Cross yourself before driving' Vatican tells motorists

By Barbara Miller

The Vatican is urging motorists not to use their vehicles as an expression of power.

The Vatican has taken a break from matters purely theological to issue a list of Ten Commandments on driving.

The document urges motorists to be charitable, not to use their vehicles as an expression of power and to cross themselves before setting off on their journey.

There is a 30-kilometre an hour speed limit in Vatican City and the last recorded accident was a year-and-a-half ago resulting in only minor damage.

But the Vatican says that the fact that outside the walls of the world's smallest sovereign state an estimated 1.2 million people die in road accidents each year means driving is an issue it should address.