Foreign drivers on wrong side of the road.

[Jocko]

Seemingly, since Harry Dunn's death outside RAF Croughton, there have been further incidents of cars driving on the wrong side of the road. In October a car on the wrong side of the road collided with a police car (that was hushed up), and the other night a car was videoed driving on the wrong side of the road and causing a car to have to brake sharply.
I don't understand why, within hours of Harry's death, they didn't paint arrows in the road to remind the US drivers of what side to drive on. It is a very easy mistake for a foreign driver to make.
In the Scottish Highlands there are arrows at hotels, lay-byes, beauty spots and small villages, reminding drivers what side of the road to drive on.





After all. What does a bit of paint cost.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-northamptonshire-51160840

[Johncb500]

Good idea.



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[JimSh]

Seemingly, since Harry Dunn's death outside RAF Croughton, there have been further incidents of cars driving on the wrong side of the road.
In the Scottish Highlands there are arrows at hotels, lay-byes, beauty spots and small villages, reminding drivers what side of the road to drive on.

Strangely, I had a close encounter of a similar kind not far from your second picture years ago.
At the next junction on the Dunvegan road the road branches off to go to Carbost and Talisker. It crosses the River Drynoch and there is a short section of single track road before the road becomes two way. I was on the two way road gauging my speed to go on to the single track as the other car left it when  I realised the car coming towards me, a left hand drive Volvo,  was leaving the single track on the wrong side of the road.

[Jocko]

It is easily done, especially in a stress situation. I know it wasn't the case in your situation but two cars meeting suddenly on a single track road you naturally pull to your own side. But if that's the wrong side!
I worked in California for a spell and every morning, as I drove through the motel car park, I had to remind myself what side of the road I was going to pull out on. One night I was driving back from a friends farm, along a fairly wide single track road, and I suddenly realised I was very close to the grass. I was keeping to the left of the carriageway.
My biggest problem was sitting in the front, and being driven. Felt very odd not having a steering wheel in front of me!

[John Ratsey]

Single track roads are the biggest hazard as there can be nothing to remind a driver which side to pull over towards so automatic reactions can cut in. Which may be why Scotland, with its single track main roads and foreign drivers on holiday, has been more generous with signs and markings to drive on the left. On busier roads it's a matter of following the vehicle in front.

I wonder which side of the road the vehicles drive on when in RAF Croughton?

[Jocko]

I wonder which side of the road the vehicles drive on when in RAF Croughton?

That is something I wondered about, so I looked it up on Google Maps. The road markings show they drive on the left.

[sparky Paul]

I notice the road markings and reminding signage in Scotland, particularly around ferry ports.

I presume there's similar around the southern ports in England? I don't know.


Here's the video of the recent incident near RAF Croughton.

[peteo48]

It's one of the reasons why I won't drive abroad now. When the kids were little we took camping holidays in France on a pretty regular basis and, if we flew anywhere (not that often when the kids were young) I'd hire a car. The last time I drove abroad was 2002 in the USA.

We make an annual visit to Madeira and that island has some interesting roads shall we say but also some fast modern ones. I have thought about hiring a car again but I think the advancing years and the lack of practice means me ending up on the wrong side of the road at some point is a near certainty!

[Jocko]

Here's the video of the recent incident near RAF Croughton.

To be honest, it could just have been a case of approaching the bend too fast in poor conditions. The car doesn't appear to be on the right hand side of the road before the bend. More in the middle. Or it could be a case of diving to your natural "own" side.

[Johncb500]

That video could just be a normal BMW driver

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[culzean]

I have driven in USA quite a bit and found that on dual carriageways it is easy to keep in correct lane and junctions are OK to navigate,  normal divided single carriageway roads are where you can wander if not concentrating fully.  Strange that I found after a few weeks on a business trip that going back to driving on the LEFT needed a bit of concentration - strange as I had been driving on that side for decades.... jet lag does not help either, your brain has to slowly come back from a mushy state into normal thinking mode ... I found that you could pull back about 1 hour per day,  so after 2 weeks in USA and going back to Australia you need to do it all again..   so jet-lag for a month from a 2 week trip, do that too many times a year and you are never free of jet-lag,  and it really knocks your health about.

[RichardA]

I notice the road markings and reminding signage in Scotland, particularly around ferry ports.

I presume there's similar around the southern ports in England? I don't know.

Yes, there are signs like this this around the port of Newhaven:

https://goo.gl/maps/XrU3CezEXAJARDJn9

[Jocko]

When I worked in California I spent three weeks driving an automatic (my first real experience of an auto), and on my return I found using the clutch took a bit of getting used to. And I wasn't old and doddery then!

[guest4871]

That video could just be a normal BMW driver

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That's how most large SUVs are driven around here when they are not driving straight down the middle of the road.

[sparky Paul]

Here's the video of the recent incident near RAF Croughton.

To be honest, it could just have been a case of approaching the bend too fast in poor conditions. The car doesn't appear to be on the right hand side of the road before the bend. More in the middle. Or it could be a case of diving to your natural "own" side.

I think that's what happened, from the look of it. It's a single trackish road, and the driver seems to dive into the left (as we look at it), to allow the other from to pass on the right... then realised they were on the wrong side.