in regards to speeding, driving under the influence, using a mobile phone whilst driving, not wearing seat belts and other serious and dangerous infractions.

On the whole, the French state took in some 639 million euros from speeding tickets last year.