# Driving on the Left **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [November 17, 2011, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246 "2011-11-17T18:04:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2011, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/21 "2011-11-22T11:42:11Z")
> [@Kiwi\_Fruit](#): > > This is what he’s talking about. Right handers have changed from left handers. A more recent exception is Samoa, which changed to driving on the left on September 8, 2009. > > As Samoa was a NZ protectorate from WWI to 1962, I’m surprised it stayed on the right until then. Also, all other British Empire colonies in the South Pacific drive on the left. The countries that don’t are part of France or former French-UK territory, i.e. Vanuatu. I too was surprised that Samoa drove on the right, given their historically close association with left-hand drive New Zealand. Interestingly, Indonesia (Former Dutch East Indies) drives on the left, along with Thailand (No former colonial power), Japan (ditto), and Macau (Formerly a Portugeuese colony). ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Comstock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/919ad9/32.png) [@Gordon\_Comstock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Comstock)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2011, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/22 "2011-11-22T16:27:20Z")
> [@](#): > > The last holdouts in mainland Europe, the Swedes, finally switched to the right in 1967 I hardly dare question the Master, but as sort of alluded to in Kiwi\_Lan’s post #7, Iceland changed a year after Sweden. ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2011, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/23 "2011-11-22T22:02:23Z")
I don’t believe the Atlantic Ocean has been drained yet. Until then, Iceland remains an island. ---
**Author:** ![megaphage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@megaphage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/megaphage)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/24 "2011-11-23T12:58:42Z")
ok, so we’ve broadly established the historical reasons for driving on either side, but considering modern driving conventions and vehicle design, is there a more logical side to drive on now? I would argue that driving on the left is more logical, as this means that when operating the gear stick you still have control of the vehicle with your best hand (the majority of people are right handed). The same applies to playing with the radio, adjusting aircon controls, or whatever else you might do with the hand which is nearsest the middle of the vehicle. Doesn’t apply so much to automatics, but I’d say the majority of cars are still manual shift. ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/25 "2011-11-23T13:09:01Z")
Even though I don’t drive I would argue that driving on the right is the most logical for the opposite reason. It feels more natural to control the gear stick and other things with your best hand (if right-handed) and let the other take care of the steering. ---
**Author:** ![megaphage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@megaphage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/megaphage)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/26 "2011-11-23T13:29:06Z")
> [@Floater](#): > > Even though I don’t drive I would argue that driving on the right is the most logical for the opposite reason. It feels more natural to control the gear stick and other things with your best hand (if right-handed) and let the other take care of the steering. Surely the most important thing is the direction of the vehicle, rather than what gear you’re in? From a safety point of view you need to maintain control of the vehicle as best as possible, especially if you’re changing gear while navigating a bend. Changing gear is a simple task but operating a steering wheel at speed is quite precise and delicate. ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Comstock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/919ad9/32.png) [@Gordon\_Comstock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Comstock)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/27 "2011-11-23T14:58:28Z")
> [@John\_W.Kennedy](#): > > I don’t believe the Atlantic Ocean has been drained yet. Until then, Iceland remains an island. Bugger. You read something you know about and are suddenly blinded to obvious words in the sentence. My humble apologies. I suspect it might be subliminal chauvinism: as a Brit, the rest of Europe is seen as the ‘Continent’ - so anywhere else in Europe must be part of that great continuous mass of foreignness. On a different tack: in Italy before the war, there was a period when they [drove on one side of the road in towns and on the other between them](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right-_and_left-hand_traffic#Italy). ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/28 "2011-11-23T15:36:02Z")
> [@Gordon\_Comstock](#): > > … as a Brit, the rest of Europe is seen as the ‘Continent’ … That’s the Swedish outlook as well, but we would never include Iceland. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/29 "2011-11-23T17:25:14Z")
> [@megaphage](#): > > Surely the most important thing is the direction of the vehicle, rather than what gear you’re in? From a safety point of view you need to maintain control of the vehicle as best as possible, especially if you’re changing gear while navigating a bend. Changing gear is a simple task but operating a steering wheel at speed is quite precise and delicate. Actually, changing a (centrally located) gearshift is a complex task that must furthermore be done blind; steering, on the other hand, may require precision, but precision is not complexity; you are arguing as though non-dominant hands are palsied things that are likely to spasm uncontrollably at any moment. ---
**Author:** ![qazwart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/5fc32e/32.png) [@qazwart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/qazwart)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/30 "2011-11-23T17:26:15Z")
> [@Cartoonacy](#): > > I was always taught that when a gentleman is walking along the sidewalk with a lady, he should walk on the side closest to the road, to shield her from splashes or debris from passing vehicles. I make my wife walk three paces behind me along with the sheep. When we get back to the house, I put her on a pedestal where she belongs, but she’s got to polish it first. ---
**Author:** ![Candyman74](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Candyman74](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candyman74)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/31 "2011-11-23T18:31:02Z")
> [@Floater](#): > > Even though I don’t drive I would argue that driving on the right is the most logical for the opposite reason. It feels more natural to control the gear stick and other things with your best hand (if right-handed) and let the other take care of the steering. To you. Your way feels very unnatural to me. [Edit - missed the “I don’t drive” part]. ---
**Author:** ![Candyman74](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Candyman74](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candyman74)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/32 "2011-11-23T18:32:32Z")
> [@John\_W.Kennedy](#): > > Actually, changing a (centrally located) gearshift is a complex task that must furthermore be done blind; steering, on the other hand, may require precision, but precision is not complexity; you are arguing as though non-dominant hands are palsied things that are likely to spasm uncontrollably at any moment. Neither task requires actual thought. They’re both very easy, and accomplished almost subconsciously; like walking. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/33 "2011-11-24T00:43:28Z")
> [@John\_W.Kennedy](#): > > Actually, changing a (centrally located) gearshift is a complex task that must furthermore be done blind; steering, on the other hand, may require precision, but precision is not complexity; you are arguing as though non-dominant hands are palsied things that are likely to spasm uncontrollably at any moment. On the other hand (boom-tish) changing gears is only required occasionally, whereas steering is continual. In the US in particular the vast majority of cars are automatics and so the drivers virtually never manually change gears while in motion. There is [some evidence that in fact left-side driving is safer](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Driving_on_the_left#Safety_factors) (or at least left-driving countries have a lower accident rate), although not conclusive of course. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/34 "2011-11-24T03:24:58Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > … along with Thailand (No former colonial power) … Cambodia used to drive on the left. Sometime in the 1990s I think it was, they decreed a switch to the right. Something about trying to stem the tide of stolen cars being brought in from Thailand. But who in Cambodia can afford a new car? I recall being driven in a taxi from Poipet on the border to Siem Reap, site of Angkor Wat, a two-hour drive if road conditions were good. (Only the first half of the road used to be paved, but now it’s paved all the way.) A two-lane “highway,” it’s pretty hairy having the driver on the right side of the car sneak out enough to the left of the truck in front of him to see if it’s okay to pass. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/35 "2011-11-24T03:31:33Z")
> [@NuclearNemesis](#): > > I was recently on vacation in England. Our tour guide to Stonehenge & Bath went through pretty much the same explanation as Cecil, staying on left to keep fighting side free, Napoleon going right, etc. He didn’t respond to my question that, if he admitted that most of the world drove on the right side of the road, doesn’t that mean the Brits are driving on the wrong side of the road? Was this tour guide tall and bald? Because I think I might have had him as mine. ---
**Author:** ![megaphage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@megaphage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/megaphage)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/36 "2011-11-25T13:16:07Z")
> [@John\_W.Kennedy](#): > > Actually, changing a (centrally located) gearshift is a complex task that must furthermore be done blind; steering, on the other hand, may require precision, but precision is not complexity; you are arguing as though non-dominant hands are palsied things that are likely to spasm uncontrollably at any moment. there’s only about 12 different manoeuvres you need for the gear stick and they’re easy as pie. Precision is exactly what’s required and exactly what the less dominant hand lacks in comparison to the dominant hand. Anyway, if you’re trying to argue the case the other way, the main point still stands that the best hand on the wheel at all times is the safest option. I’m not saying it makes that much difference, but if i had to choose one over the other RHD makes more sense in my opinion. ---
**Author:** ![ChickPea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@ChickPea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChickPea)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2011, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/37 "2011-11-26T20:27:05Z")
> [@qazwart](#): > > [Why do the British Driving on the Left?](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/634/why-do-the-british-drive-on-the-left) > > There was a popular Norwegian joke about the Swedes switching over. In order to ease the transition, the Swedes decided that trucks would switch over on Sunday, November 3 while cars would switch over on Monday, November 4. There are still a lot of us “lefties”. About 1/3 of countries still drive on the left (and in fact, it’s slightly safer, as most people are right-eye dominant and right-hand dominant, so the dominant eye monitors oncoming traffic and the dominant hand stays on the wheel). [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right-\_and\_left-hand\_traffic](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right-_and_left-hand_traffic) ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2011, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/38 "2011-11-27T09:46:24Z")
> [@ChickPea](#): > > There are still a lot of us “lefties”. About 1/3 of countries still drive on the left What’s interesting is that of the countries/territories that drive on the left, only a handful (Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, East Timor, Suriname, Mozambique, Macau, and the US Virgin Islands) have no historical connection to the British Empire. ---
**Author:** ![qazwart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/5fc32e/32.png) [@qazwart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/qazwart)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2011, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/39 "2011-11-27T15:10:50Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > What’s interesting is that of the countries/territories that drive on the left, only a handful (Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, East Timor, Suriname, Mozambique, Macau, and the US Virgin Islands) have no historical connection to the British Empire. It’s interesting that some of these countries, although not colonies, had heavy English influence. In Thailand, the royalty were close to the British monarchs and educated their children in England. In Japan, the British were influential in building the first modern railway (which drove on the left) and that later influenced driving. I don’t know about the others. So, what about traffic between left driving and right driving areas? Here’s a proposed _[Pearl Necklace bridge](http://also.kottke.org/misc/images/flipper-bridge.jpg)_ between Hong Kong (drive on the left) and China (drive on the right). Here’s the [Macau-China Lotus bridge](http://images.gizmag.com/gallery_lrg/pearl-river-necklace-bridge-5.jpg) that exists now and does the same thing. Here’s the [Lok Man Chou](http://images.gizmag.com/gallery_lrg/pearl-river-necklace-bridge-6.jpg) bridge’s flipper (which is already between Hong Kong and China). ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2011, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246/40 "2011-11-27T15:20:16Z")
> [@Cartoonacy](#): > > I was always taught that when a gentleman is walking along the sidewalk with a lady, he should walk on the side closest to the road, to shield her from splashes or debris from passing vehicles. I thought it was so that the lady may more easily push the gentleman into traffic, when she finally snaps from constantly having doors opened and chairs pulled out for her. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/driving-on-the-left/603246.md?page=3)