June 4, 201015 yr If so, what was it? My one and only RHD experience (so far) was a Turner sportscar. It was manual and a race car - so it was a bit challenging. It would take me a while to become used to shifting with my left hand, I think.
June 4, 201015 yr Trips to Barbados, driving a friend's 2008 Suzuki sx4, and a rental 2007 Toyota Corolla GLI (quite a bit stiffer suspension than the NA version). No manual transmission experience. The Barbados roads vary in quality, don't have many straights, all roundabout based and are not lit at night (along with barely any road signs).. All the directions you get to go places were based on buildings or trees and not street names. Due to the slim roads, sometimes the side mirros would be hitting sugarcane fields at the side of the road when you had the share the road with oncoming trucks. I found myself tripping the windshield wipers when attempting to signal way too often.. so I just started driving like everyone else and didn't bother signalling after a while.
June 4, 201015 yr Never driven a RHD car, though many Americans have asked me ''what's it like to drive on the left side of the road?" when I tell the I'm originally from Slovakia. So then I have to explain it's only the UK, Australia, Japan & a few island nations that still drive on the left side of the road.
June 4, 201015 yr Never driven a RHD car, though many Americans have asked me ''what's it like to drive on the left side of the road?" when I tell the I'm originally from Slovakia. So then I have to explain it's only the UK, Australia, Japan & a few island nations that still drive on the left side of the road. Here's something trippy. The Bahamas drives on the left but has LHD cars, most of which are imported from the Americas. ... a lot of them are old classics, too!
June 4, 201015 yr Never driven a RHD car, though many Americans have asked me ''what's it like to drive on the left side of the road?" when I tell the I'm originally from Slovakia. So then I have to explain it's only the UK, Australia, Japan & a few island nations that still drive on the left side of the road. Also India...huge country. Ireland, Thailand, New Zealand, and a country in S. America that I can't remember. The British Virgin Isles and Bermuda may also. Hong Kong did/does, but China does not. Edited June 4, 201015 yr by Cubical-aka-Moltar
June 4, 201015 yr Also India...huge country. Ireland, Thailand, New Zealand, and a country in S. America that I can't remember. The British Virgin Isles and Bermuda may also. Hong Kong did/does, but China does not. Guyana and Suriname.
June 4, 201015 yr I've never driven a RHD vehicle, but since I'm somewhat ambidextrous from my mural painting days, I could manage a RHD manual car. But one thing I've never been clear on... in a RHD manual car, are the pedals reversed? My feet are NOT as ambidextrous, so that could be an issue... however, in all my years of reading, its my understanding that throttle is always on the right, clutch on the left, regardless of RHD or LHD, but my engineering side wants to disagree. That said... I have long arms and legs... so during my stint as parking lot security, I used to drive the LHD vehicles from the right side, as we would loop the lot counter clockwise looking at the cars on the right side. Used to freak out the people in the lot to see nobody driving. That said, I suspect that this is how people make those videos of their dog driving.
June 4, 201015 yr Also India...huge country. Ireland, Thailand, New Zealand, and a country in S. America that I can't remember. The British Virgin Isles and Bermuda may also. Hong Kong did/does, but China does not. Blue is RHD obviously. Also I think Sweden used to drive on the left but switched.
June 5, 201015 yr Blue is RHD obviously. Also I think Sweden used to drive on the left but switched. It generally comes down to the countries that once were part of the British Empire, as the side of the road used today follows the old cart and horse setup. We use the opposite side, because after the war of independence, we purposely reversed many British customs. I've wondered how the Chunnel affects the RHD-LHD driving. Sweden switched sides because of confusion where RHD-LHD collided, either at boundaries or mismatches of LHD cars on RHD roads or RHD cars on LHD roads. I wonder if the Chunnel would eventually cause Britain to switch. Of course, Britain is really stubborn in their uniqueness... With the lopsidedness of the LHD-RHD difference, I would have thought RHD would have disappeared by now. Countries like India would be smart to switch before too much infrastructure is set in stone.
June 5, 201015 yr I've wondered how the Chunnel affects the RHD-LHD driving. Sweden switched sides because of confusion where RHD-LHD collided, either at boundaries or mismatches of LHD cars on RHD roads or RHD cars on LHD roads. I wonder if the Chunnel would eventually cause Britain to switch. Of course, Britain is really stubborn in their uniqueness... Cars don't drive trough the Chunnel--they're loaded into special trains and then drive off at either side of the channel.
June 5, 201015 yr Cars don't drive trough the Chunnel--they're loaded into special trains and then drive off at either side of the channel. I know that. But after paying to haul them across, they don't just park them there near the Chunnel... they drive them... so you have a mixing of LHD cars in Britain and RHD in France and beyond. Granted, I don't know that exact regulations on these crossings, but Top Gear has done several episodes featuring trips across the Chunnel stretching deep into the continent. There are numerous visibility problems involved with mixing these up... something we only experience in the US when we try to parallel park on a one way street on the "wrong" side.
June 6, 201015 yr Alright, I've always wondered this...how do they switch up traffic when you go from a LHD country to an RHD country, or vice versa? Stoplight crossing at the border? Overpass? Traffic guard that lets one lane go at a time?
June 6, 201015 yr Alright, I've always wondered this...how do they switch up traffic when you go from a LHD country to an RHD country, or vice versa? Stoplight crossing at the border? Overpass? Traffic guard that lets one lane go at a time? Or make cluster of bridges like in you Avatar.
June 6, 201015 yr Alright, I've always wondered this...how do they switch up traffic when you go from a LHD country to an RHD country, or vice versa? Stoplight crossing at the border? Overpass? Traffic guard that lets one lane go at a time? It varies... actually, this Wiki LINK seems to describe some of it. I really like this border picture...
June 6, 201015 yr It generally comes down to the countries that once were part of the British Empire, as the side of the road used today follows the old cart and horse setup. We use the opposite side, because after the war of independence, we purposely reversed many British customs. I've wondered how the Chunnel affects the RHD-LHD driving. Sweden switched sides because of confusion where RHD-LHD collided, either at boundaries or mismatches of LHD cars on RHD roads or RHD cars on LHD roads. I wonder if the Chunnel would eventually cause Britain to switch. Of course, Britain is really stubborn in their uniqueness... With the lopsidedness of the LHD-RHD difference, I would have thought RHD would have disappeared by now. Countries like India would be smart to switch before too much infrastructure is set in stone. I saw a rather amusing scene on a French highway where a British tourist trying to get a toll ticket but had to get out of the car to do it.
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