julie

Realized I'd screwed up just as I posted and don't know how to retrieve and change a message title. So here it is again. We've rented cars all over Europe, including in Romania where many told us we were nuts to drive. We always rent the smallest lowest cost manual transmission, and are comfortable with European driving. We will be in Scotland and my husband thinks we shouldn't rent a car because it will be too difficult to adjust to drivi9ng on the right. What's your experience been? Thanks.<BR>

wow

Being from the Uk and travelling abroad a lot we always hire cars when there. we have no problem - all I would say is just THINK when you are driving and make sure you have thought about which way to go round roundabouts and you should be fine. GOOD LUCK

Shannon

For me, it was actually easier driving a stick shift (as we Americans call it) in England than in the U.S.. While I attribute it to being left-handed, I don't think that's really the case, because my husband is also left-handed and had brain-control issues! He found shifting difficult. I really think the ease/difficulty depends on your fine motor skills and which hand has the most strength vs. dexterity.<BR><BR>If concerned, I'd opt for auto. transmission (not as much fun, but less brain freeze).<BR><BR>You will also find yourself asking your husband which way to turn down a road; he'll say turn left, but means right because he's thinking backwards. We did that, and the 3rd comment was always, "Is that an English left or an American left?!"<BR><BR>The roundabouts are generally a breeze and very efficient, although there are a couple of them with 3 branches that keep you guessing the the car behind you leaning on his horn.

JP

I find that driving in Britain is half the fun of being there. I don't have problems with shifting, but I have always had manual transmissions back home. What can be more of a problem is getting a Japanese car (I've had them twice in Britain); the turn signal and widshield wiper switches are the reverse of what we're used to in the US, and that takes me forever to get used to (and just as long to readjust to my own care afterwards).<BR><BR>Most roundabouts are easy to deal with (I certainly prefer them to a 4-way stop). The ones to watch out for are ones like the dreaded triple roundabout of High Wycomb where one roundabout dumps you directly onto another and it's easy to lose track of which way you're supposed to be looking.<BR><BR>

Artemis

I found driving on the left no problem to get used to, but shifting with the left hand was a real challenge. I think my brain thought that if it was on the left, the positions should be reversed (i.e., 1st gear on the right). Also all the car's I've driven in England have much stiffer shifts than what I'm used to.<BR><BR>As for roundabouts, they're pretty easy to get used to. The hardest ones I encountered were the 2- and 3-lane ones where you're expected to be in the inside if you're not taking the first "exit," then you have to switch to the outside ... with traffic coming at you from inside and outside of the roundabout ... I found it safest to stay on the outside lane even if I got honked at.<BR><BR>I will also say that I found British drivers on the whole to be *far* more courteous than what I'm used to driving in Vancouver.<BR><BR>BTW, if you're in Scotland, you won't encounter a lot of tricky traffic situations except around Glasgow, and you'd probably want to park and ride there anyway. In the Highlands and Islands, though, you'll probably come across a lot of 1-lane roads with "passing places." You have to watch carefully for oncoming traffic, then judge to see who's closest to a passing place and therefore has to pull over. But again, I found the drivers to be extremely courteous, and forgiving of unintentional blunders.

Beth

I was the "navigator" for a group mini-van driven through England. First, as stated above, you must stay alert; it is so easy to turn a corner into the wrong lane. It helps to have someone watching for you. Keeping in the lane is not as difficult as learning to shift left handed. That's the tricky part. We also worked out a code for the driver because she couldn't see the left side of the van - "drifting" meant - pull over fast before you take out the road cone - a full sentence was too long and the cone was toast!

anne

I think it is very important to advise the U.S. pedestrians in UK, especially big cities such as London.<BR>I actually lived here for a year in college w/o problems. But when in London recently I was almost killed.<BR>The car screeching side ways to a halt to avoid me was the MOST terrifying thing in my life. I simlpy looked the WRONG way. It was night , I was tired..<BR>Always be alert!!!!!!

Barbara

I lived in Aberdeen, Scotland, for 5 years, and while there, I drove an old Rover, which seemed a bit like driving a tank. As long as you are driving a British-made car, you won't have any trouble remembering which side to drive on! (Having the driver's seat on the right side of the car will remind you automatically, as will all the traffic on the road.) Just watch out for the tourists from the continent who are driving their own cars!<BR><BR>As has already been mentioned, the trickiest part is negotiating the roundabouts, which have an etiquette all of their own! If you are already used to driving in Europe, especially in countries where you have to deal with a different language on the road signs, the UK shouldn't be any problem. (Except sometimes even in the UK the signs are confusing to Americans. For example: Heavy Plant Crossing means<BR>Watch for Trucks Entering Road!)<BR><BR>Have a great trip.

travis

The best thing with driving on the right side is making left hand turns.No stop sign but a "give way" sign.Just down shift and go. Saves on the brakes when tooling around thoes one laners at 60+mph in Cornwall.

Micki

My mother (65) and I (45) went to Scotland last May and had originally planned on driving for 10 of the 14 days we were there. My entire itinerary was planned around this. After the first day of driving we returned our rental car because I couldn’t handle driving on the left. Like someone else posted above, I’m not a timid driver. In fact, I would describe myself as a Type-A personality driver, grew up driving in Dallas, have driven in Los Angeles, etc., no problem. Now that I think about it, maybe that was part of the problem and maybe a calmer, more easy-going type, someone that isn’t a control freak, has an easier go of it. We met two American couples while we were there that had been driving for about 3 days. We each discussed our driving experiences while having drinks in the great hall of the castle we were staying in. One couple had been visiting with friends in London before they set off on their own. They mentioned that this had helped because their friends had given them pointers, let them drive a bit, etc. They planned their next day’s route each evening and they would switch drivers every couple of hours to give the other a rest. One drove while the other navigated. Overall they had a very favorable experience. And by the way, they both came across as being very calm people. The second couple told of their experience. It was hilarious, and more closely resembled ours. I laughed so hard listening to the man describe the conversation between he and his wife. We could totally relate. After we returned Sheila forwarded a post from this forum with a typical conversation between two people unfamiliar with driving on the left and it really hit home. Here is a sample of ours:

Micki

continued: My mom would say/yell, “Oh, look how lovely, NO DON’T LOOK, WATCH OUT!” Then I would yell, “WHAT”? She would say, “JUST BE CAREFUL!” Me: “I am being careful and quit yelling at me”. The whole time gripping the steering wheel tightly, intensely concentrating on the road ahead. Then panic, “What does that sign mean?” or “What are those arrows painted in the road for? Is this one-way? I hate this!” Mom: “Your doing fine, really.” Me: (take a deep breath, exhale) “Are you looking at the map? What’s next?” Mom: “I don’t know!” We miss our turn off. I pull over and park and when I do I scrape our back wheel against the curb because I can’t judge distances from that side. We get out to take a look and there’s a big gash on the rim. I say to mom, “You have to help me by letting me know what’s coming next”. Mom: “Okay, I’m sorry.” We’re back on the road. Mom: “It’s okay, we’re okay, uh oh, there’s a roundabout ahead. (Thank God, no traffic!) Okay, go, go, go”. Me: “That wasn’t so bad”. Silence for 5 minutes then a big truck passes coming towards me on the right. I feel like it passed within an inch of our car. Mom and I both scream: “SSHHIITT!” I instinctively move closer to the left, mom comes out of her seat and screams “WATCH OUT” again. She says she feels as though the stone wall (parked car, sign post, etc.) is an inch from her left ear. I tell her that I feel as though the oncoming car is an inch from my right and it’s better to side swipe whatever on the left than to get smashed by oncoming traffic. I slow down to better handle the narrow curvy roads (35mph). I look in the rear view mirror and see at least 20 cars behind me wanting to pass (and probably cursing me) but can’t because there is no place for me to pull over. Me: “I feel like I’m going to be sick”. Mom hands me one of her “relaxing pills” (she’s already taken several with no apparent effect) and says “Here, take this, it’s going to be okay, let’s take this car back and I told you I didn’t think we should drive over here! If you would only listen to me for once, you think you’re so damn smart.” We returned the car (a brand new automatic) with a gash in the wheel and which we hoped they didn’t discover. Then we had to figure out what to do with the remaining 10 days that I had planned around driving. We quickly acquainted ourselves with the bus and train schedules and some day trip tour companies and ended up having a blast. I remember returning from the Isle of Skye in our touring van and we were coming down the side of this steep mountain and met a car coming up. The road was only big enough for one car. They had to back down several feet in order for us to be able to pass. Mom and I looked at each other with wide eyes and commented on how that could have been us. Yikes.<BR><BR>So, after all that, I would still recommend renting a car (if you’re not the nervous type) but have back up plans just in case. I was SO confident about driving over there and no one could have convinced me otherwise. I would probably attempt it again, depending upon whom I was traveling with. Have a great trip. You’ll love it there whether you drive yourself or not.<BR>

mariana

Micki.....your conversations while driving are cute, and funny! Looking back , I bet you had a lot giggles....however I guess you are the type who should NOT try driving on the left! (for the safety of others!!!)<BR><BR>Anyway....it all depends on the person. ..being American has not much to do with it. My husband does great!. He is left handed(well 95% ambidexterous) and we always rent a manual shift and it is all very natural to him...right from the start. (We lived overseas for 5 yrs. in the late 70's, but not in a "driving on the left country") I think most people do quite well...and it does help to have a good sense of direction , and/or have a good navigator sitting beside you.

Joe

Really depends on the person. I have done it several times and find that after about ten minutes, it's like second nature. I do have to be conscience of drifting to the left on the first day, but my trusty navigator, my wife, keeps thumbing me to the right.

Micki

Mariana,<BR>Mom and I can now laugh about our "adventure" and we are glad we had it and didn't kill ourselves or anyone else in the process. I have a friend at the office who is from England and married to an American. She says that when they go to England for a visit there is no way she would drive. However, her husband does drive over there with no problem at all. Maybe I didn't give myself enough time to adjust but I just couldn't shake that feeling that I was about to have a head-on collision. And judging distances from the opposite site was difficult for me especially with the narrow roads that leave no margin for error. I really wish I could have driven over there because you have so much more freedom. There were several places we had originally intended to go but couldn't.

ian

I have driven in the UK extensively. The most difficult issues I had were:<BR><BR>Stick Shift-took quite some time to get used to especially in situations where I had to react quickly<BR><BR>Traffic Circles (aka roundabouts)-I found these quite difficult especially when traffic was very heavy. Always had a problem with merging and right of way. Often led to some rather bad language!<BR><BR>Driving at night OR when you are tired- this was a hazard, particularily on single lane roads where there was not much traffic. You have to stay ATTENTIVE at ALL times. Very easy to make a mistake...especially in emergency situations.<BR><BR>Having said that, I survived. Don't bother to take your car into major metropolitan areas such a London. It is a complete waste of time and parking is both difficult and expensive. For some reason, I found driving in Scotland and Wales much easier.

Alan

I'm an English long-distance lorry-driver (trucker, to you Americans). I have to drive here, on the left, and in Europe, on the right. I also need to use both left and right-hand drive vehicles, always with gear levers. It really isn't that difficult. When you go on the road for the first time, try to follow someone else for a while until you get the feel of things, and don't try overtaking until you are sure you have familiarised yourself. Incidentally, an earlier post on this thread speaks of using the gears to make it easier to rush around in narrow country lanes. I hope that post was intended as a joke, even though it wasn't particularly funny. The speed limit here on a road that isn't a dual-carriageway is 60 mph, unless there are signs for a lower limit. Don't rush around blind corners - I might be coming the other way!

caliuk

I've moved from the states and have been living in London for more than a year and can still remember stepping off the plane and into a rental car at Heathrow. It took me about 2 days to be really comfortable driving on the left, here are some useful tips:<BR><BR>1) At roundabouts, always yield to traffic on your RIGHT. If you remember that rule, you'll be fine.<BR>2) Do not pass on the left, only overtake in the RIGHT lanes. I find driving in europe much better than the U.S. because everything is more organized. No one weaves in and out of lanes because people only use the fast lane to pass. Once they overtake a slower car, they get back into the slower lane. I love it.<BR>3)Watch out for speed traps. They have cameras on the sides of the road to catch you speeding. I can recognize the cameras from quite far away now, but be careful!

lol

caliuk - which roads are you driving on round London !!!!!!!!!!!!

David White

Julie,<BR><BR>I've found that an automatic transmission rental in the UK certainly simplifies the transition to driving on the left. Just one less thing to distract you from your mantra: keep left, Keep Left, KEEP LEFT!<BR><BR>David White<BR>http://www.KidsToLondon.com

nah

&gt;Heavy Plant Crossing means<BR>&gt;Watch for Trucks Entering Road!)<BR><BR>No, it means "Beware of triffids". BTW, the etiquette for passing places unless one of you is really close to one is that the driver coming uphill reverses into the nearest passing place. It's easier to reverse downhill.