Why don't the United Kingdom and Australia drive on the right side of the road?

[mikerault]

Actually in England it was because the King decreed it to keep folks from getting run over by the coach traffic. IN France and other countries it was because Napolean declared his troops would march that way.

Mike

 

[Charlie99]

It took me some getting used to living in Malaysia. I'd pull out and my wife would calmly say, "you're on the wrong side of the road"...ooops. A couple times, early in the morning driving to work, still dark, I'm looking at a car coming the other way thinking "why is he on my side of the road.....S**T !!! " swerve......oops. It's kind of weird at first.

Yeah. When there's traffic around it's a lot easier to remember.

Having driven all 4 combos of righthand/lefthand roads and cars, I've noticed a couple of funny things ....

For some reason, I continue to mix up the windshield wiper control and the turn signal when first swapping from left hand drive to right hand drive or vice versa. Signalling a turn with the windshield wipers is a common problem. Other US expats in Japan tell me they have the same problem, as have UK visitors to USA.

Left and right isn't really how we think when driving. There's the "easy turn" (right turn in USA, left turn in UK/Japan, etc.) and then there's the "hard turn" across traffic (left turn in US, right turn in UK). When a UK visitor in the US tells me to turn "left", he usually means right.

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IIRC, Sweden did the big shift from driving on the left to driving on the right back in the 70's. Lots of sign changes, a bit of remodeling on various freeway interchanges, and lots of initial confusion. I think they shifted in the middle of a weekend and intially had a very, very slow speed limit throughout the country, with the speed limit being raised back up to normal over a week or two.

 

[Hank49]

It seems to me that vehicles should negotiate traffic circles in a counter-clockwise direction north of the Equator, and clockwise south of the Equator. Failure to observe this physical imperative is an affront to the natural order, and probably one of the causes for increases of hurricane and typhoon severity.

I'd risk the hurricane frequency increase. It's be tricky driving on the right and going clockwise.

Charlie, a guy gave me a tip about driving either way....he said "keep the steering wheel to the center of the road". I kept that thought and it helped. Of course this is driving right, steering wheel left and vice versa.

I was always worried that in a situation where split second decision making would be required, I'd revert back to my natural style....and suffer the consequences.

 

[DiverBeth]

I drive on the correct side of the road, which is the side of the road I'm on regardless of the country. Everyone else is on the incorrect side. At least from my point of view.

 

[grazie42]

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IIRC, Sweden did the big shift from driving on the left to driving on the right back in the 70's. Lots of sign changes, a bit of remodeling on various freeway interchanges, and lots of initial confusion. I think they shifted in the middle of a weekend and intially had a very, very slow speed limit throughout the country, with the speed limit being raised back up to normal over a week or two.

Yes. If I remember correctly we didn´t have a single accident during the change-over...With a bit of organisation and pre-planning it´s not that hard...
Guess that leaves out most of the "civilized" world

 

[RonDawg]

For some reason, I continue to mix up the windshield wiper control and the turn signal when first swapping from left hand drive to right hand drive or vice versa. Signalling a turn with the windshield wipers is a common problem. Other US expats in Japan tell me they have the same problem, as have UK visitors to USA.

Actually, from the several times I've visited the UK, I've noticed that the cars I've rented there still have the turn signal on the left and the windshield wipers on the right. I'm guessing it's due to European car manufacturers having to design cars for both sides of the road, and that's one way they can keep the same parts and thus the costs down.

Australia is a different story. Their cars have the turn signal on the right and wipers on the left. I drove around Cairns for perhaps two days while "indicating" with my windshield wipers :11:

Left and right isn't really how we think when driving. There's the "easy turn" (right turn in USA, left turn in UK/Japan, etc.) and then there's the "hard turn" across traffic (left turn in US, right turn in UK). When a UK visitor in the US tells me to turn "left", he usually means right.

Try driving in downtown Melbourne, Australia, where due to the presence of trolley car tracks down the middle of the street, you are forced to make right turns from the LEFT side of the street. So not only do you have to watch for oncoming traffic, you also have to check your mirrors to make sure you don't get clobbered from behind as well.

 

[RonDawg]

I was always worried that in a situation where split second decision making would be required, I'd revert back to my natural style....and suffer the consequences.

Very true. A couple of times I've found myself on the "incorrect" (relative to the locals' point of view) side of the road in both the UK and Australia if I was tired or simply wasn't paying attention.

Fortunately both times they occurred in parking lots or on very lightly travelled streets.

 

[tedtim]

We should all become DOR drivers.

DOR = Driving on Right

And note that I said drivers

Made you look

 

[drbill]

What are you guys talking about? I drive on BOTH sides of the road regardless of whether I'm in the States or in Britain... assuming I've had an ample amount of ouzo or some other alcoholic mind alterant!

 

[tedj01]

DrBill, thats what happens here as well - we use all the road. But of course I live on the West Coast - its just east of you roughly 3000 miles.