Today, let’s talk about driving in Great Britain.
I bet the first question you have is:
Why do they drive on the left?
The reason is rooted in Britain’s colonial past. Commonwealth countries such as South Africa, Australia, and India all drive on the left, with the latter alone boosting the share of the world’s population that does so quite significantly.
Additionally, British cars were (and still are) designed with the driver’s seat on the right, so that the person behind the wheel, driving on the left side of the road, can see oncoming traffic more clearly. This is known as right-hand driving (not to be confused with right-hand traffic).
Napoleon, being the influential man he was, made right-hand driving the rule across the territories he conquered. That’s why much of continental Europe now drives on the right.
The UK, however, stuck to its ways. When the first cars appeared, they simply kept the same rule as horse riders had always followed: left-side driving.
Did some countries switch after this?
Yes, a famous example is Sweden.
In 1967, Sweden changed from driving on the left to the right. The event, called Dagen H, was the biggest logistical operation in Swedish history. The “H” stands for Högertrafik, the Swedish word for right-hand traffic.
Is it hard for continental Europeans to switch?
It is, at least for me. I’ve driven in rural Australia and South Africa, but I didn’t have the courage to try it in English cities; those roundabouts are terrifying!
That said, I have to praise the English for being incredibly polite drivers. Every day, I was pleasantly surprised by the lack of aggression on the roads, quite the contrast to Switzerland, where tailgating, cutting people off without indicating, flashing headlights, and politically incorrect hand gestures are all part of daily traffic life.
Would you have the courage to drive on England’s roads as an inexperienced left-hand driver?
PS: The cars you see in the photo are parked on Penny Lane in Liverpool!
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