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This world map shows which side of the road traffic drives on. Green coloured countries drive on the right , orange countries drive on the left . As you can see, most former British colonies, with some exceptions, drive on the left side of the road, whereas the United States of America, Latin American countries and European countries drive on ...
Have you ever wondered why the British drive on the left? There is an historical reason for this; it’s all to do with keeping your sword hand free! In the Middle Ages you never knew who you were going to meet when travelling on horseback.
Left-hand traffic (LHT) and right-hand traffic (RHT) are the practices, in bidirectional traffic, of keeping to the left side and to the right side of the road, respectively. They are fundamental to traffic flow, and are sometimes called the rule of the road. [1]
One of the reasons why British people still drive on the left is because they are an island nation, with no neighboring right-hand traffic countries. Ireland also follows left-hand driving rules.
Left-hand driving was made mandatory in Britain in 1835. Countries which were part of the British Empire followed suit. This is why to this very day, India, Australasia and the former British colonies in Africa go left.
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.
Left-hand traffic only managed to keep its stronghold in the British colonies. True, the British Empire did have a quite a few of them, and when, for example, North Americans gained their independence from the Brits, they were also quick to kiss left-hand traffic goodbye.
When driving in the UK, there are a few things to keep in mind. It’s rather easy to remember that you’re supposed to be on the left side of the road, but the tricky bit is that everything else is also oriented to left-hand drive, from the gear shift to the highway entrances and exits.
Why do we drive on the left but walk on the right? Here are some answers to your motoring mysteries.
Around 65 percent of the world drives on the right-hand side, while the remaining 35 percent drives on the left. Why isn't there a consensus? It has a lot to do with the British...