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There are genuine safety reasons for driving on the left
Driving on the left is correct for right handed people which is the great majority,here is why:
When changing gear in a UK car with the steering wheel on the right , which is of course correct in the UK etc for driving on the left---------in the UK your left hand changes gear and your right hand stays on the steering wheel.-- this is safer( for right handed people.) The reverse is the case in countries where one must drive on the right.--
In other words if you live in the USA you hold the steering wheel with your left hand and change gear with your right hand because of course the steering wheel is on the left in the USA--------this is dangerous if you are right handed.
Bicycles.
Bike riders are in real danger in countries where driving on the right is mandatory again assuming you are right handed------Try mounting a bike in the USA and you will find yourself in the stream of traffic when getting on the bike---- try it yourself---------: Mounting a bike in the UK is done from the sidewalk by right handed people who find it easier to put their right leg over the bike. , Much safer and this must have saved many lives.
Reversing up a steep drive: My drive in the UK is very steep----when I reverse out I hold the steering wheel with my right hand and look over my left shoulder to the rear window.
In a USA car you must hold the steering wheel with your left hand and look over your right shoulder to look out of the rear window.. So you must reverse with your left hand on the steering wheel.. Or stick your head out of the window if you want to use your right hand on the steering wheel. -dangerous for the majority who are right handed.
It is safer for left handed people to drive is on the right--
Christopher (Chris) Davison London UK
Thanks to
User:213.48.145.41 for all the new material, which is likely to be valuable. However, i am reverting 213's addition of Thailand and Indonesia (in section "Left or Right?"), which are broken out individually already in section "Summary". I thot Japan belonged on a par, in this context, with the former Brit colonies, bcz it also accounts for an enormous number of cars. Without demeaning any country, a line needs to be drawn, or there is no point in having anything but the enormous list that ends the article. IMO, these two labels (ex-Brit & Japan) are a much better place to draw the line than any other option.
I'll also tighten up the wording, to make the logic clearer.
Please, 213, keep up the good work!
There's a section titled "Complete List" with links to many countries. What is this list for ? countries with driving on the left ? Why have the links to the countries pages been provided ? Jay 12:01, 24 Jan 2004 (UTC)
Hi, I'm new to this so forgive the placement of this snippet. I understood that we (British) drive on the left because:
1. Jousting knights (right handed) used so as not to cross the horse with the lance. 2. When travelling on horseback generally, you can use your weapon right handed to the oncoming attacker.
Makes sense to me.
Richard Hatton
-When driving on the left, "Viewing from the centre of the road and facing either side, drivers see vehicles approaching from their left, and those behind them are coming from their right " -Does someone want to explain this wordy paragraph to me? I don't think it's clear, unless it's wrong: if I'm driving on the left I see cars approaching on my RIGHT, not my left, and those behind me are BEHIND me, neither on my left nor right. I don't get it and it seems like nobody else would either. Can we clarify? -- User:tilgrieog
What is your source for the report that Somaliland (ex-British) has adopted driving on the left?
With regard to East Timor, Kincaid is mistaken when he says that the Indonesians changed the rule in 1976. The Indonesian invaded in December 1975 and the military would have disregarded any local laws.
However I have talked with Guy Duindam (B.A. (Ling.), Dip TESOL, Dip Tertiary Teaching, 11/758 High St, Lower Hutt, New Zealand, ph (64)4-567-5882, fax 64-4-567-9672) who had lived and worked in Indonesia and other places as a diplomat. He had visted East Timor prior to the Indonesian occupation and assured me that they drove on the left under the Portugese. He thought that drive on the left was imposed by the Japanese in February 1942, or possibly 17 December 1941 when the Allies (British, Dutch and Australian) occupied East Timor to prevent a Japanese attack.
I have seen travel guides (e.g. RAC) which suggest that the Marshal Islands drive on the left, presumably because of the availability of Japanese right-hand drive cars. Can you clarify?
A lot of sources report that Somalia drives on the left, but as Kincaid has found they changed some time ago. A Somali refugee I met said they changed in 1964, the same year as Ethiopia. Drive on the left must have been the rule in Italian East Africa.
With regard to crossing borders, my only experience of changing sides was from Zaire to Uganda which has already been mentioned.
The scary thing is the number of people who don't remember changing sides. One vet I met had traveled west through Afghanistan and insisted that he changed between Herat and Iran. He also reported that the Moslems in the tribal areas of Pakistan were trying to impose a keep right rule.
More recently I met an English teacher who had been in Pakistan and crossed into Afghanistan. He didn't go to any major towns and so he only recalled that they drove on the road if they could find it and drove where there were no potholes or landmines!
A woman who had travelled the Karakoram Highway from China to Pakistan did not remember changing sides at the summit. She agreed that there was not much trafic and much road to change, but thought they had driven on the left in China. This may because she was German-born, New Zealand resident and may have been familiar with both rules so that she did not notice a difference in China.
A colleague who went into Tibet from Nepal in 1987 said he did not really notice changing sides of the road. He recalled crossing a huge rockslide, watching out for falling boulders. When he got to the Chinese side he caught a bus which drove on the road and when they got to a town and met other traffic they passed on the right, although the Tibetans themselves tended to keep to the left.
Incidentally Tibet must have kept to the left until the Chinese invasion in 1950. Not that there were many cars to change.
Noel Ellis, Wellington, New Zealand
Some years ago on Australian TV I saw movie footage taken during the Indonesian invasion of East Timor, and it showed LHD motor vehicles parked on the right-hand side of the road. Antipodean Contributor 22:54, 28 August 2006 (UTC)
The best explanation we can find is that it was a former Danish colony. Except that Denmark drives on the right (official nationwide since 1793). It seems that during the Napoleonic Wars the Danish West Indes were occupied by Britain, possibly from 1806 to 1815 and during this period driving on the left was introduced and retained afterwards. Similarly the Dutch colonies of East Indies (now Indonesia) and Dutch Guiana (Suriname), but not Curacao and the other islands of the Dutch West Indies. Other Danish overseas territories occupied in the same period included Iceland which drove on the left until 1968, although they insist that it was a local custom not influenced by the British. Greenland may have also been occupied but they did not have many roads or traffic to change and they seem to have kept to the right. Also interesting is the Faeroe Islands, as the insist that they have always had drive on the right (except for one island for three years during WWII under British occupation). Noel Ellis, Wellington New Zealand
Removed controversy statement about Taiwan. The status of Taiwan after 1949 is controversial, but the statement that control of Taiwan was transferred from Japan to the Republic of China in 1945 is not.
Roadrunner 03:59, 4 Sep 2004 (UTC)
I changed the statement from became part of to assumed control in a preemptive effort to mollify the small number of people who could conceivably object to the original wording. I'm a bit too tired to explain how the original language could possibly trigger controversy and describe who might object and why.
Roadrunner 04:05, 4 Sep 2004 (UTC)
Power wasn't transfered because China owned the island of Taiwan. After the Chinese civil war, the Nationalists fled to Taiwan and established the Republic of China. -intranetusa
The introductory paragraph to this article implies that it will be a general article about rules of the road, and the first section begins: 'The first rule to learn for a particular country is which side to drive on.' However, this is about the only rule covered in the entire article! It would be good if someone with the time to spend could expand on the article somewhat. Andrewferrier 21:28, 2004 Nov 14 (UTC)
Agreed but time and energy constraints impose - suggested topics could include a general overview of principles contained in Vienna convention. Napoleonic "yield to traffic from right rule" and where it applies. How does a US 4-way stop sign work? Might be possible to put in something about origins of the legal principles - Common law users of roads, Locomotives in Highways act, Motor Car Act 1903 etc etc Suggested first step is to chop out the Left vs Right stuff and give it its own article.-- Sf 12:23, 15 Nov 2004 (UTC)
Agreed, I think that would be a good way to approach it. Andrewferrier 18:35, 2004 Nov 23 (UTC)
Is there any article on the rules of railways?
What I'm about to say is probably insulting, but I've been trying not to scream while reading this article.
What is a 'traffics'? Whoever wrote this needs to understand that they should be able to speak and write English proficiently before they go and write an article in English.
I've rewritten the sentences which used the word, "traffics".
Yes, of course, "traffics" drive on the left-hand side of the road. No, motorists or cars do, not "traffics".
"Traffics" isn't even a word -- look it up... "He traffics in marijuana." So there.
/rant.
This seems as improbable as the idea that China changed to driving on the right because of US influence. The Communists probably thought driving on the left was 'bourgeois', and in any event, there were hardly any passenger cars in China during the Cultural Revolution, so it would be better to say 'traffic' not 'cars'.
What is the basis for the asumption that north China drove on the right before 1946? Most of North China e.g. Manchuria and Peking (Beijing) were under Japanese occupation. Photos of Shanghai published at the time of the Japanese attach 1938 show traffic keeping to the left. Of course Manchuria had a checkered history with Russian influence up to 1905. Interesting to find a source for the idea that Russia only changed to drive on the right before WWI. Noel Ellis, Wellington, New Zealand.
Is there any need to use 'side' or 'side of the road' after 'left' and 'right'? It should be fairly obvious that we're talking about the left or right-hand side of the road.
To keep things consistent, 'drive' should refer to the steering column, hence left/right hand drive, which is why I changed 'Left-driving' to 'driving on the left'.
I once had a correspondence with someone in the sales department of GM in South Africa, in which I was told that the company could not export to right-hand drive countries in Southeast Asia because they only built cars for left-hand drive markets like South Africa. I explained that most of Southeast Asia drove on the same side of the road as South Africa.....
Perhaps the term "traffic direction" is a better one? Antipodean Contributor 22:56, 28 August 2006 (UTC)
I think there was not any specific rules of the road. — Instantno od 09:51, Jan 29 2005 (UTC) This is extremely unlikely. While it is possible that in the countryside there was a lack of rules, there must have been rules in the cities. As most of northern China was occupied by Japan, this would have been keep left. Interestingly Manchuria must have been confused, as it came under Russian influrence from 1896 with the Chinese Eastern Railway, followed by the annexation of the Liaotung Peninsula (Port Arthur) 1898 and the South Manchurian railway. From 1900 the whole of Manchuria was occupied by Russia after the Boxer Rebellion and expedition to Peking. However the Russians were defeated by the Japanese in 1905 so drive on the left was in force from then. In August 1945 Manchuria was occupied by Stalin's Red Army. They may have enforced drive on the right from occupation, but I have no evidence.
Noel Ellis
Is there any articles on the rules on them? — Instantno od 09:52, Jan 29 2005 (UTC)
extracted from the section on Hong Kong and Macau,
Isn't it a flyover or something? — Instantno od 09:58, Jan 29 2005 (UTC)
I think what is meant is that cars have to stop and park in a parking lot (or car park) while the driver and passengers clear customs and immigration; when they leave the parking lot, they simply have to remember to drive on the proper side of the road when they leave. 71.131.197.252 01:47, 11 June 2006 (UTC)
Until 1918, Croatia was ruled by Hungary and Slovenia was ruled by Austria, so they would have driven on the left. Does anyone have information on when they changed over and why? What about the other former Yugoslav republics? Did Serbia, Bosnia, Montenegro and Macedonia always drive on the right?
The Yugoslavs I have spoken to all insist that former Yugoslavia drove on the right and always did so. However as you have noticed the parts under Austrian Hapsburg rule would have driven on the left. This would also have included Bosnia-Hercegovina, occupied 1878, annexed 1908. It is not clear if Serbia has always driven on the right. Even if that was the Turkish rule, Serbia revolted against Turkish rule from 1805, and contrary to the idea that the predominant influence was Russian, often it was Austrian, especially under the Obrenovich dynasty who alternated with the rival Kara-Georgovich dunasty who were pro-Russian. Anyway in 1915, Serbia (including Macedonia) and Montenegro were occupied by the Austro-Hungarians until 1918. So they would have inmposed their rule at least for the duration. They executed civilians and left people hanged with their bodies on public display etc so there is not reason to see why they would have followed a local rule. I have examined photos of the Serbian army in retreat 1915, but it just showed a long column of soldiers. There was only one car, King Peter's which was abandonned, so nothing showed whether they passed to the left or right. The Encyclopedia Britannica 1928 has an interesting reference under Rule of the Road for the Continent of Europe "drive on the right was the rule except for Austria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Portugal, Sweden and Yugoslavia". This was out of date by the time it was published in 1929 because Portugal changed 1928. This same info is repeated in the 1938 edition and again 1956. It is also ambiguous, as it does not say specifically that Yugoslavia drove on the left, only that it was an exception to drive on the right. In the case of Austria this included one rule for part of the country, with drive on the right in Voralberg from 1921, and Tirol from 1930. So it is possible that Yugoslavia had two different rules in different parts. I have spoken to two Serbs born about 1924 who both said they did not remember any change. One lived in Vojvodina which was formerly part of the Austrian province of Banat. This would indicate that if there was a change it must have been earlier than 1929. Noel Ellis, Wellington, New Zealand.
Could we see some sources here, please! -- ProhibitOnions 14:16, 2005 May 23 (UTC)
Kincaird cites an executive order from the Philippines Official Gazette 1946 dated 10 March 1946 for the change to drive on the right, and also quotes from Hopper who was in Manila in February 1945 when they were driving in the left. It is not clear why the Philippines had a drive on the left rule in the first place. It was not imposed by the Japanese, as it was a Filipino Law being amended in 1946. Possibly keeping to the left was an Asian custom before 1946. It is interesting but obscure fact that the Philippines were occupied by Britain in 1763, but I still cannot see how that would have influenced a change in the rule of the road. Noel Ellis, Wellington New Zealand
My father-in-law served as a tech sergeant with the US Air Force during WW2. After VJ Day he was posted in the Philippines for a while, where he witnessed and distinctly remembered the change from left-hand to right-hand traffic direction. He also remembers that beasts of burden had a tough time with the change because they didn't want to walk contrary to habit. He's dead now so I can't ask him for more details of when and where: it's just possible that the change he saw applied to a local area only and not the entire country. Antipodean Contributor 23:03, 28 August 2006 (UTC)
"Slovakia, despite being a member of the European Union, does not allow the local registration of RHD vehicles, even if the vehicle is imported from one of the four EU countries that drive on the left." (emphasis mine). AFAICT from the list, there are only three - UK, Ireland, and Malta. So which is the fourth EU country to drive on the left side of the road? Thryduulf 22:43, 21 October 2005 (UTC)
I've uploaded some photos traffic driving on the right in Savoy Court in London. I'm not sure where to put them, so if anyone's got any bright ideas, please add them in somewhere.
Nfh 19:23, 22 October 2005 (UTC)
Somaliland definitely drives on the right. I had an e-mail from the Somaliland Mission in London in March 2005 stating that Somaliland has never changed from driving on the right. I've also searched the web for photos of traffic in Somaliland, where it is clear that traffic drives on the right:
I'm therefore removing Somaliland from the list of countries that drive on the left. I am not including it in the list of countries that drive on the right, given that no other unrecognised countries are listed (e.g. northern Cyprus).
Nfh 21:29, 23 October 2005 (UTC)
Where did the information come from that Samoa switched to driving on the right in the mid-1990s? From reading the Rule of the Road book by Peter Kincaid, I understand that until 1912, Samoa drove on the left. German occupation forces on 17 February 1912 switched Samoa to driving on the right. However, it is suggested (but not confirmed) that subsequently, New Zealand switched Samoa soon after 30 August 1914 back to driving on the left, and the United States then switched Samoa back to driving on the right during the Second World War. The book, published in 1986, confirms the rule of the road in Samoa to be keep right, and a quoted source confirms that Samoa was keeping right in 1974. Unless anyone has any objections, I'm going to edit the Samoa listing to say "mid-1940s?".
In one section it currently says, "Some ex-colonies of the British Empire continue to drive on the left, but others, such as Canada, Gambia, Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and the United States switched to the other side." Then later it says, "Since colonial times, traffic in the US has always been on the right hand side" I'm not sure of the facts here so perhaps someone could clarify, 1. has the United States ALWAYS been on the right? 2. if since colonial times it has been on the right, is there a pre-colonial time when it was different (that would imply that the Native Americans rode on the left) 3. if it has always been on the right in the US then surely (first paragraph) a switch was never made ???? Kincaid's book suggests that the English settlers did not bring the keep left rule with them, but developed their own rules. However he did find that the Cumberland Road in Pennsylvania had a keep left rule in 1848. New York may have had a keep right rule from Dutch rule, although this is only speculation. Some have claimed that the Dutch actually kept to the left until Napoleon impose keep right 1808-12, and that it was the overseas territories like Suriname and the East Indies that remained on the left. Most think that it was the British that impose keep left in Dutch territories 1806-16. Interestingly Suriname was originally an English colony until ceded in exchange for New York in 1667. It is possible that is why Suriname now keeps to the left and New York to the right. Noel Ellis
The situation with respect to Newfoundland is a unique one; yes, what is now the province of Newfoundland and Labrador did enter into Confederation with the Canadians on April Fools' Day 1949 (the Canadians have yet to realise that Joey Smallwood was only joking!) but there are a couple of other wrinkles to add to this:
In this context, St. John's does end up becoming somewhat of a special case, and not just by being the capital of a Dominion which for whatever reason voluntarily abandoned its own sovereignty. -- carlb 07:46, 17 January 2006 (UTC)
Quiensabe 08:32, 19 January 2006 (UTC)
What I expected to see in an article entitled the "rules of the road" were, well, the rules of the road. Instead, this article is dominated by the left/right issue. A worthy topic, to be sure, but I expected to see here the rules of the road that allow competent drivers to drive safely and legally in just about any country without knowing their particular implementation of the rules. I think this article needs a serious revamp, and the left/right issue addressed in detail should probably be moved to a separate article. -- Serge 04:51, 12 January 2006 (UTC)
There is an article here in Swedish about Finland's change to driving on the right on 8 June 1858, with pictures of the decree by the Tsar of Russia (Grand Duke of Finland) I can only get the general gist of what it means, but if a Swedish speaker could translate this, it would be useful information.
Quiensabe 19 January 2006 08:45 UTC
When Finland became part of the Russian Empire in 1809 Swedish law remained in force. But the Russian troops on the roads in Finland travelled dispite of that on the right. They were the stronger part, so the public had to follow suit. Therefore the Emperor Alexander, who was also Grand duke of Finland, changed the law as from 8 of June 1858. Anders Hanquist, Stockholm, Sweden
There are some bizarre rumors travelling around the Internet. One of them is that Russia was a left-hand-driving country well into the 20th century.
You can read that Russia changed to right-hand driving "in the last days of the czars" or "in the 1920-ies".
That is certainly NOT the case. The former Swedish teritory of Finland became a Russian Grand-duchy in 1809. In 1858 the Russians introduced right-hand driving in Finland in order to facilitate for the Russian troops, already travelling on the right side. Anders Hanquist, Stockholm, Sweden
Peter Kincaid's book has virtually nothing for Russia. I have found unconfirmed claims about Russia changing from keep left to keep right. If that were the case, then why bother changing Finland. What I guess is that when Russia ceded Southern Sakhalin to Japan in 1905, keep right was probably changed to keep left. Once Russia got that part back in 1945, keep left was probably changed back to keep right.-- Jusjih 13:20, 13 May 2006 (UTC)
From 3 Priority:
This is not true. Unmarked crossroads with no obvious major/minor distinction are not unknown in quiet residential areas, and are often included on driving test routes. Steved424 13:27, 25 January 2006 (UTC)
Actually, Sweden's long-term accident/death/injury rate declined due to the usual advances in engineering and traffic safety.
Also, the accident rate went down for a short time after switching, due to drivers being more paranoid than usual, but when back up, and only down again with safety advances. I'm removing or at elaset removing this paragraph.— Last Avenue ( talk) ( contribs) 03:20, 11 February 2006 (UTC)
OK, I just revamped the article. The whole thing of which side of the road to drive on has been moved to Side of the road (traffic), but the introduction kept, and a link to the main article.
I was thinking of calling it Side of the road, but changed my mind to Side of the road (traffic). However, the redir. will still link to there, with an other-uses thingy.
Someone still has to write a better intro paragrpah for side of the road (traffic). — Last Avenue ( talk) ( contribs) 03:40, 11 February 2006 (UTC)
It has been suggested several times that the title of this article be changed to something more appropriate. Please vote below, adding your comments. As well as adding "support" to a proposal, you can also add "oppose" to a particular proposal if you have comments to add concerning the proposal.
Oppose, I think it's just confusing. A reader would have to start reading the page to figure out what it's about. Ewlyahoocom 20:01, 20 February 2006 (UTC)
On Wikipedia itself, kerb links to the archaeological term, while curb is a disambiguation page. Which should be preferred? — Last Avenue ( talk) ( contribs) 21:15, 11 February 2006 (UTC)
This contribution was made by User:82.69.29.25 but was put in the article itself, not on the Talk page:
Mounting-blocks &c. are thus conveniently close to (or even part of) the buildings or roadside for mounting AND dismounting. For traffic-streams on the right of the road the mounting-blocks would have to be in the middle of the road, or the horses would have to face ONCOMING traffic (NOT a good idea!)when being mounted. In the British Isles of the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries the number of regularly-ridden horses per head of human population was the world's greatest and their towns were the world's most constantly congested with traffic. It was horsemanship that dictated the "keep left" rule. Reject and forget all references to "sword-arms". Nobody out of uniform seriously wore a sword in town during the day, except as a particular badge of authority and except during the brief period when young fops swaggered about wearing a hanger as a fashion accessory.
OK, I think everyone who is interested has added their input input. What say we move this page? With three supports each the two options are Rule of the road and Driving on the left or right. Either can be done easily ( Rule of the road is a simple redirect with no history). If there are no objections I'm going to move to Driving on the left or right cause, um,... OK! OK! because I suggested it. Ewlyahoocom
The point of copying the left vs. right side of the road stuff into Side of the road (traffic) was to be able to keep the actual traffic law information in Rules of the road. If Rules of the road were a redirect to the new Driving on the left or right, then the traffic law information would have to be copy-pasted out into another page like Traffic law or something similar. — Last Avenue [ talk | contributions] 22:35, 11 March 2006 (UTC)
OK, I've moved it. (A month is more than long enough to wait for votes.) I've rearranged some bits but it still needs some real copyediting. I've dumped the traffic bits onto Talk:Traffic until I can get those merged in over there. Ewlyahoocom 08:07, 12 March 2006 (UTC)
One of the reasons different sides of the road were choosen is to differentiate the markets. It prevented cars made in one country being sold in another. This is particularly true in Europe when considering that Britain was the first, and for a long time the best, car manufacturer. Other European countries decided to make their rules such that British manufacturers could not sell there, and thus strengthen their own manufacturing. Now, where in the article should this go? -- Midnighttonight 04:36, 12 March 2006 (UTC)
---Napoleonic law requires that all people ride on the right hand side of the road. You obeyed or else. The English go back to swords and jousting. Swords hand on the left side of the body.
I think the country sections (which I have put into alphabetical order) should all be sub-sections within one overall countries section. Does anyone have any ideas on the name for the countries section (perhaps just "Countries")? I moved Okinawa to be a sub-section of Japan, given that it is not a separate legal entity from Japan. On the other hand, Hong Kong and Macau are distinct legal entities, despite being part of China. They still have their own currencies, ISO codes, and most importantly drive on the opposite side of the road from mainland China. In view of this, should we continue to list Hong Kong and Macau separately from mainland China? NFH 11:00, 12 March 2006 (UTC)
Hey all! I've just gone through the links from articles to Rules of the road (currently a redirect to here). Most of the links intending "driving on the left/right" had used piped links to display text of some form of "driving on the left/right" or "right/left hand drive/traffic". The ones that display "rules of the road" in the article often usually mean traffic laws and rules. I've added a redirect The rule of the road to handle one case where it seemed appropriate [1]. I've cleaned up the piped links, given all the redirects sometimes just by deleting the piping [2] [3]. Now I'd also like to redirect Rules of the road to traffic (which is where traffic law redirects). What do you think? Ewlyahoocom 19:27, 13 March 2006 (UTC)
OK, I'm redirecting... done. Ewlyahoocom 23:18, 20 March 2006 (UTC)
Is there any source for this, because I've never heard that most people draw their circles any particular direction? -- Ibagli 03:01, 20 March 2006 (UTC)
"Traffic on roundabouts and other giratory systems flows in a counter-clockwise direction, which is more natural to most people, who draw circles counter-clockwise."
The idea that Napoleon changed the rule of the road in Europe comes up over and over again in writing about the rule of the road. But it has never been backed up with historical research and it appears likely to be a myth. Peter Kincaid concludes so in his book (pp. 14, 99-100). Unless anyone can come up with eyewitness sources for the Napoleon story I would like to remove it from this article, except for a brief mention that it is a common myth. I'll check back on this page shortly to see if there are any objections. Also, I have also just made available on the net my (unpublished) MA qualifying paper from several years ago on the reasons for 20th-century changes in the rule of the road ( http://www.ianwatson.org/rule_of_the_road.pdf). Perhaps some people might find it useful. -- Ian Watson, 23 March 2006
-- I just removed all the Napoleon references (3 July 2006) -- Look at a copy of the Napoleonic Code, have to go to the library most likely.
The comment above took the words from my mouth, if no-one's able to provide a source for the ascertation that "most people draw a circle anti-clockwise" then I believe it should be removed. I certainly don't draw circles anti-clockwise and as a primary teacher have seen many circles drawn, never noticing a particular preponederance for one way or the other. -- Brideshead 19:53, 23 March 2006 (UTC)
Great, perhaps you can reference this study in the article, clear up any confusion? -- Brideshead 17:36, 24 March 2006 (UTC)
Railways in the United Kingdom and France 'drive' on the left (with the obvious exception of single track routes). Up until a few years ago the station at Bicester in the UK was notable as being operated 'the wrong way round'. In the United States trains drive on the right. The situation is complicate by four track lines where two tracks will run each way, often alternating (fast up, fast down, slow up, slow down). Also some lines will be signalled to operate bidirectionally. User:Tom walker 19:48 GMT 24/3/2006.
I noticed this has been removed, although variants of this have been here for ages. Is this true or not? I've asked people from China living during the Cultural Revolution, and most remember driving on the right. — Last Avenue [ talk | contributions] 05:05, 27 March 2006 (UTC)
UKPhoenix79, thanks for adding the new map, which I think is a good idea in principle. However, there remain a number of problems with it:
I am removing the map from the article until these problems are fixed. Some of the problems, particularly the 1858 national borders and Canadian province boundaries, require quite a bit of work, which I don't have the time to do myself. If you want to add this map, then it needs to be as accurate as possible from the moment it is added. You can't simply add a factually incorrect map and then put the onus on other people to spend considerable time researching and fixing it. NFH 09:16, 14 May 2006 (UTC)
Well I have updated it to show the changes of countries over the past to its modern outcome. It conveys more info than the previous version and I think it is better for it. I have little time at the moment to do anythning extensive so I will have to get back to you on the other preposal. For the moment I will re-insert this into the article. Remove or move it to a better section if you believe it is still wrong. -- UKPhoenix79 04:01, 15 May 2006 (UTC)
Nice map, although I have my doubts about any Spanish-speaking country in the Americas ever driving on the left. I am quite sure that East Timor drove on the right before the Indonesian invasion, even if the change to driving on the left took place earlier than the 'integration' into Indonesia in July 1976. I have seen pictures and film footage of pre-invasion Dili, and someone who lived in what was then Portuguese Timor confirmed that traffic was on the right. Quiensabe 23:34, 16 August 2006 (UTC)
I stand corrected about Argentina and Panama, though can't find anything for Paraguay. Quiensabe 19:49, 17 August 2006 (UTC)
Please, once again, 1/6 part of the World is displayed incorrectly! Check the boundaries of the RUSSIAN EMPIRE. And also be informed there were no country called "ukrainia" in those times, and there were no boundaries accordingly. Or just use the appropiate map. Thanks. Alexander, Russia.
It's probably a joke, but I've heard that on Mallorca you don't drive on the left or the right side of the road, but on the shady side of the road to stay out of the sun. // Liftarn
This article needs cleanup. It does not need to have links to a certain country everytime it is mentioned. Axeman89 00:44, 9 July 2006 (UTC)
This article is jam packed full of dodgy statements of provenance unknown. It's clear from reading this article that people just add stuff as and when they feel like it, without thinking to cite sources. Apart from one book about the rules of the road, which is just shoved in at the bottom without inline citations giving page references etc, the sources that are given are amateurish websites, and it's not clear where these have been used and when the authors have simply added in what they believe to be true (or perhaps not, as it would be easy to hide deliberately false information in a mess like this). It has been consistently stated by Jimbo Wales that it's better to remove unsourced information than slap a "citation needed" tag on it [5] [6] so really this article has been let off lightly, for now. If 'facts' are to be kept, they need to be sourced, so anyone wanting to take on this task would do well to read the policies on verifiability and citing sources. 86.136.0.145 22:31, 1 August 2006 (UTC)
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The section on the United States says:
Since colonial times, traffic in the United States has always been on the right-hand side, which was greatly influenced by France, a "founder" of the drive-on-the-right rule, which indirectly supported American Independence from British colonial rule. There is a common story that this may be due to the construction of Conestoga wagons, which had a high driver's seat on the left side. However, the Conestoga wagon does not date all the way back to the colonial period so this story is likely apocryphal.
However, the Conestoga wagon entry states that "the first Conestoga Wagons appeared in Pennsylvania around 1725", suggesting that they do indeed "date all the way back to the colonial period". GagHalfrunt 20:17, 2 August 2006 (UTC)
The top image's tooltip doesn't work... it should say red and blue instead of those boxes. I'd fix it, but I don't know how. - Grick( talk to me!) 07:59, 3 August 2006 (UTC)
To help resolve the dispute about referencing (see above), there follows a list of statements requiring direct inline citation. I am hopeful that many of these can be linked to the sources given at the bottom of the article, and can therefore be footnoted in the article and removed from the list. Those that can't will have to be removed from the article. Please feel free to name the source and strikethrough the items on the list if you can find sources.
Terminal emulator
15:44, 3 August 2006 (UTC)
The citation is here More information about Burma (and Italy) can be found here
However, others are a little pedantic. If you have lived in or visited a country, you're likely to notice what side of the road they drive on, and what side of the car the steering wheel is on. As Gibraltar has driven on the right since 1929, it's highly likely that cars sold locally will be LHD, as in Spain. As I have been there, I can confirm that this is the case. However, as it is a British territory with a British military presence, there are second-hand RHD cars from the UK, as well as British forces Land Rovers and I have seen ex-Japan Toyota vans there as well. I don't know if the Gibraltar Ministry of Transport keeps a record of the number of RHD vehicles registered locally, but given the small size of the territory, you won't go far beofre you notice them.
Lancia definitely ended RHD production in 1994 - they pulled out of the UK in that year, and when they sold the Kappa in South Africa it was LHD only. However, I will add thisreference to substantiate the claim that it is planning to resume RHD production. Quiensabe 16:19, 16 August 2006 (UTC)
I have noticed that over time, the two "Advantages" sections have degenerated into a place for British and Americans to promote their own side of the road as being better. Most of the statements in these sections are merely opinions (some of them well founded but with no verifiable sources), and several statements even contradict each other between the two opposing Advantages sections. These sections have been and will no doubt continue to be disputed. I propose to delete both Advantages sections and to move the only two statements of hard fact to other appropriate sections. NFH 18:44, 3 August 2006 (UTC)
This is now done. NFH 19:09, 17 August 2006 (UTC)
I wondered about how the issues of changing sides at borders would be resolved in practice. I suspect that it would be resolved similarly to how road repair on a higway sometimes is resolved, by temporarlily closing off one side of the road through roadblocks and stop signs.
1.
A |
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2.
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(Sorry for the sloppy explanation and the ugly Ascii illustrations...)
惑乱 分からん
11:40, 6 August 2006 (UTC)
Install
Google Earth and have a look at some placemarks I've published at
[7]. I'd like to find a way to publish these placemarks in the article in accordance with Wikipedia policy. I'm not sure whether it's acceptable for me to simply add a link to my own page or whether one can upload a KMZ file on Wikipedia. Any suggestions are welcome.
The high traffic border crossings (China-HK and China-Macau) have elaborate bridges or roundabouts, whereas low traffic border crossings have no infrastructure at all to swap the traffic over. The diagrams you added above are not typical, but if you look hard, you may find some photos of barriers across the road at [8]. Also the Thailand-Laos Friendship Bridge (low resolution on Google Earth) has traffic lights to swap the traffic over.
NFH 21:31, 6 August 2006 (UTC)
Please note that seeing with right eye (Right Eye Dominance) (Eyedness) is different from seeing to the Right Side (Right Field Dominance) (Sighting dominance).
When we look to right we use both the eyes - The image falls on the medial part of the RIght Retina and lateral part of left retina. However, the images from both these eyes go to the Left Occipital Lobe of the brain So the references cited may not be that relevant, except for this point Though the left cerebral hemisphere seems to play a dominant role in gaze fixation in the greater proportion of the population, consideration of the joint of the two cerebral hemispheres for individual functions of the body has been advocated.
If the left cerebral hemisphere plays a dominant role in gaze fixation, the it is easy to fix the gaze when seeing to your right than when seeing to the left
This message is not to contradict the earlier posts, but just to bring to the notice that there is a difference between the two concepts (though one is dependent on the other) Doctor Bruno 02:06, 8 August 2006 (UTC)
I went ahead and removed the old "unreferenced" tag since it appears the article has references. That tag is meant to indicate the article has almost no references, which isn't the case at this point. Moving forward I'd suggest using "citation needed" on any specific statements that still require further citation. Dugwiki 22:47, 18 October 2006 (UTC)
Any info on whether South Africa has always driven on the left? -- Zaurus 20:40, 6 November 2006 (UTC)
Bridge between Tachilek (Myanmar) and Mae Sai (Thailand) crossing the Mae Sai River: What's it's correct name and how does the LHD-RHD is managed? Scriberius 17:54, 6 December 2006 (UTC)
This article is about driving on the left/right, not sailing so perhaps that should go somewhere like navigation. Also I know that trains are driven but the left/right issue implies the driver has some control over how the vehicle deviates, which train drivers do not, if you understand me. ChrisAngove 23:26, 6 January 2007 (UTC)
Do insurance companies load premiums when you drive on the side of the road you are not used to? Or is it mainly based on your driving record, age etc. I would guess that driving on the other side is relatively low risk per se compared to the part determined from your driving record, age etc ChrisAngove 23:26, 6 January 2007 (UTC)
The colour choices for the second coloured map are not quite optimal, as both "drives on right" and "drove on left, now drives on right" are a VERY similar red. This should be changed to an entirely different colour.
I've removed the link to British. It is a disambiguation page and, "Wikipedia articles should not link to disambiguation pages (with rare exceptions where the ambiguity of a term is being discussed); instead links should go directly to the appropriate article." (See WP:DPL). There are many editors working endlessly to disambiguate terms (see here). If you notice, the other links to British in the article are to United Kingdom because it refers to the current state, but the link that is being reverted is a historical link so United Kingdom is not really appropriate. If a better link cannot be decided upon, linking to British is still not the way to go as noted above, since the sentence is not discussing the ambiguity of the term. Regards, -- Jeff3000 12:03, 2 March 2007 (UTC)
Per WP:ENGVAR, it is improper to change spelling and usage to conform to whatever variant of English you happen to prefer personally. This article, like many others describing comparative practise/practice in different countries, contains a mix of English variants from at least three continents, which means changing individual words to suit your taste is poor practice. Moreover, I'm sure you found a particular UK dictionary to support your preference for "further" rather than "farther", and the two are commonly used interchangeably, but precise usage prefers the use of "farther" when the context is one of distance, and "further" when it is one of degree or amount. See Mirriam-Webster and dictionary.com, as well as The University of Victoria Writer's Guide, English Plus, and AHD. Please do not change back to "further" without attaining concensus on this page. Thank you.-- Scheinwerfermann 03:21, 15 March 2007 (UTC)
What language is this article in? I only ask as it seemed to be in Br Eng (centre; neighbour), but after I'd changed 'archeolgic' to 'archaeological' I noticed two US Eng "traveler"s earlier on in the article. I haven't changed them to Br Eng 'traveller' as now I'm unsure. 82.32.238.139 22:52, 17 March 2007 (UTC)
Does anyone have or know where to find accident/collision statistics in countries that allow both RHD and LHD vehicles. i think this kind of info is important to have along with what is already there.
i havent been able to find any numbers showing the accident rates of this kind of info. i basically am looking for stats that shows the accident rates of RHD VS LHD in both RHT and LHT countries to find out if there is any significant difference in accident/collision rates if there even is a difference.
24.67.224.95 06:45, 21 March 2007 (UTC)Kevan
I've removed the following snippet from the section about Australia:
"This situation compares interestingly with the "give way to the right" rule in most countries of Continental Europe, where a vehicle turning left (onto another road usually of similar hierarchy) can completely stop all traffic in the lane to its left while giving way to traffic on its right and waiting, however long, for a gap to move into."
I don't think the above description is very accurate, traffic arrangements are usually made to keep the above situation from being possible at all. Plus it's doesn't really describe the situation in Australia at all. Kumiankka 20:35, 4 April 2007 (UTC)
The history section is full of rather dubious assertions and perpetuates many of the common myths around this subject:
That the "normal" side of the road was originally the left as a result of sword-wearing horse riders. But such people would only have been a tiny fraction of road traffic. Isn't it more likely that the primary reason for horses to be ridden on the left is that most people mount and dismount on the left?
That a "change" occurred in countries where postillion carts were used. While postillion carts apparently are best driven on the right, there is little evidence of a change from earlier practice (these countries may have already been driving on the right, which is also the optimum side for pedestrian-led carts).
(The most egregious myth) - That French aristocrats drove on the left, while the commoners walked on the right; and that France changed to driving on the "proletarian" side of the road after the revolution. I assume this is a joke, not a myth - do you think the writer can actually have believed that aristocrats kept to one side of the road, commoners to the other? Maproom 17:51, 6 April 2007 (UTC)
I would say that it makes perfect sense - when walking along a country lane you would walk along the "wrong" side of the road so that you have a good view of oncoming traffic. If the side of the road for driving in pre-revolutionary France was the left, then logically the peasants (pedestrians) would walk along the right-hand side of the road so as to have a better chance of not being run over by the aristocrats speeding along on the left in their carriages. -- 68.147.38.76 22:13, 18 April 2007 (UTC)
It also implies that left driving is a particularly British practice, in direct contradiction to a later part of the article.
http://www.brianlucas.ca/roadside/ seems a fairly well-researched page on this subject. And it suggests that the original choice of left or right driving in various countries was more likely a result of the dominant mode of transport at the time such rules were codified (pedestrian-led carts: right; postillion-controlled wagons: right; wagons driven from the wagon itself: left). Maybe it's just me but this seems more convincing than the usual romantic stories about the mediaeval knights and the French revolution...
TomH 19:42, 5 April 2007 (UTC)
It also suggests that the US changed to the right, which (as has already been pointed out) directly contradicts another part of the article.
I am minded to perform some drastic editing on this section... TomH 20:20, 5 April 2007 (UTC)
What is the rule of the road for vehicles in Antarctica? The bus in this picture is a left-hand drive vehicle, so I'd assume that it is a right-hand traffic area. Are there any reliable sources that people know about to document this? Check out McMurdo-South Pole highway. 69.181.71.221 07:49, 8 April 2007 (UTC)
This is an archive of past discussions. Do not edit the contents of this page. If you wish to start a new discussion or revive an old one, please do so on the current talk page. |
Archive 1 | Archive 2 | Archive 3 | → | Archive 5 |
There are genuine safety reasons for driving on the left
Driving on the left is correct for right handed people which is the great majority,here is why:
When changing gear in a UK car with the steering wheel on the right , which is of course correct in the UK etc for driving on the left---------in the UK your left hand changes gear and your right hand stays on the steering wheel.-- this is safer( for right handed people.) The reverse is the case in countries where one must drive on the right.--
In other words if you live in the USA you hold the steering wheel with your left hand and change gear with your right hand because of course the steering wheel is on the left in the USA--------this is dangerous if you are right handed.
Bicycles.
Bike riders are in real danger in countries where driving on the right is mandatory again assuming you are right handed------Try mounting a bike in the USA and you will find yourself in the stream of traffic when getting on the bike---- try it yourself---------: Mounting a bike in the UK is done from the sidewalk by right handed people who find it easier to put their right leg over the bike. , Much safer and this must have saved many lives.
Reversing up a steep drive: My drive in the UK is very steep----when I reverse out I hold the steering wheel with my right hand and look over my left shoulder to the rear window.
In a USA car you must hold the steering wheel with your left hand and look over your right shoulder to look out of the rear window.. So you must reverse with your left hand on the steering wheel.. Or stick your head out of the window if you want to use your right hand on the steering wheel. -dangerous for the majority who are right handed.
It is safer for left handed people to drive is on the right--
Christopher (Chris) Davison London UK
Thanks to
User:213.48.145.41 for all the new material, which is likely to be valuable. However, i am reverting 213's addition of Thailand and Indonesia (in section "Left or Right?"), which are broken out individually already in section "Summary". I thot Japan belonged on a par, in this context, with the former Brit colonies, bcz it also accounts for an enormous number of cars. Without demeaning any country, a line needs to be drawn, or there is no point in having anything but the enormous list that ends the article. IMO, these two labels (ex-Brit & Japan) are a much better place to draw the line than any other option.
I'll also tighten up the wording, to make the logic clearer.
Please, 213, keep up the good work!
There's a section titled "Complete List" with links to many countries. What is this list for ? countries with driving on the left ? Why have the links to the countries pages been provided ? Jay 12:01, 24 Jan 2004 (UTC)
Hi, I'm new to this so forgive the placement of this snippet. I understood that we (British) drive on the left because:
1. Jousting knights (right handed) used so as not to cross the horse with the lance. 2. When travelling on horseback generally, you can use your weapon right handed to the oncoming attacker.
Makes sense to me.
Richard Hatton
-When driving on the left, "Viewing from the centre of the road and facing either side, drivers see vehicles approaching from their left, and those behind them are coming from their right " -Does someone want to explain this wordy paragraph to me? I don't think it's clear, unless it's wrong: if I'm driving on the left I see cars approaching on my RIGHT, not my left, and those behind me are BEHIND me, neither on my left nor right. I don't get it and it seems like nobody else would either. Can we clarify? -- User:tilgrieog
What is your source for the report that Somaliland (ex-British) has adopted driving on the left?
With regard to East Timor, Kincaid is mistaken when he says that the Indonesians changed the rule in 1976. The Indonesian invaded in December 1975 and the military would have disregarded any local laws.
However I have talked with Guy Duindam (B.A. (Ling.), Dip TESOL, Dip Tertiary Teaching, 11/758 High St, Lower Hutt, New Zealand, ph (64)4-567-5882, fax 64-4-567-9672) who had lived and worked in Indonesia and other places as a diplomat. He had visted East Timor prior to the Indonesian occupation and assured me that they drove on the left under the Portugese. He thought that drive on the left was imposed by the Japanese in February 1942, or possibly 17 December 1941 when the Allies (British, Dutch and Australian) occupied East Timor to prevent a Japanese attack.
I have seen travel guides (e.g. RAC) which suggest that the Marshal Islands drive on the left, presumably because of the availability of Japanese right-hand drive cars. Can you clarify?
A lot of sources report that Somalia drives on the left, but as Kincaid has found they changed some time ago. A Somali refugee I met said they changed in 1964, the same year as Ethiopia. Drive on the left must have been the rule in Italian East Africa.
With regard to crossing borders, my only experience of changing sides was from Zaire to Uganda which has already been mentioned.
The scary thing is the number of people who don't remember changing sides. One vet I met had traveled west through Afghanistan and insisted that he changed between Herat and Iran. He also reported that the Moslems in the tribal areas of Pakistan were trying to impose a keep right rule.
More recently I met an English teacher who had been in Pakistan and crossed into Afghanistan. He didn't go to any major towns and so he only recalled that they drove on the road if they could find it and drove where there were no potholes or landmines!
A woman who had travelled the Karakoram Highway from China to Pakistan did not remember changing sides at the summit. She agreed that there was not much trafic and much road to change, but thought they had driven on the left in China. This may because she was German-born, New Zealand resident and may have been familiar with both rules so that she did not notice a difference in China.
A colleague who went into Tibet from Nepal in 1987 said he did not really notice changing sides of the road. He recalled crossing a huge rockslide, watching out for falling boulders. When he got to the Chinese side he caught a bus which drove on the road and when they got to a town and met other traffic they passed on the right, although the Tibetans themselves tended to keep to the left.
Incidentally Tibet must have kept to the left until the Chinese invasion in 1950. Not that there were many cars to change.
Noel Ellis, Wellington, New Zealand
Some years ago on Australian TV I saw movie footage taken during the Indonesian invasion of East Timor, and it showed LHD motor vehicles parked on the right-hand side of the road. Antipodean Contributor 22:54, 28 August 2006 (UTC)
The best explanation we can find is that it was a former Danish colony. Except that Denmark drives on the right (official nationwide since 1793). It seems that during the Napoleonic Wars the Danish West Indes were occupied by Britain, possibly from 1806 to 1815 and during this period driving on the left was introduced and retained afterwards. Similarly the Dutch colonies of East Indies (now Indonesia) and Dutch Guiana (Suriname), but not Curacao and the other islands of the Dutch West Indies. Other Danish overseas territories occupied in the same period included Iceland which drove on the left until 1968, although they insist that it was a local custom not influenced by the British. Greenland may have also been occupied but they did not have many roads or traffic to change and they seem to have kept to the right. Also interesting is the Faeroe Islands, as the insist that they have always had drive on the right (except for one island for three years during WWII under British occupation). Noel Ellis, Wellington New Zealand
Removed controversy statement about Taiwan. The status of Taiwan after 1949 is controversial, but the statement that control of Taiwan was transferred from Japan to the Republic of China in 1945 is not.
Roadrunner 03:59, 4 Sep 2004 (UTC)
I changed the statement from became part of to assumed control in a preemptive effort to mollify the small number of people who could conceivably object to the original wording. I'm a bit too tired to explain how the original language could possibly trigger controversy and describe who might object and why.
Roadrunner 04:05, 4 Sep 2004 (UTC)
Power wasn't transfered because China owned the island of Taiwan. After the Chinese civil war, the Nationalists fled to Taiwan and established the Republic of China. -intranetusa
The introductory paragraph to this article implies that it will be a general article about rules of the road, and the first section begins: 'The first rule to learn for a particular country is which side to drive on.' However, this is about the only rule covered in the entire article! It would be good if someone with the time to spend could expand on the article somewhat. Andrewferrier 21:28, 2004 Nov 14 (UTC)
Agreed but time and energy constraints impose - suggested topics could include a general overview of principles contained in Vienna convention. Napoleonic "yield to traffic from right rule" and where it applies. How does a US 4-way stop sign work? Might be possible to put in something about origins of the legal principles - Common law users of roads, Locomotives in Highways act, Motor Car Act 1903 etc etc Suggested first step is to chop out the Left vs Right stuff and give it its own article.-- Sf 12:23, 15 Nov 2004 (UTC)
Agreed, I think that would be a good way to approach it. Andrewferrier 18:35, 2004 Nov 23 (UTC)
Is there any article on the rules of railways?
What I'm about to say is probably insulting, but I've been trying not to scream while reading this article.
What is a 'traffics'? Whoever wrote this needs to understand that they should be able to speak and write English proficiently before they go and write an article in English.
I've rewritten the sentences which used the word, "traffics".
Yes, of course, "traffics" drive on the left-hand side of the road. No, motorists or cars do, not "traffics".
"Traffics" isn't even a word -- look it up... "He traffics in marijuana." So there.
/rant.
This seems as improbable as the idea that China changed to driving on the right because of US influence. The Communists probably thought driving on the left was 'bourgeois', and in any event, there were hardly any passenger cars in China during the Cultural Revolution, so it would be better to say 'traffic' not 'cars'.
What is the basis for the asumption that north China drove on the right before 1946? Most of North China e.g. Manchuria and Peking (Beijing) were under Japanese occupation. Photos of Shanghai published at the time of the Japanese attach 1938 show traffic keeping to the left. Of course Manchuria had a checkered history with Russian influence up to 1905. Interesting to find a source for the idea that Russia only changed to drive on the right before WWI. Noel Ellis, Wellington, New Zealand.
Is there any need to use 'side' or 'side of the road' after 'left' and 'right'? It should be fairly obvious that we're talking about the left or right-hand side of the road.
To keep things consistent, 'drive' should refer to the steering column, hence left/right hand drive, which is why I changed 'Left-driving' to 'driving on the left'.
I once had a correspondence with someone in the sales department of GM in South Africa, in which I was told that the company could not export to right-hand drive countries in Southeast Asia because they only built cars for left-hand drive markets like South Africa. I explained that most of Southeast Asia drove on the same side of the road as South Africa.....
Perhaps the term "traffic direction" is a better one? Antipodean Contributor 22:56, 28 August 2006 (UTC)
I think there was not any specific rules of the road. — Instantno od 09:51, Jan 29 2005 (UTC) This is extremely unlikely. While it is possible that in the countryside there was a lack of rules, there must have been rules in the cities. As most of northern China was occupied by Japan, this would have been keep left. Interestingly Manchuria must have been confused, as it came under Russian influrence from 1896 with the Chinese Eastern Railway, followed by the annexation of the Liaotung Peninsula (Port Arthur) 1898 and the South Manchurian railway. From 1900 the whole of Manchuria was occupied by Russia after the Boxer Rebellion and expedition to Peking. However the Russians were defeated by the Japanese in 1905 so drive on the left was in force from then. In August 1945 Manchuria was occupied by Stalin's Red Army. They may have enforced drive on the right from occupation, but I have no evidence.
Noel Ellis
Is there any articles on the rules on them? — Instantno od 09:52, Jan 29 2005 (UTC)
extracted from the section on Hong Kong and Macau,
Isn't it a flyover or something? — Instantno od 09:58, Jan 29 2005 (UTC)
I think what is meant is that cars have to stop and park in a parking lot (or car park) while the driver and passengers clear customs and immigration; when they leave the parking lot, they simply have to remember to drive on the proper side of the road when they leave. 71.131.197.252 01:47, 11 June 2006 (UTC)
Until 1918, Croatia was ruled by Hungary and Slovenia was ruled by Austria, so they would have driven on the left. Does anyone have information on when they changed over and why? What about the other former Yugoslav republics? Did Serbia, Bosnia, Montenegro and Macedonia always drive on the right?
The Yugoslavs I have spoken to all insist that former Yugoslavia drove on the right and always did so. However as you have noticed the parts under Austrian Hapsburg rule would have driven on the left. This would also have included Bosnia-Hercegovina, occupied 1878, annexed 1908. It is not clear if Serbia has always driven on the right. Even if that was the Turkish rule, Serbia revolted against Turkish rule from 1805, and contrary to the idea that the predominant influence was Russian, often it was Austrian, especially under the Obrenovich dynasty who alternated with the rival Kara-Georgovich dunasty who were pro-Russian. Anyway in 1915, Serbia (including Macedonia) and Montenegro were occupied by the Austro-Hungarians until 1918. So they would have inmposed their rule at least for the duration. They executed civilians and left people hanged with their bodies on public display etc so there is not reason to see why they would have followed a local rule. I have examined photos of the Serbian army in retreat 1915, but it just showed a long column of soldiers. There was only one car, King Peter's which was abandonned, so nothing showed whether they passed to the left or right. The Encyclopedia Britannica 1928 has an interesting reference under Rule of the Road for the Continent of Europe "drive on the right was the rule except for Austria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Portugal, Sweden and Yugoslavia". This was out of date by the time it was published in 1929 because Portugal changed 1928. This same info is repeated in the 1938 edition and again 1956. It is also ambiguous, as it does not say specifically that Yugoslavia drove on the left, only that it was an exception to drive on the right. In the case of Austria this included one rule for part of the country, with drive on the right in Voralberg from 1921, and Tirol from 1930. So it is possible that Yugoslavia had two different rules in different parts. I have spoken to two Serbs born about 1924 who both said they did not remember any change. One lived in Vojvodina which was formerly part of the Austrian province of Banat. This would indicate that if there was a change it must have been earlier than 1929. Noel Ellis, Wellington, New Zealand.
Could we see some sources here, please! -- ProhibitOnions 14:16, 2005 May 23 (UTC)
Kincaird cites an executive order from the Philippines Official Gazette 1946 dated 10 March 1946 for the change to drive on the right, and also quotes from Hopper who was in Manila in February 1945 when they were driving in the left. It is not clear why the Philippines had a drive on the left rule in the first place. It was not imposed by the Japanese, as it was a Filipino Law being amended in 1946. Possibly keeping to the left was an Asian custom before 1946. It is interesting but obscure fact that the Philippines were occupied by Britain in 1763, but I still cannot see how that would have influenced a change in the rule of the road. Noel Ellis, Wellington New Zealand
My father-in-law served as a tech sergeant with the US Air Force during WW2. After VJ Day he was posted in the Philippines for a while, where he witnessed and distinctly remembered the change from left-hand to right-hand traffic direction. He also remembers that beasts of burden had a tough time with the change because they didn't want to walk contrary to habit. He's dead now so I can't ask him for more details of when and where: it's just possible that the change he saw applied to a local area only and not the entire country. Antipodean Contributor 23:03, 28 August 2006 (UTC)
"Slovakia, despite being a member of the European Union, does not allow the local registration of RHD vehicles, even if the vehicle is imported from one of the four EU countries that drive on the left." (emphasis mine). AFAICT from the list, there are only three - UK, Ireland, and Malta. So which is the fourth EU country to drive on the left side of the road? Thryduulf 22:43, 21 October 2005 (UTC)
I've uploaded some photos traffic driving on the right in Savoy Court in London. I'm not sure where to put them, so if anyone's got any bright ideas, please add them in somewhere.
Nfh 19:23, 22 October 2005 (UTC)
Somaliland definitely drives on the right. I had an e-mail from the Somaliland Mission in London in March 2005 stating that Somaliland has never changed from driving on the right. I've also searched the web for photos of traffic in Somaliland, where it is clear that traffic drives on the right:
I'm therefore removing Somaliland from the list of countries that drive on the left. I am not including it in the list of countries that drive on the right, given that no other unrecognised countries are listed (e.g. northern Cyprus).
Nfh 21:29, 23 October 2005 (UTC)
Where did the information come from that Samoa switched to driving on the right in the mid-1990s? From reading the Rule of the Road book by Peter Kincaid, I understand that until 1912, Samoa drove on the left. German occupation forces on 17 February 1912 switched Samoa to driving on the right. However, it is suggested (but not confirmed) that subsequently, New Zealand switched Samoa soon after 30 August 1914 back to driving on the left, and the United States then switched Samoa back to driving on the right during the Second World War. The book, published in 1986, confirms the rule of the road in Samoa to be keep right, and a quoted source confirms that Samoa was keeping right in 1974. Unless anyone has any objections, I'm going to edit the Samoa listing to say "mid-1940s?".
In one section it currently says, "Some ex-colonies of the British Empire continue to drive on the left, but others, such as Canada, Gambia, Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and the United States switched to the other side." Then later it says, "Since colonial times, traffic in the US has always been on the right hand side" I'm not sure of the facts here so perhaps someone could clarify, 1. has the United States ALWAYS been on the right? 2. if since colonial times it has been on the right, is there a pre-colonial time when it was different (that would imply that the Native Americans rode on the left) 3. if it has always been on the right in the US then surely (first paragraph) a switch was never made ???? Kincaid's book suggests that the English settlers did not bring the keep left rule with them, but developed their own rules. However he did find that the Cumberland Road in Pennsylvania had a keep left rule in 1848. New York may have had a keep right rule from Dutch rule, although this is only speculation. Some have claimed that the Dutch actually kept to the left until Napoleon impose keep right 1808-12, and that it was the overseas territories like Suriname and the East Indies that remained on the left. Most think that it was the British that impose keep left in Dutch territories 1806-16. Interestingly Suriname was originally an English colony until ceded in exchange for New York in 1667. It is possible that is why Suriname now keeps to the left and New York to the right. Noel Ellis
The situation with respect to Newfoundland is a unique one; yes, what is now the province of Newfoundland and Labrador did enter into Confederation with the Canadians on April Fools' Day 1949 (the Canadians have yet to realise that Joey Smallwood was only joking!) but there are a couple of other wrinkles to add to this:
In this context, St. John's does end up becoming somewhat of a special case, and not just by being the capital of a Dominion which for whatever reason voluntarily abandoned its own sovereignty. -- carlb 07:46, 17 January 2006 (UTC)
Quiensabe 08:32, 19 January 2006 (UTC)
What I expected to see in an article entitled the "rules of the road" were, well, the rules of the road. Instead, this article is dominated by the left/right issue. A worthy topic, to be sure, but I expected to see here the rules of the road that allow competent drivers to drive safely and legally in just about any country without knowing their particular implementation of the rules. I think this article needs a serious revamp, and the left/right issue addressed in detail should probably be moved to a separate article. -- Serge 04:51, 12 January 2006 (UTC)
There is an article here in Swedish about Finland's change to driving on the right on 8 June 1858, with pictures of the decree by the Tsar of Russia (Grand Duke of Finland) I can only get the general gist of what it means, but if a Swedish speaker could translate this, it would be useful information.
Quiensabe 19 January 2006 08:45 UTC
When Finland became part of the Russian Empire in 1809 Swedish law remained in force. But the Russian troops on the roads in Finland travelled dispite of that on the right. They were the stronger part, so the public had to follow suit. Therefore the Emperor Alexander, who was also Grand duke of Finland, changed the law as from 8 of June 1858. Anders Hanquist, Stockholm, Sweden
There are some bizarre rumors travelling around the Internet. One of them is that Russia was a left-hand-driving country well into the 20th century.
You can read that Russia changed to right-hand driving "in the last days of the czars" or "in the 1920-ies".
That is certainly NOT the case. The former Swedish teritory of Finland became a Russian Grand-duchy in 1809. In 1858 the Russians introduced right-hand driving in Finland in order to facilitate for the Russian troops, already travelling on the right side. Anders Hanquist, Stockholm, Sweden
Peter Kincaid's book has virtually nothing for Russia. I have found unconfirmed claims about Russia changing from keep left to keep right. If that were the case, then why bother changing Finland. What I guess is that when Russia ceded Southern Sakhalin to Japan in 1905, keep right was probably changed to keep left. Once Russia got that part back in 1945, keep left was probably changed back to keep right.-- Jusjih 13:20, 13 May 2006 (UTC)
From 3 Priority:
This is not true. Unmarked crossroads with no obvious major/minor distinction are not unknown in quiet residential areas, and are often included on driving test routes. Steved424 13:27, 25 January 2006 (UTC)
Actually, Sweden's long-term accident/death/injury rate declined due to the usual advances in engineering and traffic safety.
Also, the accident rate went down for a short time after switching, due to drivers being more paranoid than usual, but when back up, and only down again with safety advances. I'm removing or at elaset removing this paragraph.— Last Avenue ( talk) ( contribs) 03:20, 11 February 2006 (UTC)
OK, I just revamped the article. The whole thing of which side of the road to drive on has been moved to Side of the road (traffic), but the introduction kept, and a link to the main article.
I was thinking of calling it Side of the road, but changed my mind to Side of the road (traffic). However, the redir. will still link to there, with an other-uses thingy.
Someone still has to write a better intro paragrpah for side of the road (traffic). — Last Avenue ( talk) ( contribs) 03:40, 11 February 2006 (UTC)
It has been suggested several times that the title of this article be changed to something more appropriate. Please vote below, adding your comments. As well as adding "support" to a proposal, you can also add "oppose" to a particular proposal if you have comments to add concerning the proposal.
Oppose, I think it's just confusing. A reader would have to start reading the page to figure out what it's about. Ewlyahoocom 20:01, 20 February 2006 (UTC)
On Wikipedia itself, kerb links to the archaeological term, while curb is a disambiguation page. Which should be preferred? — Last Avenue ( talk) ( contribs) 21:15, 11 February 2006 (UTC)
This contribution was made by User:82.69.29.25 but was put in the article itself, not on the Talk page:
Mounting-blocks &c. are thus conveniently close to (or even part of) the buildings or roadside for mounting AND dismounting. For traffic-streams on the right of the road the mounting-blocks would have to be in the middle of the road, or the horses would have to face ONCOMING traffic (NOT a good idea!)when being mounted. In the British Isles of the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries the number of regularly-ridden horses per head of human population was the world's greatest and their towns were the world's most constantly congested with traffic. It was horsemanship that dictated the "keep left" rule. Reject and forget all references to "sword-arms". Nobody out of uniform seriously wore a sword in town during the day, except as a particular badge of authority and except during the brief period when young fops swaggered about wearing a hanger as a fashion accessory.
OK, I think everyone who is interested has added their input input. What say we move this page? With three supports each the two options are Rule of the road and Driving on the left or right. Either can be done easily ( Rule of the road is a simple redirect with no history). If there are no objections I'm going to move to Driving on the left or right cause, um,... OK! OK! because I suggested it. Ewlyahoocom
The point of copying the left vs. right side of the road stuff into Side of the road (traffic) was to be able to keep the actual traffic law information in Rules of the road. If Rules of the road were a redirect to the new Driving on the left or right, then the traffic law information would have to be copy-pasted out into another page like Traffic law or something similar. — Last Avenue [ talk | contributions] 22:35, 11 March 2006 (UTC)
OK, I've moved it. (A month is more than long enough to wait for votes.) I've rearranged some bits but it still needs some real copyediting. I've dumped the traffic bits onto Talk:Traffic until I can get those merged in over there. Ewlyahoocom 08:07, 12 March 2006 (UTC)
One of the reasons different sides of the road were choosen is to differentiate the markets. It prevented cars made in one country being sold in another. This is particularly true in Europe when considering that Britain was the first, and for a long time the best, car manufacturer. Other European countries decided to make their rules such that British manufacturers could not sell there, and thus strengthen their own manufacturing. Now, where in the article should this go? -- Midnighttonight 04:36, 12 March 2006 (UTC)
---Napoleonic law requires that all people ride on the right hand side of the road. You obeyed or else. The English go back to swords and jousting. Swords hand on the left side of the body.
I think the country sections (which I have put into alphabetical order) should all be sub-sections within one overall countries section. Does anyone have any ideas on the name for the countries section (perhaps just "Countries")? I moved Okinawa to be a sub-section of Japan, given that it is not a separate legal entity from Japan. On the other hand, Hong Kong and Macau are distinct legal entities, despite being part of China. They still have their own currencies, ISO codes, and most importantly drive on the opposite side of the road from mainland China. In view of this, should we continue to list Hong Kong and Macau separately from mainland China? NFH 11:00, 12 March 2006 (UTC)
Hey all! I've just gone through the links from articles to Rules of the road (currently a redirect to here). Most of the links intending "driving on the left/right" had used piped links to display text of some form of "driving on the left/right" or "right/left hand drive/traffic". The ones that display "rules of the road" in the article often usually mean traffic laws and rules. I've added a redirect The rule of the road to handle one case where it seemed appropriate [1]. I've cleaned up the piped links, given all the redirects sometimes just by deleting the piping [2] [3]. Now I'd also like to redirect Rules of the road to traffic (which is where traffic law redirects). What do you think? Ewlyahoocom 19:27, 13 March 2006 (UTC)
OK, I'm redirecting... done. Ewlyahoocom 23:18, 20 March 2006 (UTC)
Is there any source for this, because I've never heard that most people draw their circles any particular direction? -- Ibagli 03:01, 20 March 2006 (UTC)
"Traffic on roundabouts and other giratory systems flows in a counter-clockwise direction, which is more natural to most people, who draw circles counter-clockwise."
The idea that Napoleon changed the rule of the road in Europe comes up over and over again in writing about the rule of the road. But it has never been backed up with historical research and it appears likely to be a myth. Peter Kincaid concludes so in his book (pp. 14, 99-100). Unless anyone can come up with eyewitness sources for the Napoleon story I would like to remove it from this article, except for a brief mention that it is a common myth. I'll check back on this page shortly to see if there are any objections. Also, I have also just made available on the net my (unpublished) MA qualifying paper from several years ago on the reasons for 20th-century changes in the rule of the road ( http://www.ianwatson.org/rule_of_the_road.pdf). Perhaps some people might find it useful. -- Ian Watson, 23 March 2006
-- I just removed all the Napoleon references (3 July 2006) -- Look at a copy of the Napoleonic Code, have to go to the library most likely.
The comment above took the words from my mouth, if no-one's able to provide a source for the ascertation that "most people draw a circle anti-clockwise" then I believe it should be removed. I certainly don't draw circles anti-clockwise and as a primary teacher have seen many circles drawn, never noticing a particular preponederance for one way or the other. -- Brideshead 19:53, 23 March 2006 (UTC)
Great, perhaps you can reference this study in the article, clear up any confusion? -- Brideshead 17:36, 24 March 2006 (UTC)
Railways in the United Kingdom and France 'drive' on the left (with the obvious exception of single track routes). Up until a few years ago the station at Bicester in the UK was notable as being operated 'the wrong way round'. In the United States trains drive on the right. The situation is complicate by four track lines where two tracks will run each way, often alternating (fast up, fast down, slow up, slow down). Also some lines will be signalled to operate bidirectionally. User:Tom walker 19:48 GMT 24/3/2006.
I noticed this has been removed, although variants of this have been here for ages. Is this true or not? I've asked people from China living during the Cultural Revolution, and most remember driving on the right. — Last Avenue [ talk | contributions] 05:05, 27 March 2006 (UTC)
UKPhoenix79, thanks for adding the new map, which I think is a good idea in principle. However, there remain a number of problems with it:
I am removing the map from the article until these problems are fixed. Some of the problems, particularly the 1858 national borders and Canadian province boundaries, require quite a bit of work, which I don't have the time to do myself. If you want to add this map, then it needs to be as accurate as possible from the moment it is added. You can't simply add a factually incorrect map and then put the onus on other people to spend considerable time researching and fixing it. NFH 09:16, 14 May 2006 (UTC)
Well I have updated it to show the changes of countries over the past to its modern outcome. It conveys more info than the previous version and I think it is better for it. I have little time at the moment to do anythning extensive so I will have to get back to you on the other preposal. For the moment I will re-insert this into the article. Remove or move it to a better section if you believe it is still wrong. -- UKPhoenix79 04:01, 15 May 2006 (UTC)
Nice map, although I have my doubts about any Spanish-speaking country in the Americas ever driving on the left. I am quite sure that East Timor drove on the right before the Indonesian invasion, even if the change to driving on the left took place earlier than the 'integration' into Indonesia in July 1976. I have seen pictures and film footage of pre-invasion Dili, and someone who lived in what was then Portuguese Timor confirmed that traffic was on the right. Quiensabe 23:34, 16 August 2006 (UTC)
I stand corrected about Argentina and Panama, though can't find anything for Paraguay. Quiensabe 19:49, 17 August 2006 (UTC)
Please, once again, 1/6 part of the World is displayed incorrectly! Check the boundaries of the RUSSIAN EMPIRE. And also be informed there were no country called "ukrainia" in those times, and there were no boundaries accordingly. Or just use the appropiate map. Thanks. Alexander, Russia.
It's probably a joke, but I've heard that on Mallorca you don't drive on the left or the right side of the road, but on the shady side of the road to stay out of the sun. // Liftarn
This article needs cleanup. It does not need to have links to a certain country everytime it is mentioned. Axeman89 00:44, 9 July 2006 (UTC)
This article is jam packed full of dodgy statements of provenance unknown. It's clear from reading this article that people just add stuff as and when they feel like it, without thinking to cite sources. Apart from one book about the rules of the road, which is just shoved in at the bottom without inline citations giving page references etc, the sources that are given are amateurish websites, and it's not clear where these have been used and when the authors have simply added in what they believe to be true (or perhaps not, as it would be easy to hide deliberately false information in a mess like this). It has been consistently stated by Jimbo Wales that it's better to remove unsourced information than slap a "citation needed" tag on it [5] [6] so really this article has been let off lightly, for now. If 'facts' are to be kept, they need to be sourced, so anyone wanting to take on this task would do well to read the policies on verifiability and citing sources. 86.136.0.145 22:31, 1 August 2006 (UTC)
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The section on the United States says:
Since colonial times, traffic in the United States has always been on the right-hand side, which was greatly influenced by France, a "founder" of the drive-on-the-right rule, which indirectly supported American Independence from British colonial rule. There is a common story that this may be due to the construction of Conestoga wagons, which had a high driver's seat on the left side. However, the Conestoga wagon does not date all the way back to the colonial period so this story is likely apocryphal.
However, the Conestoga wagon entry states that "the first Conestoga Wagons appeared in Pennsylvania around 1725", suggesting that they do indeed "date all the way back to the colonial period". GagHalfrunt 20:17, 2 August 2006 (UTC)
The top image's tooltip doesn't work... it should say red and blue instead of those boxes. I'd fix it, but I don't know how. - Grick( talk to me!) 07:59, 3 August 2006 (UTC)
To help resolve the dispute about referencing (see above), there follows a list of statements requiring direct inline citation. I am hopeful that many of these can be linked to the sources given at the bottom of the article, and can therefore be footnoted in the article and removed from the list. Those that can't will have to be removed from the article. Please feel free to name the source and strikethrough the items on the list if you can find sources.
Terminal emulator
15:44, 3 August 2006 (UTC)
The citation is here More information about Burma (and Italy) can be found here
However, others are a little pedantic. If you have lived in or visited a country, you're likely to notice what side of the road they drive on, and what side of the car the steering wheel is on. As Gibraltar has driven on the right since 1929, it's highly likely that cars sold locally will be LHD, as in Spain. As I have been there, I can confirm that this is the case. However, as it is a British territory with a British military presence, there are second-hand RHD cars from the UK, as well as British forces Land Rovers and I have seen ex-Japan Toyota vans there as well. I don't know if the Gibraltar Ministry of Transport keeps a record of the number of RHD vehicles registered locally, but given the small size of the territory, you won't go far beofre you notice them.
Lancia definitely ended RHD production in 1994 - they pulled out of the UK in that year, and when they sold the Kappa in South Africa it was LHD only. However, I will add thisreference to substantiate the claim that it is planning to resume RHD production. Quiensabe 16:19, 16 August 2006 (UTC)
I have noticed that over time, the two "Advantages" sections have degenerated into a place for British and Americans to promote their own side of the road as being better. Most of the statements in these sections are merely opinions (some of them well founded but with no verifiable sources), and several statements even contradict each other between the two opposing Advantages sections. These sections have been and will no doubt continue to be disputed. I propose to delete both Advantages sections and to move the only two statements of hard fact to other appropriate sections. NFH 18:44, 3 August 2006 (UTC)
This is now done. NFH 19:09, 17 August 2006 (UTC)
I wondered about how the issues of changing sides at borders would be resolved in practice. I suspect that it would be resolved similarly to how road repair on a higway sometimes is resolved, by temporarlily closing off one side of the road through roadblocks and stop signs.
1.
A |
\ |
| \|
| /|
/ |
| V
2.
| A
| |
\/
/\
| |
| V
(Sorry for the sloppy explanation and the ugly Ascii illustrations...)
惑乱 分からん
11:40, 6 August 2006 (UTC)
Install
Google Earth and have a look at some placemarks I've published at
[7]. I'd like to find a way to publish these placemarks in the article in accordance with Wikipedia policy. I'm not sure whether it's acceptable for me to simply add a link to my own page or whether one can upload a KMZ file on Wikipedia. Any suggestions are welcome.
The high traffic border crossings (China-HK and China-Macau) have elaborate bridges or roundabouts, whereas low traffic border crossings have no infrastructure at all to swap the traffic over. The diagrams you added above are not typical, but if you look hard, you may find some photos of barriers across the road at [8]. Also the Thailand-Laos Friendship Bridge (low resolution on Google Earth) has traffic lights to swap the traffic over.
NFH 21:31, 6 August 2006 (UTC)
Please note that seeing with right eye (Right Eye Dominance) (Eyedness) is different from seeing to the Right Side (Right Field Dominance) (Sighting dominance).
When we look to right we use both the eyes - The image falls on the medial part of the RIght Retina and lateral part of left retina. However, the images from both these eyes go to the Left Occipital Lobe of the brain So the references cited may not be that relevant, except for this point Though the left cerebral hemisphere seems to play a dominant role in gaze fixation in the greater proportion of the population, consideration of the joint of the two cerebral hemispheres for individual functions of the body has been advocated.
If the left cerebral hemisphere plays a dominant role in gaze fixation, the it is easy to fix the gaze when seeing to your right than when seeing to the left
This message is not to contradict the earlier posts, but just to bring to the notice that there is a difference between the two concepts (though one is dependent on the other) Doctor Bruno 02:06, 8 August 2006 (UTC)
I went ahead and removed the old "unreferenced" tag since it appears the article has references. That tag is meant to indicate the article has almost no references, which isn't the case at this point. Moving forward I'd suggest using "citation needed" on any specific statements that still require further citation. Dugwiki 22:47, 18 October 2006 (UTC)
Any info on whether South Africa has always driven on the left? -- Zaurus 20:40, 6 November 2006 (UTC)
Bridge between Tachilek (Myanmar) and Mae Sai (Thailand) crossing the Mae Sai River: What's it's correct name and how does the LHD-RHD is managed? Scriberius 17:54, 6 December 2006 (UTC)
This article is about driving on the left/right, not sailing so perhaps that should go somewhere like navigation. Also I know that trains are driven but the left/right issue implies the driver has some control over how the vehicle deviates, which train drivers do not, if you understand me. ChrisAngove 23:26, 6 January 2007 (UTC)
Do insurance companies load premiums when you drive on the side of the road you are not used to? Or is it mainly based on your driving record, age etc. I would guess that driving on the other side is relatively low risk per se compared to the part determined from your driving record, age etc ChrisAngove 23:26, 6 January 2007 (UTC)
The colour choices for the second coloured map are not quite optimal, as both "drives on right" and "drove on left, now drives on right" are a VERY similar red. This should be changed to an entirely different colour.
I've removed the link to British. It is a disambiguation page and, "Wikipedia articles should not link to disambiguation pages (with rare exceptions where the ambiguity of a term is being discussed); instead links should go directly to the appropriate article." (See WP:DPL). There are many editors working endlessly to disambiguate terms (see here). If you notice, the other links to British in the article are to United Kingdom because it refers to the current state, but the link that is being reverted is a historical link so United Kingdom is not really appropriate. If a better link cannot be decided upon, linking to British is still not the way to go as noted above, since the sentence is not discussing the ambiguity of the term. Regards, -- Jeff3000 12:03, 2 March 2007 (UTC)
Per WP:ENGVAR, it is improper to change spelling and usage to conform to whatever variant of English you happen to prefer personally. This article, like many others describing comparative practise/practice in different countries, contains a mix of English variants from at least three continents, which means changing individual words to suit your taste is poor practice. Moreover, I'm sure you found a particular UK dictionary to support your preference for "further" rather than "farther", and the two are commonly used interchangeably, but precise usage prefers the use of "farther" when the context is one of distance, and "further" when it is one of degree or amount. See Mirriam-Webster and dictionary.com, as well as The University of Victoria Writer's Guide, English Plus, and AHD. Please do not change back to "further" without attaining concensus on this page. Thank you.-- Scheinwerfermann 03:21, 15 March 2007 (UTC)
What language is this article in? I only ask as it seemed to be in Br Eng (centre; neighbour), but after I'd changed 'archeolgic' to 'archaeological' I noticed two US Eng "traveler"s earlier on in the article. I haven't changed them to Br Eng 'traveller' as now I'm unsure. 82.32.238.139 22:52, 17 March 2007 (UTC)
Does anyone have or know where to find accident/collision statistics in countries that allow both RHD and LHD vehicles. i think this kind of info is important to have along with what is already there.
i havent been able to find any numbers showing the accident rates of this kind of info. i basically am looking for stats that shows the accident rates of RHD VS LHD in both RHT and LHT countries to find out if there is any significant difference in accident/collision rates if there even is a difference.
24.67.224.95 06:45, 21 March 2007 (UTC)Kevan
I've removed the following snippet from the section about Australia:
"This situation compares interestingly with the "give way to the right" rule in most countries of Continental Europe, where a vehicle turning left (onto another road usually of similar hierarchy) can completely stop all traffic in the lane to its left while giving way to traffic on its right and waiting, however long, for a gap to move into."
I don't think the above description is very accurate, traffic arrangements are usually made to keep the above situation from being possible at all. Plus it's doesn't really describe the situation in Australia at all. Kumiankka 20:35, 4 April 2007 (UTC)
The history section is full of rather dubious assertions and perpetuates many of the common myths around this subject:
That the "normal" side of the road was originally the left as a result of sword-wearing horse riders. But such people would only have been a tiny fraction of road traffic. Isn't it more likely that the primary reason for horses to be ridden on the left is that most people mount and dismount on the left?
That a "change" occurred in countries where postillion carts were used. While postillion carts apparently are best driven on the right, there is little evidence of a change from earlier practice (these countries may have already been driving on the right, which is also the optimum side for pedestrian-led carts).
(The most egregious myth) - That French aristocrats drove on the left, while the commoners walked on the right; and that France changed to driving on the "proletarian" side of the road after the revolution. I assume this is a joke, not a myth - do you think the writer can actually have believed that aristocrats kept to one side of the road, commoners to the other? Maproom 17:51, 6 April 2007 (UTC)
I would say that it makes perfect sense - when walking along a country lane you would walk along the "wrong" side of the road so that you have a good view of oncoming traffic. If the side of the road for driving in pre-revolutionary France was the left, then logically the peasants (pedestrians) would walk along the right-hand side of the road so as to have a better chance of not being run over by the aristocrats speeding along on the left in their carriages. -- 68.147.38.76 22:13, 18 April 2007 (UTC)
It also implies that left driving is a particularly British practice, in direct contradiction to a later part of the article.
http://www.brianlucas.ca/roadside/ seems a fairly well-researched page on this subject. And it suggests that the original choice of left or right driving in various countries was more likely a result of the dominant mode of transport at the time such rules were codified (pedestrian-led carts: right; postillion-controlled wagons: right; wagons driven from the wagon itself: left). Maybe it's just me but this seems more convincing than the usual romantic stories about the mediaeval knights and the French revolution...
TomH 19:42, 5 April 2007 (UTC)
It also suggests that the US changed to the right, which (as has already been pointed out) directly contradicts another part of the article.
I am minded to perform some drastic editing on this section... TomH 20:20, 5 April 2007 (UTC)
What is the rule of the road for vehicles in Antarctica? The bus in this picture is a left-hand drive vehicle, so I'd assume that it is a right-hand traffic area. Are there any reliable sources that people know about to document this? Check out McMurdo-South Pole highway. 69.181.71.221 07:49, 8 April 2007 (UTC)