and so now i have his dad's old car to practise driving on the wrong side of the road with. I have only driven manual transmission ( as opposed to automatic ) cars and it freaks me out that when i put the car into D, it goes without my even stepping on the gas...AND there is NO clutch pedal! PLUS, when I try to put the blinker on, because everything is on the wrong side, I end up shifting gears.
About a quarter of the world drives on the left, and the countries that do are mostly old British colonies.
In the past, almost everybody travelled on the left side of the road because that was the most sensible option for feudal, violent societies. Since most people are right-handed, swordsmen preferred to keep to the left in order to have their right arm nearer to an opponent and their scabbard further from him. Moreover, it reduced the chance of the scabbard (worn on the left) hitting other people.
Furthermore, a right-handed person finds it easier to mount a horse from the left side of the horse, and it would be very difficult to do otherwise if wearing a sword (which would be worn on the left). It is safer to mount and dismount towards the side of the road, rather than in the middle of traffic, so if one mounts on the left, then the horse should be ridden on the left side of the road.
In the late 1700s, however, teamsters in France and the United States began hauling farm products in big wagons pulled by several pairs of horses. These wagons had no driver's seat; instead the driver sat on the left rear horse, so he could keep his right arm free to lash the team. Since he was sitting on the left, he naturally wanted everybody to pass on the left so he could look down and make sure he kept clear of the oncoming wagon’s wheels. Therefore he kept to the right side of the road.
In addition, the French Revolution of 1789 gave a huge impetus to right-hand travel in Europe. The fact is, before the Revolution, the aristocracy travelled on the left of the road, forcing the peasantry over to the right, but after the storming of the Bastille and the subsequent events, aristocrats preferred to keep a low profile and joined the peasants on the right.
10 comments:
Hmmmm..now I understand, thanks for the article. If the quarter of the world could change to drive on the right side, that would make driving easier whenever one travels overseas.
I've never driven a manual car!!! or on the left
Alot of people (lots of men) prefer manual but on Long Island In NY its just a pain, you spend most of your time just sitting in stopped traffic, so whats the point!
I have no problem driving sticks and automatic cars.
I doubt it'll be hard to drive on the other side of the road :)
Letti girl, be adventorous :) I'm sure you'll make a good mother soon :))))
I'm planing to visit the UK one day just to scream "Your driving on the wrong side of the road Dammit"
I just read an article about this in Reader's Digest yesterday. It blames the UK for singlehandedly causing this distinction in the world :)
We drive on the left in India and yes, I prefer manual too :)
Gosh, I had wondered about that for years and years. Good post!
I started driving after I came to the States and I started with an automatic car. I think it's just a matter of habit ... once you've got used to it, you'll be fine. Good luck.
Because of the really steep hills in San Francisco, Raven didn't want to keep my VW 5-speed. We ended up selling it. I miss my manual. but I do get to drive my BIL's car when I go home and I get my fix.
Mona
where did you get that map?
I like the new photo, too. :}
Driving on the left just feels so totally right, I think I would freak if I found myself in the US or Europe. And as to manual vs auto, gotta be a manual. More control and more pep up hills - I get bored in an automatic, what do you do if you're not busy changing gears?
Post a Comment