The Other Side of the Road - A Brief History Lesson

In honor of travel to a few of our favorite places - England, Scotland and Ireland - we thought we'd take a moment out of the day to discuss the whole "other side of the road thing." It's always something that makes a foreigner nervous - driving on the other side of the road. And, on the other side of the car. But because most of us don't travel across the Atlantic everyday, we don't really ever take a lot of time to think about why it is that Americans and 3/4 of the world drives on the right side of the road while the other quarter sticks to the left. So what happened? Why the difference and where did it originate from?

The most common theory about all this, and probably the most realistic, is one that involves power struggles and colonialism. Early history shows that the British have always driven on the left side of the road. Back in Roman times, carts kept to the left. In the Middle Ages it was used because an attack on the road was best taken from the right as the driver would be better able to quickly pull out his sword. This practice continued throughout Europe, until the French got their hands on it. During the French Revolution it was said that everything was changed to the opposite in an act of rebellion. Napoleon saw it as a display of absolute power. During the American Revolution, the same act of rebellion happened. Throughout the centuries as the main forces of power held colonies in other parts of the world, those colonies followed suit and adopted the driving practices of their motherlands.

In the beginning of the 20th century, actual standardized law of road directions took place with the popularization of Ford cars. Since the cars were made with controls on the left side of the vehicle, the car was suitable for right-handed driving and the right-handed standard thus became the norm for much of the world.

Quite interesting how a struggle over power and independence has shaped something so trivial as the side of the road we drive on. Well, our hats are off to Great Britain to sticking to your roots. If you are interested in driving the other side of the road, check out our Britain vacation packages!