Just started driving in the UK for the first time. The easiest trick i use in figuring which lane is the right one, is that the passenger's seat should be closest to the curb. This has eased my confusion a 100x
Only works if the steering wheel is on the other side. If rent a car in the UK and then take it on the ferry to France, where they drive on the right, your kurb thing won’t work. I’m from the UK, lived in Germany for a year and also traveled from the UK to France a lot as my Dad lived there. You get used to driving on the other side of the road really quickly, less than a day. After that it just feels like normal.
With so many driving games out there now on consoles and PCs I am surprised nobody has brought out a simulator to let you practice on driving on the opposite side of the road to the one you are used to.
I spent about 10 years in the UK. Driving on the left was a bit strange at first, but it became second nature after about a week. But it took me three tries to pass my driving test, despite having driven for 20 years in Canada. The driving test is an exercise in choreography, which you really can't master without taking lessons, no matter how experienced you are. The narrow roads require a different driving style: you don't necessarily stay in your lane; for example, you may have to drive down the middle of the road to pass parked cars. And my driving instructor taught me to make use of information like reflections in shop windows to see around corners. The thing I found the most awkward, for some reason, was looking over my left shoulder when backing up. Driving on the left has one advantage that I could see: it makes more sense to have your right hand on the steering wheel and your left hand free to work the gearshift, unless you are left-handed.
BS.. I'm right handed and greatly prefer driving with my left. No even subconsciously do I use my right, feels unnatural.. even more so when I'm driving stick shift..
Driving on the right hand side of the road is so rude - how can you shake hands with the chap coming in the opposite direction or defend yourself with your sword if he is a scoundrel.
Idk. As an American who has been living in the UK, I still feel US is much easier and user-friendly. You can literally learn US traffic playing GTA V.. it's that easy.
@@ndjdjdkdddkkdddd1346 they don't "teach you" on GTA but you get a real feel of the traffic system in America by following the flow of traffic and the street signs. You can really learn it.
After driving like a "pro" for about 20 years in India and just yesterday i drove for the first time in America and i almost felt like I've never driven a car before.
An English friend of mine lived in Pakistan (Islamabad/Rawalpindi) for 2 years and I went to visit him. He picked me up at the airport about 2 am and drove like a crazy man back to his house. At the weekend we drove up into the hills (Murree) and I still found his driving crazy. I asked him why he drove like this. “My predecessor was here 18 months and was involved in 3 accidents, 2 of which resulted in his car being written off. I have been here 2 years and have had no accidents. The difference is that he drove like an Englishman in Pakistan - not a good idea, I have learned to drive like a Pakistani. That is safer, because it means that I don’t do unexpected things - like slowing down at junctions or always observing red lights - that a Pakistani wouldn’t do, thereby avoiding having someone run into my back end.”
In from the UK but I live in California, driving in the UK is a lot harder, a lot more rules and smaller roads + driving manual. While driving in the US is so easy, the test as well was a breeze to pass
The problem is that the people make the rules, everybody knows them and there's no test for it. It's definitely an interesting country to drive in especially when you have a two way country road barely fit enough for a quad bike.
Im also from the UK and living in California. I also think driving in the UK is difficult but a lot safer. UK drivers in general are better and well disciplined.
As a Brit my first time visiting America, a buddy from Virginia was loaning me his CJ7 for my entire visit. However, two days before my flight, he was rear ended at a stop light totaling his Jeep. But he was like, “don’t worry you can borrow my truck, I’m not using it.” When I got there he handed me the keys to his 97 F350 Powerstroke dually 5sp stick. LOL But after a couple of days cruising round VA, I just settled right into it. I think it being a smnaual actually helped. It was like a switch just flipped in my brain. Now when I visit I settle right in within minutes.
I don't believe I'd be able to handle turning at the 4-way intersections. I can picture myself sitting there trying to figure out the physics and trajectory and the angle and a line of cars behind me, waiting for me to figure it out and beeping at me. And then in a last-minute rush, I drive over the curb.
Just wanted to point out something. The speed limit and that of the USA aren’t the same, two different metric systems US uses MPH, while UK uses KM/H 70 KM/H in UK = 43 MPH ( ultimately slow speeds to be operating on US highways at 65 MPH in USA highway speeds = 105 KM/H
While over on vacation from the UK, my wife and I drove from Brandon, Manitoba to Vancouver, then, over to Vancouver island and back over the Rockies via Banff to Brandon. We felt quite pleased by our achievement - driving on the right-hand side of the road. Our major problem was keeping to the low speed limits, identifying the 'one-way' street signs, and, most of all remembering not to press the foot brake with the left foot. Wow! first and only time - thank heavens for the seat belt! There was of course, the unexpected weight of American/Canadian built cars. Not only are they larger cars to UK/European cars - they are extremely heavy, stopping one in comparison to a British/European car is an eye-opener - it's like stopping a super-tanker - you need lots of space. Maybe that is why the speed limits are lower on US/Canadian highways. I came home with great respect for those automatic geared gas-guzzlers. After driving one of those, driving my own car was like driving a noddy car. Having said that, I have great respect for American and Canadian visitors 'mixing' it with the locals on UK roads. It's the roundabouts that confuses our cousins', they just don't have them in their daily lives, and I guess I get confused with them too, from time to time. Happy motoring, wherever you are!
It isn't that we don't have roundabouts in our lives---many of us do. It is the fact that the rules are the exact opposite for left-drive countries like yours.
"remembering not to press the foot brake with the left foot." I'm sorry but WHEN do you use the left foot for braking? Manual or Automatic its always the right foot. In an Automatic, the left foot shouldnt have to do a thing!! Its even explained in the popular US Program "Breaking Bad" where Walter Jr "Flynn" is learning to drive and he uses his left foot to brake and his dad Walter Sr is telling him no no no!!
Remember on roundabouts to follow lanes correctly. That generally means 'peeling out' as you reach your exit. In a two-lane roundabout, use the right-hand lane to go right and the left-hand lane to go left or straight on. It's important so you don't block people trying to get off at their exits unnecessarily.
I was stationed in England back in the 90s. It messed me up going back to the States. I remember the first day home on leave. I was at the local mall and driving near the doors, my friend said that I was on the wrong side. BTW I drove a LHD car in the UK.
Many British driver's have had experience driving on the continent, perhaps once a year on a annual break, so it doesn't take too long to re-adjust. As always with these things--taking your time to observe,and think ahead, before you make a move, is best. Ignoring those behind you if possible--as it was when first learning to drive--not easy I know but ignore those idiots blowing their horns.
Good to hear you say more than once,"driving on the oppersite side of the road" rather than the wrong side of the road! as other U.S. commentors have said...
+Reinis Miks UK, Australia, Japan, India, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Ireland, Jersey, Hong Kong, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Cyprus, Guernsey, Malta, Barbados, Bahamas, Jamaica, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Botswana, Indonesia, Uganda, New Zealand, Fiji, U.S Virgin Islands, Bermuda, Maldives.... Just to name a few countries that drive on the left.
Yes.90% of the worlds population are right handed.In the distant past armed combatants would approach with their swords etc in the right hand and this is why I think that's how we've inherited driving on the left?
+Simon Robbins, I regularly holiday in France and find the only 'disadvantage' is having to rely on my passenger when over-taking large vehicles on 'ordinary' roads. An advantage when driving in towns is that I can see pedestrians much more easily. The French toll-roads are, for the average Brit used to heavy traffic on our motorways, an absolute dream. Bottom line is to stay focussed.
In the UK speed camera avoidance is very easy, it's 10% of the limit +2mph. So 70 MPH, the camera wouldn't flash until you hit 79 MPH but because cars are a bit slow, even though you got flashed doesn't mean you'll get a fine especially when you're just borderline recommend prosecution (10% +2mph), not sure about the motorway but any other roads have lines on them to determine speed.. Again, it depends.
When i first drove a left hand drive car in spain i kept hitting the drivers door going for my gears. In 2018 i visited vancouver and seattle and driving left hand drive was easy as i have driven many times in europe
It is possible that the custom of driving on the left dates back to pre-history and may later have been used as an early road safety measure. At a time when the main danger on the roads was mugging, careful travellers would pass on-coming strangers on the left with their sword arm towards the passer-by. The keep left rule did not become law in Britain until the increase in horse traffic made some sort of enforcement essential. Before this, the drivers of coaches leaving London for the country simply chose the firmest part of the road. The main dates for the introduction of the legal requirement to keep left are: 1756 - London Bridge 1772 - Towns in Scotland 1835 - All roads in Great Britain and Ireland. In Europe, Pope Boniface VIII instructed pilgrims to keep to the left in the year 1300. Later, class distinction in France meant that aristocrats drove their carriages on the left side of the road forcing everybody else over to the centre or to the right-hand side. Keeping left had really only ever applied to riding or driving. With the onset of the French Revolution in 1789 and the subsequent declaration of the rights of man in 1791 many aristocrats decided to keep to the ‘poor side’ of the road so as not to draw attention to themselves. Keeping to the right of the road was also seen as a way of defying the earlier Papal decree. The subsequent Revolutionary wars and Napoleon’s European conquests led to the spread of driving on the right to Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands. Napoleon ordered his armies to use the right-hand side of the road in order to avoid congestion during military manoeuvres. The nations that resisted invasion - Britain, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Russia and Portugal - generally kept to the left. The Netherlands changed to driving on the right in 1795, but Dutch colonies in the Far East ( Indonesia ) continued the old practices. Denmark had not been invaded by the French but changed in 1793. Russia did not switch until 1916. Czechoslovakia and Hungary were the last countries in mainland Europe to keep left, only changing to the right following invasion by Germany in the late 1930s. Portugal made the change from left to right in the 1920s; countries with border crossings found there was great confusion if drivers were required to change sides of the road when passing from country to country. Sweden remained on the left until 1967 and changed to the right following a lengthy road safety campaign. In Austria from 1805 to 1939 half the country drove on the left whilst the other half, the area that had been invaded by Napoleon, drove on the right! Most of the British Empire adopted the British custom of driving on the left although Egypt, which had been conquered by Napoleon, kept using the right after it became a British dependency. Pakistan considered changing from left to right in the 1960s,The main argument against was that camel trains often drove through the night while their drivers dozed,The difficulty in teaching old camels new tricks was a decisive factor in Pakistan rejecting the change. Canada stayed on the left until the 1920s. During the American War of Independence, French liberal reformer General Lafayette gave advice to the revolutionary forces and spread the idea of driving on the right. The keep right rule was applied to the Pennsylvania turnpike in 1792, New York in 1804 and New Jersey in 1813. Bucking the normal trend, the Pacific island of Samoa made the switch from driving on the right to driving on the left side of the road on 7 September 2009. The official reason given was so as to fall in line with near neighbours Australia and New Zealand which, like Britain, still drive on the left.
They are planning to switch to driving on the right in the UK in a couple of years. It will be done gradually over a weekend. On Saturday trucks, buses, vans, motorbikes and other vehicles will switch to to the right, then on Sunday cars will make the switch. It will an improvement IMO as I always find it difficult to drive on the left when I make occasional trips "over the pond".
@@zombiedude347 Lanes do just follow ''rules'' but busy multi lane roundabouts..I agree..ones you know are much 'easier'...but there are other drivers who are all over the place.. 😳
When I learnt to drive (using any available car) I used both left and right hand manual (and floor and steering column gear levers) without a problem. Obviously having an automatic is best (who wants to waste time and effort changing gears?) and a satnav is a good idea, but still have a map to make sure you are actually going to the right place! The real concern when driving on a different side of the road is what you do in an emergency! Instinct (training) may kick in and you get it seriously wrong.
In the UK, if you take your test in an automatic, you can only drive an automatic car, hence most people take the test in a manual, which means they can drive with both sorts of gearbox.One reason for manual, is that if an automatic gearbox fails, it fails completely. With a manual, there's usually 1 or 2 forward gears that still work.
May I also remind people from the US about lane etiquette. On a three or more lane Motorway both the middle and outside lanes are overtaking lanes. It is illegal to sit in them if a car comes up behind you. You must pull over in to the nearest lane to your left to let the other car past. It is also illegal to undertake on the left. You must overtake on the right only.
@@yeahnoway111 Yes that was my point. This is a video about driving in the UK. We have a better etiquette and a higher level of skill gained through having one of the hardest tests in the World. the UK also has one of the least death and accident rates in the World. Which TBH is quite something bearing in mind we have 68 million people living in an area only half the size of California
Excellent intro to UK driving Mike, I think sometimes us limeys forget how strange driving on the other side is for Americans as we live close to other countries so swapping from left to right hand driving is almost second nature for most of us.
Okay, let’s get things straight. The roundabouts and manual car driving uphill is the only hard thing driving in the UK. + all the rules. Generally I love driving on the left hand side :) since I look to the right anyways
Well it's a matter of habit, I live in the UK so it feels so right for the cars to be on the left and it feels so wrong when I go abroad, even though my left eye is dominant, so I'm naturally more inclined to look to the left, where oncoming cars/cars on the near side of the road when crossing are coming from
@@grassytramtracks I feel so weird travelling abroad as I'm so used to right hand drives. It will be difficult for me to adjust to LHD suddenly... But Imagine LHD in UK. I don't know how they manage!
Same here as an american driving on the right is so second nature that the change is indeed stressful Im sure ive never been to the uk ive always wanted to visit though
I find when on the other side of the road, it's all fine as long as you have other traffic and your not flustered. If your flustered and no cars, you'll likely go around the odd small roundabout the wrong way. Lol.
In the UK we have some weeks of sunshine and some weeks where low pressure moves across, bringing lots of rain. Basically like Iceland, but it has lots of sunshine too
Like you say the danger comes the next day when you leave your hotel. I have found this when driving my UK car in France. It's even more dangerous then because you are in a familiar car but on the opposite side of the road. A right hand drive car on the right side of the road also puts you at a disadvantage as you can't see as well when emerging from junctions.
I am from the Uk.We travel a lot in Europe.I find it easy to adapt to driving on the right,after a couple of days it seems normal to drive on the right.Admittedly I am driving my own car so that must help also as we have been to Europe so many times I do not worry that I will have a problem.I think your first time driving on the left may be a concern but after a couple of days it will not be a problem.Also drivers here in the UK show more courtesy to other drivers than in many countries.
Its good to see an American driving in the UK which is not fun I'm sure. I have done it the other way because as a Brit I have driven in the USA whilst visiting. I love driving in the USA. Its so different to driving in the UK (which is fun once you get out of the large cities and onto the rural roads).
I tried once, rented an automatic. Never again. That is better for Britain and for me. I do drive automatics since then, so it was kind of useful. But I will never again drive over there. I cannot do it. It is a miracle that I survived and did not hurt anyone in the process.
I was visiting the UK earlier in 2018. The rental agency was out of cars with automatics so I rented one with a stick shift since I have driven stick shift cars in the USA. It was much easier than I expected as it was the smoothest shifting car that I have ever driven and had different gear ratios. It was not advisable to have the car in 5th gear until doing 50 mph. When doing city driving i could do it in 2nd gear or 3rd gear if over 30 mph. This meant that I did not have to be shifting as frequently as I would need to on stick shift cars in the USA. I did however find that driving on the left was a very easy transition. All I had to do was follow what the rest of the traffic was doing. The motorways are nicer than the freeways in the USA. They are very orderly. I did however find that driving on very narrow roads with heavy traffic and large trucks (or lorries, British English) a little terrifying.
I live in the UK, but visit both the US and Europe regularly and drive whilst there. I find it more natural to drive on the right and adapt within an hour or so of getting behind the wheel. Major road systems in all countries make it easy to drive on the correct side provide that you are not a muppet! Minor roads are where the problem is and where you need to pay attention especially first thing in the morning!!
A little thing I did to make it easier was if turning into a side street on my side of the road take the nearest lane and if turning into one on the opposite side then it’s the far side lane you turn onto
There is a percentige rate put on the speed cameras,so if you are on a 30mph road the speed cameras are not precise so add 3 mph on the speed and add 5% on top so if you go over 38mph you will have your collar felt by a car with a little blue light flashing on top. I found out the hard way.
Having done the same but in Florida I found it was more the combo of driving on the right hand side and the left of the car which I found most disconcerting to begin with. That and concentrating on where to go and turning off junctions made it hard to get used to even after 2 weeks of driving.
Driving in this country, these days, is a nightmare. That bloke is correct - there are speed cameras everywhere. They are there, according to The Authorities, to enhance road safety. The truth is I spend as much time looking at my speeedometer as I do the road, in order to avoid a fine for speeding. They are a money - making racket.
Does you're car have cruise control? I successfully avoid speeding tickets and don't have to look down at my speedometer in areas with speed cameras just by setting my cruise control to the speed limit. I totally agree about the cameras their only there to increase revenue.
You're driving incorrectly if you're having to look so often. Hold your foot in one position. I only end up checking once every few minutes, and I've rarely caught myself even a few MPH over the limit
+Steve MetalHammer I disagree Steve, if you are finding you are constantly speeding up, you need to be reminded to keep to the limit. Nothing to do with taking your cash, all to do with road safety for the rest of us the road with you.
Over here in the US we have more traffic lights at intersections then round-a-bouts. They also have red light cameras.They cause more accidents from people breaking right away as to not go though the red light then they avoid. There also a revenue maker for the government.
It is weird. I was driving around southern Spain for a few weeks back in June and at first I was trying to change gear with the window handle and looking for the rear view mirror in the side window! Spanish roads are very tough anyway so stick shifting was hard because you're just not used to the reverse setup. The advice about trying to get an automatic is good but they are usually much more expensive in Europe for some reason. The worst part of that experience was the drive from the airport to my rental 80 miles away when I was still totally raw and it was getting dark. Now THAT was hairy. Without a sat nav the search parties would still be out checking ditches for me today!
Watching this because I’m an American about to buy a car in New Zealand for the first time and I’m terrified. I’ve only driven here once before and it was so disorienting and yeah, unsettling is a good word for the feeling 😬 I definitely noticed how strange it felt that pretty much everything inside the car was reversed and what’s even weirder is that here the windshield wipers and indicator are also reversed, which apparently isn’t true of cars in the UK (compared to cars in the US).
I’m getting ready to drive in the UK. I’ve been multiple times for work, but I’ve always taken the train north from London and had a colleague close to my hotel who could pick me up and drop me off, and the town where I was staying was quite walkable.
I have been driving on the right side of the car in my video games recently, and I actually got into the right side of my car in real life the other day.
The original side of the road to use was the left side going back to horse and cart , for some reason the us and other countries changed to the other side
I drove on the left side of the road when I visited England back in 2007. Strange experience, but I adjusted quickly. My only complaint is that the auto and lorry drivers on the motorways in the UK are crazy, not to mention the traffic congestion, most of it I encountered on the M25 surrounding London as well as on the M6 and M42 around Birmingham. They do have speeding cameras, but I kept under the speed limit and experienced no trouble and was never pulled over and ticketed with a speeding fine. I was not familiar with most of the country roads of the A series, so I stayed mostly on the motorways. The best driving was on the M40, M3, M1 and the M4 away from London where traffic was less. I had to use the M6 Toll to get around the traffic congestion of Birmingham (cost was 4 pounds). But the gasoline (petrol) was very expensive; around 1.05 to 1.18 pounds per liter; spent over L.35 (pounds sterling) (around $57 USD) to fill up at a Shell station on the M6 plus nearly the name amount at an Esso station off the M55 in Blackpool. Renting a car is the best way to see England, or any foreign country you visit, but it is also the most expensive; my five-day car rental cost me over $700 (that included auto insurance, fuel costs, and Value Added Tax which was 17.5%). But I still think it was worth the expense.
Went back to the UK a few years after being away for sometime. Hired a car, Complained to my wife the engine sounded loud, then realized I was in a shift model, another time coming out of the restaurant, saw this car coming towards me, in my lane then realized I was on the right not the left
About those speed cameras on the Motorway - they are there but they're only very rarely turned on. The only ones you really need to look out for are the big yellow boxes, usually on A-Roads
At least unlike most parts of the world, the UK proper has a road that links it with a country that drives on the right. Few border crossings exist around the world between those countries and territories that drive on the left and those that drive on the right, with most of those crossings located somewhere in Asia. Another perk about the British Isles is multiple ferry links to the nearest continental mainland and thus an opportunity to rent a left-hand drive vehicle and drive it into the British Isles. It may be that on a future trip to the British Isles in which I choose to drive, I will rent a vehicle in Mainland Europe and drive it over as by then I will have always driven left-hand drive vehicles. Some right-hand drive vehicles can be found in my homeland, Canada, but other than select garbage trucks and street sweepers, such vehicles are mostly those that can be driven on an equivalent to a UK Class B license and mainly imported from Japan. Almost anywhere outside of Europe, renting a left-hand drive vehicle to drive in left-hand traffic is often infeasible although I dunno if, on my next trip abroad, should I take one, I will rent a vehicle at all.
Enjoyed this video! Hope you enjoyed your Time in the UK with us! I’m travelling to Florida next week, and very nervous about driving on the opposite side of the road! I watched your video about driving for the first time in the US. Very informative, Thankyou 😁
We did that too. We shipped 4 Austin Minis from Chile to the UK to participate in the 60 aniversary of the Mini august 2019 Bristol. Strange feeling not only driving on wrong side of the motor way but our Minis are left hand drive. Frightening when a lorry is right behind pushing to pass you. What a driving expereience.
Lanes go both ways there. They can change the law in a day to have everyone switch to driving on the proper side of the road, its literally the right side, cars eould be cheaper roo as they dont need all the additional tooling
Malaysia drives on the left too, being a former British colony. Watched a vlog by Canadian traveller pair being first time behind the wheels in Malaysia... everything opposite from back home!!
Speed limits in the UK are much lower than here in the USA. In some states the speed limit is unlimited and some as high as 85 miles per hour. Many Americans are able to drive a manual shift car, but prefer automatic transmissions for their comfort and its more convenient in heavy stop and go traffic.
I thought I'd struggle driving in the States but took to it well when I was there. TBH it felt weird driving in England when I got back home. I'm converted to automatics now
I’m planning a trip to the UK and am thinking of renting a car, so I can visit all the cities - London, Manchester, Leeds, Southampton, etc. I think for me being on the right side of the car is going to throw me off.
Haven't even really left the airport and 3 roundabouts already, and no stop signs. :-) As well, what it seems to worry and confuse visitors they expect the pedals to be reversed as well, But the gas pedal is always to your right, american or british cars, and clutch if stick shift under the left foot always.
i drove on the right and left of the road and car way too often, i dont feel strange about it anymore, i dont even think about it, it just come natural.
The only time that I drove in the States back in 1979, I almost crashed the car when pulling out of the driving lot!! We needed to turn right, out of habit I watched for traffic coming from the right and thought nothing coming I'll pull out, luckily a car drove across me just before I started to pull out and I realised that I didn't need to cross over a line of traffic. Phew...
5 years old but I’ll say it anyway: In the UK, driving on the left dates back to medieval times when travellers preferred to keep to the left to have their right arm, typically the sword-wielding arm, closer to a potential opponent. This tradition was formalised in 1835 when the Highways Act made it a legal requirement, making England the first country in the world to pass such traffic legislation. So, really, the question should be the other way around: why do many other countries drive on the right?
Hi! I like your video. Like the British, Kiwis, and Aussies, we Fijians also drive on the left side of the road and steering wheels are placed on the right-hand side of vehicles. A total opposite to American, our fast lanes (2 or more lanes) are the right-most lane while you guys have it on the left-most of the road. One thing that's common, there are more roundabouts compared to the US, RUSSIA, CHINA and all those countries. Last year, two American tourists were injured after they were involved in a deadly crash that killed a driver of another car on country side driving. Witness said, the couple had been driving on the wrong side of the road and had blindly turned on bends. Unfortunately, they met head on with a car on a blind bend killing him instantly. The couple were lucky to be alive. So from then it has been stressed to tourists from opposite driving countries to maintain their side of the road regularly while there are signs all over the place to inform tourists to always keep left and also not hog the far right lane(fast lane) where there are more lanes.
If you think the transition from LHD to RHD is difficult, you should try driving a RHD vehicle in Europe. Or constant swopping L/RHD cars and countries. I spent 4 years in Denmark driving a LHD on the R side of the roads, then once a month park the car at the airport fly to Heathrow. Jump in a RHD car and drive on the left. Just to make it more difficult both cars were manual (stick shift) As you say keep distractions to a minimum, and pay special attention when starting your day in a town or on country style roads, it's so easy to pull out on the wrong side. Had a co worker in Denmark who had booked a camper van (RV) in Scotland for the whisky tour. He asked for tips on driving on the opposite side of the road. So I ran through all that. He then asked about gear and foot controls. So just to wind he up I said the accelerator was on the left, foot brake centre and clutch on the right. This got him worried so much so I caught him practising at lunch time, trying to get his foot and hand coordination right, well this went on for a week before he left. On his return he called me lots of terrible names.!!!!!
If you drive across to Europe for the first time, it takes about 20-30 minutes to get used to the right hand side. Europeans coming to tour Britain say it takes about the same time to get the hang of the left side. Don't let yourselves be made nervous by neurotic videos on TH-cam. Take a look at Steve and Jodi's Vlog and see how they just embrace the whole experience of Britain.
I tried driving in Thailand. Whenever I would need to reverse, I would look over my right shoulder, but if the steering wheel is on the right you should look over your left shoulder. That and having the turn signal and windshield wipers reversed got me very confused, while learning how to drive in crazy bangkok traffic
So far so good, but Mike never tried to make a right-hand turn. That is the great challenge for Americans - you are not at all sure that you've covered all bases before turning. The roads of Cornwall are very challenging, but then we only had to replace a busted rear-view mirror ($65) after a week's touring!
We British were driving on the left hand side of the road long before Europeans first set foot on the North American Continent. Knights mounted their horses from the left and as the majority of people are right handed they held their swords and lances in their right hand. It was only after America got it's independence from Britain that they started driving on the right and drinking coffee instead of tea.
Actually right-hand traffic was introduced in Russia in 1752. During the French Revolution, France started to adopt the right-hand traffic against the ancient clerical order which imposed the left-hand one. Napoleon then upheld this driving to all the conquered territories. For US it was nothing against the British colonization but just a matter of practice for freight transport. The majority of people driving teamsters was right-handed so it was easier the RHT by controlling the horses with the right hand, seating on the left side and letting others overtake on the left.
It was Napoleon and the metric system that introduced the system of driving on the right, due to cart drivers typically sitting on the left hand side of the cart. His reasoning was it was safer to have the driver on the same side as the oncoming traffic (yes horse drawn carts) before that as you say most drove on the left.
Just started driving in the UK for the first time. The easiest trick i use in figuring which lane is the right one, is that the passenger's seat should be closest to the curb. This has eased my confusion a 100x
This comment is so helpful! Thank you so much and God bless!!
Very true but I still smash my hand into the door when I go to change gear.
Only works if the steering wheel is on the other side. If rent a car in the UK and then take it on the ferry to France, where they drive on the right, your kurb thing won’t work.
I’m from the UK, lived in Germany for a year and also traveled from the UK to France a lot as my Dad lived there. You get used to driving on the other side of the road really quickly, less than a day. After that it just feels like normal.
Thank you Sir! God bless you ❤
With so many driving games out there now on consoles and PCs I am surprised nobody has brought out a simulator to let you practice on driving on the opposite side of the road to the one you are used to.
city car driving. You can drive set the location. So can learn right and left
There’s one called forza horizon
Euro Truck Simulator 2 kind of works for that - drive on the left in the UK, drive on the right in continental Europe.
Ive been playing Watch Dogs Legion and sometimes I deliberately drove on the right, smashing objects and NPS along the way
I feel like having a nervous breakdown just watching this. I don't even know how you're talking to the camera and not crashing. Lol
Mike is a very poor driver if even the postion of the mirror (in the centre!) bothers him.
🤣🤣🤣🤣
Pure skill
@@fivish p
I spent about 10 years in the UK. Driving on the left was a bit strange at first, but it became second nature after about a week. But it took me three tries to pass my driving test, despite having driven for 20 years in Canada. The driving test is an exercise in choreography, which you really can't master without taking lessons, no matter how experienced you are. The narrow roads require a different driving style: you don't necessarily stay in your lane; for example, you may have to drive down the middle of the road to pass parked cars. And my driving instructor taught me to make use of information like reflections in shop windows to see around corners. The thing I found the most awkward, for some reason, was looking over my left shoulder when backing up. Driving on the left has one advantage that I could see: it makes more sense to have your right hand on the steering wheel and your left hand free to work the gearshift, unless you are left-handed.
idk i would feel that it's more natural to have your dominant hand and the gearshift
BS.. I'm right handed and greatly prefer driving with my left. No even subconsciously do I use my right, feels unnatural.. even more so when I'm driving stick shift..
Driving on the right hand side of the road is so rude - how can you shake hands with the chap coming in the opposite direction or defend yourself with your sword if he is a scoundrel.
That's what it's all about Jeff. Not many know it.
You can... The steering wheel is on the other side.
Jeff Walker you're a fucking dumbass
The steering wheel is on the right side on cars in the us and canada soooo yah.
When Americans commenting on this comment think they know best yet this comment is about a tradition older than their country
My biggest concern would be things that I do reflexively such as moving to the right to avoid a head-on collision
Because you are aware of it, you will keep reminding yourself and it won't be a issue.
This is exactly how I felt while driving in America
Idk. As an American who has been living in the UK, I still feel US is much easier and user-friendly. You can literally learn US traffic playing GTA V.. it's that easy.
@@therickestpicklerick BRUH I DO GTA 5 RP AND THAT TRUE
@@therickestpicklerick can you actually learn from GTA
@@ndjdjdkdddkkdddd1346 they don't "teach you" on GTA but you get a real feel of the traffic system in America by following the flow of traffic and the street signs. You can really learn it.
@sam gaming here we are 5 years later add me
After driving like a "pro" for about 20 years in India and just yesterday i drove for the first time in America and i almost felt like I've never driven a car before.
An English friend of mine lived in Pakistan (Islamabad/Rawalpindi) for 2 years and I went to visit him. He picked me up at the airport about 2 am and drove like a crazy man back to his house. At the weekend we drove up into the hills (Murree) and I still found his driving crazy. I asked him why he drove like this. “My predecessor was here 18 months and was involved in 3 accidents, 2 of which resulted in his car being written off. I have been here 2 years and have had no accidents. The difference is that he drove like an Englishman in Pakistan - not a good idea, I have learned to drive like a Pakistani. That is safer, because it means that I don’t do unexpected things - like slowing down at junctions or always observing red lights - that a Pakistani wouldn’t do, thereby avoiding having someone run into my back end.”
In from the UK but I live in California, driving in the UK is a lot harder, a lot more rules and smaller roads + driving manual. While driving in the US is so easy, the test as well was a breeze to pass
I can attest to this fact.
this just enforces my want to leave England lmao
The problem is that the people make the rules, everybody knows them and there's no test for it. It's definitely an interesting country to drive in especially when you have a two way country road barely fit enough for a quad bike.
@@jessventures6172 or becoming a better driver?
Im also from the UK and living in California. I also think driving in the UK is difficult but a lot safer. UK drivers in general are better and well disciplined.
As a Brit my first time visiting America, a buddy from Virginia was loaning me his CJ7 for my entire visit. However, two days before my flight, he was rear ended at a stop light totaling his Jeep. But he was like, “don’t worry you can borrow my truck, I’m not using it.” When I got there he handed me the keys to his 97 F350 Powerstroke dually 5sp stick. LOL But after a couple of days cruising round VA, I just settled right into it. I think it being a smnaual actually helped. It was like a switch just flipped in my brain. Now when I visit I settle right in within minutes.
I don't believe I'd be able to handle turning at the 4-way intersections. I can picture myself sitting there trying to figure out the physics and trajectory and the angle and a line of cars behind me, waiting for me to figure it out and beeping at me. And then in a last-minute rush, I drive over the curb.
Thankfully we don't have curbs in the UK 😛
But we do have kerbs!
Terrible joke 🤣
Just wanted to point out something. The speed limit and that of the USA aren’t the same, two different metric systems
US uses MPH, while UK uses KM/H
70 KM/H in UK = 43 MPH ( ultimately slow speeds to be operating on US highways at
65 MPH in USA highway speeds = 105 KM/H
No, Britain uses Miles and Miles Per Hour still, National speed limit is 70 MPH. not 70 KPH.
Just imagine the nightmare, if "left" and "right" meant the opposite also. lol
While over on vacation from the UK, my wife and I drove from Brandon, Manitoba to Vancouver, then, over to Vancouver island and back over the Rockies via Banff to Brandon. We felt quite pleased by our achievement - driving on the right-hand side of the road. Our major problem was keeping to the low speed limits, identifying the 'one-way' street signs, and, most of all remembering not to press the foot brake with the left foot. Wow! first and only time - thank heavens for the seat belt! There was of course, the unexpected weight of American/Canadian built cars. Not only are they larger cars to UK/European cars - they are extremely heavy, stopping one in comparison to a British/European car is an eye-opener - it's like stopping a super-tanker - you need lots of space. Maybe that is why the speed limits are lower on US/Canadian highways. I came home with great respect for those automatic geared gas-guzzlers. After driving one of those, driving my own car was like driving a noddy car. Having said that, I have great respect for American and Canadian visitors 'mixing' it with the locals on UK roads. It's the roundabouts that confuses our cousins', they just don't have them in their daily lives, and I guess I get confused with them too, from time to time. Happy motoring, wherever you are!
Hi William, thanks for watching, and I am glad you had fun driving a land yacht.
It isn't that we don't have roundabouts in our lives---many of us do. It is the fact that the rules are the exact opposite for left-drive countries like yours.
"remembering not to press the foot brake with the left foot." I'm sorry but WHEN do you use the left foot for braking? Manual or Automatic its always the right foot. In an Automatic, the left foot shouldnt have to do a thing!!
Its even explained in the popular US Program "Breaking Bad" where Walter Jr "Flynn" is learning to drive and he uses his left foot to brake and his dad Walter Sr is telling him no no no!!
@@CrazyInWeston are the pedals in reverse on UK vehicles? If so I could see that happening
@@bigboi4269 Pedals are in same order, from right to left its Acelleration (gas), Brakes in niddle, Clutch on left (which use left foot for!)
Remember on roundabouts to follow lanes correctly. That generally means 'peeling out' as you reach your exit. In a two-lane roundabout, use the right-hand lane to go right and the left-hand lane to go left or straight on. It's important so you don't block people trying to get off at their exits unnecessarily.
Never thought I'd see an american behind the wheel of a Peugeot! XD
no american know what a Peugot is and where it comes from !
@@Arltratlo dude I've forgotten more about cars than you know.
@@Arltratlo It's a car, from France. I know what a peugeot is.
@@Arltratlo I wish we had them in the US. :(
@@evgenih2930 why... keep your oversized cars and girls over there...lol
I was stationed in England back in the 90s. It messed me up going back to the States. I remember the first day home on leave. I was at the local mall and driving near the doors, my friend said that I was on the wrong side. BTW I drove a LHD car in the UK.
Many British driver's have had experience driving on the continent, perhaps once a year on a annual break, so it doesn't take too long to re-adjust. As always with these things--taking your time to observe,and think ahead, before you make a move, is best. Ignoring those behind you if possible--as it was when first learning to drive--not easy I know but ignore those idiots blowing their horns.
I don't even drive but this is giving me anxiety
I once drive 80km to meet a guy name Cliff and he jerk me off
@@blizzaroxxx tf lol
Im from England and I think driving in the us is so much easier to change to!
Hi, In general I think driving in the US is much easier, regardless of which side of the road you use.
Mike Young yes! Definitely. The only thing I found different is 4 way intersections with no lights!
Years of playing Grand Theft Auto that is mate
Roads on this continent are gobs wider. They practically beg you to throw it into 3rd gear and put your foot down.
Good to hear you say more than once,"driving on the oppersite side of the road" rather than the wrong side of the road! as other U.S. commentors have said...
+morini500dave But it is wrong side of the road for most world lol. God damn hipsters of the world!
Around a quarter of the world drive on the left!
+Reinis Miks more people are right handed then left handed in the world. So means most people's dominant hand isn't coming off of the wheel.
+Reinis Miks UK, Australia, Japan, India, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Ireland, Jersey, Hong Kong, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Cyprus, Guernsey, Malta, Barbados, Bahamas, Jamaica, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Botswana, Indonesia, Uganda, New Zealand, Fiji, U.S Virgin Islands, Bermuda, Maldives.... Just to name a few countries that drive on the left.
Yes.90% of the worlds population are right handed.In the distant past armed combatants would approach with their swords etc in the right hand and this is why I think that's how we've inherited driving on the left?
being from the uk must feel so weird to drive in american car in america, i so get where hes comin from
+Jason Yes, it would be the same, very awkward.
+Simon Robbins, I regularly holiday in France and find the only 'disadvantage' is having to rely on my passenger when over-taking large vehicles on 'ordinary' roads.
An advantage when driving in towns is that I can see pedestrians much more easily.
The French toll-roads are, for the average Brit used to heavy traffic on our motorways, an absolute dream.
Bottom line is to stay focussed.
In the UK speed camera avoidance is very easy, it's 10% of the limit +2mph. So 70 MPH, the camera wouldn't flash until you hit 79 MPH but because cars are a bit slow, even though you got flashed doesn't mean you'll get a fine especially when you're just borderline recommend prosecution (10% +2mph), not sure about the motorway but any other roads have lines on them to determine speed.. Again, it depends.
I’m an American living in London and I am so nervous to rent a car here to go to the countryside. I’m just so afraid that I’m going to crash
When i first drove a left hand drive car in spain i kept hitting the drivers door going for my gears. In 2018 i visited vancouver and seattle and driving left hand drive was easy as i have driven many times in europe
Having driven in England and America, the one thing I love about the US is the right on red rule.
It is possible that the custom of driving on the left dates back to pre-history and may later have been used as an early road safety measure. At a time when the main danger on the roads was mugging, careful travellers would pass on-coming strangers on the left with their sword arm towards the passer-by. The keep left rule did not become law in Britain until the increase in horse traffic made some sort of enforcement essential. Before this, the drivers of coaches leaving London for the country simply chose the firmest part of the road.
The main dates for the introduction of the legal requirement to keep left are: 1756 - London Bridge 1772 - Towns in Scotland 1835 - All roads in Great Britain and Ireland. In Europe, Pope Boniface VIII instructed pilgrims to keep to the left in the year 1300. Later, class distinction in France meant that aristocrats drove their carriages on the left side of the road forcing everybody else over to the centre or to the right-hand side. Keeping left had really only ever applied to riding or driving.
With the onset of the French Revolution in 1789 and the subsequent declaration of the rights of man in 1791 many aristocrats decided to keep to the ‘poor side’ of the road so as not to draw attention to themselves. Keeping to the right of the road was also seen as a way of defying the earlier Papal decree. The subsequent Revolutionary wars and Napoleon’s European conquests led to the spread of driving on the right to Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands. Napoleon ordered his armies to use the right-hand side of the road in order to avoid congestion during military manoeuvres. The nations that resisted invasion - Britain, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Russia and Portugal - generally kept to the left. The Netherlands changed to driving on the right in 1795, but Dutch colonies in the Far East ( Indonesia ) continued the old practices. Denmark had not been invaded by the French but changed in 1793. Russia did not switch until 1916. Czechoslovakia and Hungary were the last countries in mainland Europe to keep left, only changing to the right following invasion by Germany in the late 1930s. Portugal made the change from left to right in the 1920s; countries with border crossings found there was great confusion if drivers were required to change sides of the road when passing from country to country. Sweden remained on the left until 1967 and changed to the right following a lengthy road safety campaign. In Austria from 1805 to 1939 half the country drove on the left whilst the other half, the area that had been invaded by Napoleon, drove on the right! Most of the British Empire adopted the British custom of driving on the left although Egypt, which had been conquered by Napoleon, kept using the right after it became a British dependency. Pakistan considered changing from left to right in the 1960s,The main argument against was that camel trains often drove through the night while their drivers dozed,The difficulty in teaching old camels new tricks was a decisive factor in Pakistan rejecting the change.
Canada stayed on the left until the 1920s. During the American War of Independence, French liberal reformer General Lafayette gave advice to the revolutionary forces and spread the idea of driving on the right. The keep right rule was applied to the Pennsylvania turnpike in 1792, New York in 1804 and New Jersey in 1813. Bucking the normal trend, the Pacific island of Samoa made the switch from driving on the right to driving on the left side of the road on 7 September 2009. The official reason given was so as to fall in line with near neighbours Australia and New Zealand which, like Britain, still drive on the left.
They are planning to switch to driving on the right in the UK in a couple of years. It will be done gradually over a weekend. On Saturday trucks, buses, vans, motorbikes and other vehicles will switch to to the right, then on Sunday cars will make the switch. It will an improvement IMO as I always find it difficult to drive on the left when I make occasional trips "over the pond".
😄
Proof?
And even if they switch to driving on the right side it won't change the small roads....
ive always wondered what shifting with your left hand would be like
Oops! lane discipline at the first roundabout was all over the place! Lucky no one was coming..{like me on my first driving lessons :) }
At least that roundabout was a simple one. The main one's I get confused on are double-roundabouts, at least until I'm familiar with the area.
@@zombiedude347 Lanes do just follow ''rules'' but busy multi lane roundabouts..I agree..ones you know are much 'easier'...but there are other drivers who are all over the place.. 😳
When I learnt to drive (using any available car) I used both left and right hand manual (and floor and steering column gear levers) without a problem. Obviously having an automatic is best (who wants to waste time and effort changing gears?) and a satnav is a good idea, but still have a map to make sure you are actually going to the right place!
The real concern when driving on a different side of the road is what you do in an emergency! Instinct (training) may kick in and you get it seriously wrong.
In the UK, if you take your test in an automatic, you can only drive an automatic car, hence most people take the test in a manual, which means they can drive with both sorts of gearbox.One reason for manual, is that if an automatic gearbox fails, it fails completely. With a manual, there's usually 1 or 2 forward gears that still work.
May I also remind people from the US about lane etiquette. On a three or more lane Motorway both the middle and outside lanes are overtaking lanes. It is illegal to sit in them if a car comes up behind you. You must pull over in to the nearest lane to your left to let the other car past. It is also illegal to undertake on the left. You must overtake on the right only.
Jonn Doe Good point!
you can overtake on both sides in the US
@@yeahnoway111 Yes that was my point. This is a video about driving in the UK. We have a better etiquette and a higher level of skill gained through having one of the hardest tests in the World. the UK also has one of the least death and accident rates in the World. Which TBH is quite something bearing in mind we have 68 million people living in an area only half the size of California
Excellent intro to UK driving Mike, I think sometimes us limeys forget how strange driving on the other side is for Americans as we live close to other countries so swapping from left to right hand driving is almost second nature for most of us.
+Lee B Hello Lee Thanks for comment.
When we come across the pond to the States we have same problem lol
Okay, let’s get things straight. The roundabouts and manual car driving uphill is the only hard thing driving in the UK. + all the rules. Generally I love driving on the left hand side :) since I look to the right anyways
Well it's a matter of habit, I live in the UK so it feels so right for the cars to be on the left and it feels so wrong when I go abroad, even though my left eye is dominant, so I'm naturally more inclined to look to the left, where oncoming cars/cars on the near side of the road when crossing are coming from
@@grassytramtracks I feel so weird travelling abroad as I'm so used to right hand drives. It will be difficult for me to adjust to LHD suddenly... But Imagine LHD in UK. I don't know how they manage!
Exactly the same way I felt,when driving in the United States,(I'm from Australia)
Did it feel weird to drive on the right for the first time?
I'm from the UK and just watching this gives me the giggles. I'd be in the same position if i drove in the US, I hope too one day! :)
Same here as an american driving on the right is so second nature that the change is indeed stressful Im sure ive never been to the uk ive always wanted to visit though
@@dakotatodd5168 Ditto! Would love to visit a few places around the US and Canada one day :)
@@jessventures6172 there tons of places to see we are a big country id love to give you advice on where to lol
I find when on the other side of the road, it's all fine as long as you have other traffic and your not flustered. If your flustered and no cars, you'll likely go around the odd small roundabout the wrong way. Lol.
I don't think you're in the UK, it looks sunny.
Ben Withington yeah cuz it rains all the time I live in UK
OUCH!
Probably it’s in the summer it’s really sunny and I live in the UK
Ben Withington yawn. We get lots of sunny days too!
In the UK we have some weeks of sunshine and some weeks where low pressure moves across, bringing lots of rain. Basically like Iceland, but it has lots of sunshine too
Like you say the danger comes the next day when you leave your hotel. I have found this when driving my UK car in France. It's even more dangerous then because you are in a familiar car but on the opposite side of the road. A right hand drive car on the right side of the road also puts you at a disadvantage as you can't see as well when emerging from junctions.
I am from the Uk.We travel a lot in Europe.I find it easy to adapt to driving on the right,after a couple of days it seems normal to drive on the right.Admittedly I am driving my own car so that must help also as we have been to Europe so many times I do not worry that I will have a problem.I think your first time driving on the left may be a concern but after a couple of days it will not be a problem.Also drivers here in the UK show more courtesy to other drivers than in many countries.
Its good to see an American driving in the UK which is not fun I'm sure. I have done it the other way because as a Brit I have driven in the USA whilst visiting. I love driving in the USA. Its so different to driving in the UK (which is fun once you get out of the large cities and onto the rural roads).
I tried once, rented an automatic. Never again. That is better for Britain and for me. I do drive automatics since then, so it was kind of useful. But I will never again drive over there. I cannot do it. It is a miracle that I survived and did not hurt anyone in the process.
I was visiting the UK earlier in 2018. The rental agency was out of cars with automatics so I rented one with a stick shift since I have driven stick shift cars in the USA. It was much easier than I expected as it was the smoothest shifting car that I have ever driven and had different gear ratios. It was not advisable to have the car in 5th gear until doing 50 mph. When doing city driving i could do it in 2nd gear or 3rd gear if over 30 mph. This meant that I did not have to be shifting as frequently as I would need to on stick shift cars in the USA. I did however find that driving on the left was a very easy transition. All I had to do was follow what the rest of the traffic was doing. The motorways are nicer than the freeways in the USA. They are very orderly. I did however find that driving on very narrow roads with heavy traffic and large trucks (or lorries, British English) a little terrifying.
My father, who saw me watching this video, asked, "Where is this place? Why does no one obey the traffic rules?" 🤣
You messed up that roundabout though at 0:57, but for first timer driving on the opposite side. It's excused. haha.
Yeah, I do realize that 😂
I live in the UK, but visit both the US and Europe regularly and drive whilst there. I find it more natural to drive on the right and adapt within an hour or so of getting behind the wheel. Major road systems in all countries make it easy to drive on the correct side provide that you are not a muppet! Minor roads are where the problem is and where you need to pay attention especially first thing in the morning!!
Yep, the morning is a problem!
in Suriname you drive left as well
A little thing I did to make it easier was if turning into a side street on my side of the road take the nearest lane and if turning into one on the opposite side then it’s the far side lane you turn onto
I don't know how to drive a stick shift, so it's automatically an automatic for me. Also, the idea of driving on the left makes me so nervous.
It took me two months to get used to openning the right door of the driver's seat every morning. It was crazy
There is a percentige rate put on the speed cameras,so if you are on a 30mph road the speed cameras are not precise so add 3 mph on the speed and add 5% on top so if you go over 38mph you will have your collar felt by a car with a little blue light flashing on top. I found out the hard way.
In India follows same system also same ride on the left side of the road driving seat is on right side
Having done the same but in Florida I found it was more the combo of driving on the right hand side and the left of the car which I found most disconcerting to begin with. That and concentrating on where to go and turning off junctions made it hard to get used to even after 2 weeks of driving.
If you come to Zimbabwe in residential areas its 60 km/hr and long distances its 80/100 km/hr
did you have to pay extra to drive an automatic transmission? How much extra?
Hi, yes it was extra and I needed to specially reserve it. I forgot how much extra I paid.
The Road in the UK is basically similar to Hong Kong. Driver side in the Right hand side.
Thanks for sharing, and watching this video!
i was curious, i found a video that delved into that curiosity. thanks, have a like!
Driving in this country, these days, is a nightmare. That bloke is correct - there are speed cameras everywhere. They are there, according to The Authorities, to enhance road safety. The truth is I spend as much time looking at my speeedometer as I do the road, in order to avoid a fine for speeding. They are a money - making racket.
Yeah you're right Steve. It is only about the money, not safety.
Does you're car have cruise control? I successfully avoid speeding tickets and don't have to look down at my speedometer in areas with speed cameras just by setting my cruise control to the speed limit. I totally agree about the cameras their only there to increase revenue.
You're driving incorrectly if you're having to look so often. Hold your foot in one position. I only end up checking once every few minutes, and I've rarely caught myself even a few MPH over the limit
+Steve MetalHammer I disagree Steve, if you are finding you are constantly speeding up, you need to be reminded to keep to the limit. Nothing to do with taking your cash, all to do with road safety for the rest of us the road with you.
Over here in the US we have more traffic lights at intersections then round-a-bouts. They also have red light cameras.They cause more accidents from people breaking right away as to not go though the red light then they avoid. There also a revenue maker for the government.
I tried it in belgium, got caught by the police and got a fine, how do they do it in the uk?
It is weird. I was driving around southern Spain for a few weeks back in June and at first I was trying to change gear with the window handle and looking for the rear view mirror in the side window! Spanish roads are very tough anyway so stick shifting was hard because you're just not used to the reverse setup. The advice about trying to get an automatic is good but they are usually much more expensive in Europe for some reason. The worst part of that experience was the drive from the airport to my rental 80 miles away when I was still totally raw and it was getting dark. Now THAT was hairy. Without a sat nav the search parties would still be out checking ditches for me today!
Watching this because I’m an American about to buy a car in New Zealand for the first time and I’m terrified. I’ve only driven here once before and it was so disorienting and yeah, unsettling is a good word for the feeling 😬
I definitely noticed how strange it felt that pretty much everything inside the car was reversed and what’s even weirder is that here the windshield wipers and indicator are also reversed, which apparently isn’t true of cars in the UK (compared to cars in the US).
I’m getting ready to drive in the UK. I’ve been multiple times for work, but I’ve always taken the train north from London and had a colleague close to my hotel who could pick me up and drop me off, and the town where I was staying was quite walkable.
I have been driving on the right side of the car in my video games recently, and I actually got into the right side of my car in real life the other day.
In the UK many of us are comfortable driving on either side as we go abroad a lot on holiday.
The original side of the road to use was the left side going back to horse and cart , for some reason the us and other countries changed to the other side
I drove on the left side of the road when I visited England back in 2007. Strange experience, but I adjusted quickly. My only complaint is that the auto and lorry drivers on the motorways in the UK are crazy, not to mention the traffic congestion, most of it I encountered on the M25 surrounding London as well as on the M6 and M42 around Birmingham. They do have speeding cameras, but I kept under the speed limit and experienced no trouble and was never pulled over and ticketed with a speeding fine. I was not familiar with most of the country roads of the A series, so I stayed mostly on the motorways. The best driving was on the M40, M3, M1 and the M4 away from London where traffic was less. I had to use the M6 Toll to get around the traffic congestion of Birmingham (cost was 4 pounds). But the gasoline (petrol) was very expensive; around 1.05 to 1.18 pounds per liter; spent over L.35 (pounds sterling) (around $57 USD) to fill up at a Shell station on the M6 plus nearly the name amount at an Esso station off the M55 in Blackpool. Renting a car is the best way to see England, or any foreign country you visit, but it is also the most expensive; my five-day car rental cost me over $700 (that included auto insurance, fuel costs, and Value Added Tax which was 17.5%). But I still think it was worth the expense.
I'm astonished how you remembered all those motorways and othe details from your visit 🤯 I can hardly remember what I had breakfast yesterday 😅😂
Went back to the UK a few years after being away for sometime. Hired a car, Complained to my wife the engine sounded loud, then realized I was in a shift model, another time coming out of the restaurant, saw this car coming towards me, in my lane then realized I was on the right not the left
About those speed cameras on the Motorway - they are there but they're only very rarely turned on. The only ones you really need to look out for are the big yellow boxes, usually on A-Roads
Thanks for the info.
Every Christmas Eve I go through this.
The reindeer have a tough time staying on the left
At least unlike most parts of the world, the UK proper has a road that links it with a country that drives on the right. Few border crossings exist around the world between those countries and territories that drive on the left and those that drive on the right, with most of those crossings located somewhere in Asia.
Another perk about the British Isles is multiple ferry links to the nearest continental mainland and thus an opportunity to rent a left-hand drive vehicle and drive it into the British Isles. It may be that on a future trip to the British Isles in which I choose to drive, I will rent a vehicle in Mainland Europe and drive it over as by then I will have always driven left-hand drive vehicles. Some right-hand drive vehicles can be found in my homeland, Canada, but other than select garbage trucks and street sweepers, such vehicles are mostly those that can be driven on an equivalent to a UK Class B license and mainly imported from Japan. Almost anywhere outside of Europe, renting a left-hand drive vehicle to drive in left-hand traffic is often infeasible although I dunno if, on my next trip abroad, should I take one, I will rent a vehicle at all.
Enjoyed this video! Hope you enjoyed your Time in the UK with us! I’m travelling to Florida next week, and very nervous about driving on the opposite side of the road! I watched your video about driving for the first time in the US. Very informative, Thankyou 😁
We did that too. We shipped 4 Austin Minis from Chile to the UK to participate in the 60 aniversary of the Mini august 2019 Bristol. Strange feeling not only driving on wrong side of the motor way but our Minis are left hand drive. Frightening when a lorry is right behind pushing to pass you. What a driving expereience.
I never seen an American behind the wheel of a Peugeot 😂😂. But one thing we have NEVER seen is an American behind the wheel of a Vauxhall 🤩🤩
Lanes go both ways there. They can change the law in a day to have everyone switch to driving on the proper side of the road, its literally the right side, cars eould be cheaper roo as they dont need all the additional tooling
Malaysia drives on the left too, being a former British colony. Watched a vlog by Canadian traveller pair being first time behind the wheels in Malaysia... everything opposite from back home!!
I can switch back and forth, it doesn't bother me,but in an emergency I have a tendency to want to swerve to the left.
Speed limits in the UK are much lower than here in the USA. In some states the speed limit is unlimited and some as high as 85 miles per hour. Many Americans are able to drive a manual shift car, but prefer automatic transmissions for their comfort and its more convenient in heavy stop and go traffic.
Sadly, Montana and Nevada don't have the open speed limit anymore, but they do sign 80 mph.
I thought I'd struggle driving in the States but took to it well when I was there. TBH it felt weird driving in England when I got back home. I'm converted to automatics now
+radiodarkhorse Traitor
Being British myself and regularly going to the US, I understand your problems, but from the other side of course.
I’m planning a trip to the UK and am thinking of renting a car, so I can visit all the cities - London, Manchester, Leeds, Southampton, etc. I think for me being on the right side of the car is going to throw me off.
Haven't even really left the airport and 3 roundabouts already, and no stop signs. :-) As well, what it seems to worry and confuse visitors they expect the pedals to be reversed as well, But the gas pedal is always to your right, american or british cars, and clutch if stick shift under the left foot always.
Very cool
i drove on the right and left of the road and car way too often, i dont feel strange about it anymore, i dont even think about it, it just come natural.
The only time that I drove in the States back in 1979, I almost crashed the car when pulling out of the driving lot!! We needed to turn right, out of habit I watched for traffic coming from the right and thought nothing coming I'll pull out, luckily a car drove across me just before I started to pull out and I realised that I didn't need to cross over a line of traffic. Phew...
Legends say they are still working on "Why the roads in UK are left-hand side".
5 years old but I’ll say it anyway:
In the UK, driving on the left dates back to medieval times when travellers preferred to keep to the left to have their right arm, typically the sword-wielding arm, closer to a potential opponent. This tradition was formalised in 1835 when the Highways Act made it a legal requirement, making England the first country in the world to pass such traffic legislation. So, really, the question should be the other way around: why do many other countries drive on the right?
Please come to Malaysia..Happy driving on the right too😄
How did you get a Licence ? Can I use my USA Licence to drive ?
Yes, you can use your US Drivers License to drive in the UK, as a visitor!
3:09 Buick Verano or whatever it's rebadged UK version is .
Insignia.
Hi! I like your video. Like the British, Kiwis, and Aussies, we Fijians also drive on the left side of the road and steering wheels are placed on the right-hand side of vehicles. A total opposite to American, our fast lanes (2 or more lanes) are the right-most lane while you guys have it on the left-most of the road. One thing that's common, there are more roundabouts compared to the US, RUSSIA, CHINA and all those countries. Last year, two American tourists were injured after they were involved in a deadly crash that killed a driver of another car on country side driving. Witness said, the couple had been driving on the wrong side of the road and had blindly turned on bends. Unfortunately, they met head on with a car on a blind bend killing him instantly. The couple were lucky to be alive. So from then it has been stressed to tourists from opposite driving countries to maintain their side of the road regularly while there are signs all over the place to inform tourists to always keep left and also not hog the far right lane(fast lane) where there are more lanes.
If you think the transition from LHD to RHD is difficult, you should try driving a RHD vehicle in Europe. Or constant swopping L/RHD cars and countries.
I spent 4 years in Denmark driving a LHD on the R side of the roads, then once a month park the car at the airport fly to Heathrow. Jump in a RHD car and drive on the left. Just to make it more difficult both cars were manual (stick shift) As you say keep distractions to a minimum, and pay special attention when starting your day in a town or on country style roads, it's so easy to pull out on the wrong side.
Had a co worker in Denmark who had booked a camper van (RV) in Scotland for the whisky tour. He asked for tips on driving on the opposite side of the road. So I ran through all that. He then asked about gear and foot controls. So just to wind he up I said the accelerator was on the left, foot brake centre and clutch on the right. This got him worried so much so I caught him practising at lunch time, trying to get his foot and hand coordination right, well this went on for a week before he left. On his return he called me lots of terrible names.!!!!!
I plan on visiting the UK one day, and this is one of my biggest concerns
Jesus Christ is not the messiah.
Jesus Christ is a demon
at 3:36 just when he says Focus, look at the car that's passing...
+thezulucow Hi zulucow, I meant to do that! Thanks for watching my video!
i too noticed that lol
I don’t get it. A silver car passed him. It was on the correct side of the road. It’s a high way.
FF
That made me so anxious...theres no way I could do that without crashing.
Must not be very good at driving then
😹😹
If you drive across to Europe for the first time, it takes about 20-30 minutes to get used to the right hand side. Europeans coming to tour Britain say it takes about the same time to get the hang of the left side. Don't let yourselves be made nervous by neurotic videos on TH-cam. Take a look at Steve and Jodi's Vlog and see how they just embrace the whole experience of Britain.
+Captally Hi Captally, It felt odd driving the entire time I was in the UK. Thanks for leaving a comment.
I tried driving in Thailand. Whenever I would need to reverse, I would look over my right shoulder, but if the steering wheel is on the right you should look over your left shoulder. That and having the turn signal and windshield wipers reversed got me very confused, while learning how to drive in crazy bangkok traffic
So far so good, but Mike never tried to make a right-hand turn. That is the great challenge for Americans - you are not at all sure that you've covered all bases before turning. The roads of Cornwall are very challenging, but then we only had to replace a busted rear-view mirror ($65) after a week's touring!
If there's only one side mirror, wouldn't it be on the driver's side?
We British were driving on the left hand side of the road long before Europeans first set foot on the North American Continent. Knights mounted their horses from the left and as the majority of people are right handed they held their swords and lances in their right hand. It was only after America got it's independence from Britain that they started driving on the right and drinking coffee instead of tea.
Actually right-hand traffic was introduced in Russia in 1752. During the French Revolution, France started to adopt the right-hand traffic against the ancient clerical order which imposed the left-hand one. Napoleon then upheld this driving to all the conquered territories. For US it was nothing against the British colonization but just a matter of practice for freight transport. The majority of people driving teamsters was right-handed so it was easier the RHT by controlling the horses with the right hand, seating on the left side and letting others overtake on the left.
It was Napoleon and the metric system that introduced the system of driving on the right, due to cart drivers typically sitting on the left hand side of the cart. His reasoning was it was safer to have the driver on the same side as the oncoming traffic (yes horse drawn carts) before that as you say most drove on the left.
I thing it is not a big deal. But would be better to have a steer on left side