Which side of the road do they drive on...?

On this page the word, I refers to Brian Lucas,brian @ brianlucas.ca (where most of this came from).

The question of which side of the road people drive on in various countries arises from time to time. This fairly comprehensive list has been compiled by various people over the years; I obtained it around 1991 by way of alt.folklore.urban and with the help of Bernd Wechner and many other people have been updating it ever since.

To quickly deal with the single most frequently asked question on this topic, you don't have to worry about what side to drive on in the Chunnel (the tunnel between England and France, under the English Channel), because you don't drive in the Chunnel. When you arrive at the terminal, you drive your car onto a train car, and the train takes you across.

I don't know much about the reasons for choosing one side of the road over another, and am looking for more information about the reasons for the original choice and the motivations for changing sides. In Europe and the Americas, it seems that left-hand driving was originally the general rule; this was legislated by papal decree in or about 1300. France changed to the right under Robespierre as a gesture of independence from the popes, and when Napoleon later conquered much of Europe, the conquered countries were made to change sides and they never went back. The United States of America drove on the left when they were British colonies, and gradually changed sides of the road beginning in 1792. Driving preferences of most countries which have been colonies of European countries can be traced back to their colonial masters -- for example, most former British colonies drive on the left, with the notable exception of the USA.

I have been told that the authoritative reference on this subject is a book called The Rule of the Road, by an author named Kincaid. The book is out of print but you may be able to find it in libraries. I have not read it myself yet, but I am trying to obtain a copy.

THE LIST

R Afghanistan
R Albania
R Algeria
R Andorra
R Angola
L Anguilla
L Antigua and Barbuda
R Argentina
R Armenia
L Australia
R Austria
R Azerbaijan
L Bahamas
R Bahrain
L Bangladesh
L Barbados
R Belarus
R Belgium
R Belize
R Benin
L Bermuda
L Bhutan
R Bolivia
R Bosnia and Herzegovina
L Botswana
R Brazil
L Brunei
R Bulgaria
R Burkina Faso
R Burma
R Burundi
R Cambodia
R Cameroon
R Canada
R Cape Verde
R Central African Republic
R Chad
R Chile
R China, People's Republic of (Mainland China)
R Colombia
R Comoros
R Congo
L Cook Islands
R Costa Rica
R Croatia
R Cuba
L Cyprus
R Czech Republic
R Denmark
R Djibouti
L Dominica
R Dominican Republic
R Ecuador
R Egypt
R El Salvador
R Equatorial Guinea
R Eritrea
R Estonia
R Ethiopia
L Fiji
R Finland
R France
R French Guiana
R French Polynesia
R Gabon
R Gambia, The
r Gaza Strip
R Georgia
R Germany
R Ghana
R Gibraltar
R Greece
L Grenada
R Guadeloupe
R Guam
R Guatemala
L Guernsey
R Guinea
R Guinea-Bissau
L Guyana
R Haiti
R Honduras
L Hong Kong
R Hungary
R Iceland
L India (Special Edition)
L Indonesia
R Iran
R Iraq
L Ireland
R Israel
l Isle of Man
R Italy
R Ivory Coast
L Jamaica
L Japan
R Jordan
R Kazakhstan
L Kenya
l Kiribati
R Korea, Democratic People's Republic of (North Korea)
R Korea, Republic of (South Korea)
R Kuwait
R Kyrgyzstan
R Laos
R Latvia
R Lebanon
L Lesotho
R Liberia
R Libya
R Liechtenstein
R Lithuania
R Luxembourg
L Macau
R Macedonia
R Madagascar
L Malawi
L Malaysia
l Maldives
R Mali
L Malta
R Marshall Islands
R Martinique
R Mauritania
L Mauritius
R Mexico
R Micronesia, Federated States of
R Moldova
R Monaco
R Mongolia
R Morocco
L Mozambique
L Namibia
l Nauru
L Nepal
R Netherlands
R New Caledonia
L New Zealand
R Nicaragua
R Niger
R Nigeria
R Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan)
R Norway
R Oman
L Pakistan
R Panama
L Papua New Guinea
R Paraguay
R Peru
R Philippines
R Poland
R Portugal
R Puerto Rico
R Qatar
R Reunion
R Romania
R Russia
R Rwanda
L Saint Kitts and Nevis
L Saint Lucia
L Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
R San Marino
R Sao Tome e Principe
R Saudi Arabia
R Senegal
L Seychelles
R Sierra Leone
L Singapore
R Slovakia
R Slovenia
L Solomon Islands
L Somalia
L South Africa
R Spain
L Sri Lanka
R Sudan
L Suriname
L Swaziland
R Sweden
R Switzerland
R Syria
R Taiwan (Republic of China)
R Tajikistan
L Tanzania
L Thailand
R Togo
L Tonga
L Trinidad and Tobago
R Tunisia
R Turkey
R Turkmenistan
l Turks and Caicos Islands
l Tuvalu
L Uganda
R Ukraine
R United Arab Emirates
L United Kingdom
R United States
R Uruguay
R Uzbekistan
R Vanuatu
R Venezuela
R Vietnam
L Virgin Islands (British)
L Virgin Islands (US)
r Wallis and Futuna Islands [Fr.]
r West Bank
R Western Sahara (ex Spanish Sahara)
R Western Samoa
R Yemen
R Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro)
R Zaire
L Zambia
L Zimbabwe

INTERESTING TIDBITS

The USA once drove on the left

Most people in the USA don't realize this, but the United States of America drove on the left when they were settled by Europeans -- they were, after all, British colonies and of course adopted British driving practices. The native Americans already on the continent presumably either had no preference established and/or were not involved in the decision.

I have been told that the USA began to switch to right-hand driving state by state beginning in 1792. I don't know why the change was made, but I will continue to gather more information.

Napoleon marched on the right

Mark Brader writes: "...a Toronto Star article of October 21, 1991... notes that in Europe, left-side driving was once the general rule, but it was promulgated by the popes; Robespierre changed France to the right, apparently to weaken papal influence over everyday lives. Then Napoleon's armies also marched on the right, and other countries that he invaded changed perforce." Others have stated that the keep-left rule become law across Europe because of a papal decree around 1300 that on all roads leading to Rome, pilgrims must keep to the left side of the road.

Changing from one side to the other

Trevor Jordan says, "The Channel Isles drove on the right, under German influence, in the early 1940s just as the Falkland Islands did, under Argentine influence, in the early 1980s... the influence of conquerors did not end with Napoleon but has not generally been as great or as permanent."

Malcolm Roe writes, "Sweden changed from driving on the left to driving on the right in the 1960s. This, of course, was because all its neighbours drove on the right. I remember the newspaper reports of this happening. The roads were completely closed, apart from emergency vehicles, for a day or two while changes were made to road signs etc. I think this was over a weekend. Then a very low speed limit was applied which was raised in a number of steps. The whole process, if I remember correctly, took about a month. Everyone knew that it was going to happen several years before and started to buy left hand drive vehicles so, by the time the change ocurred, many of the vehicles had been replaced.

Mark Brader notes that until the 1920s, the 10 present Canadian provinces were split 5-5 between driving on the right and the left. Others have noted that Ontario switched from left to right in the 1820s, and B.C. and the Maritimes switched from left to right in the 1920s.

Those who really have it tough

Almost always, in countries where one drives on the right-hand side of the road, the cars are built so that the driver sits on the left-hand side of the car. Conversely, driving on the left-hand side of the road usually implies that the driver's seat is on the right-hand side of the car. The driver generally sits on the side of the car that is nearest the centreline. However, this is not universally true.

Joe Flake notes that in 1983, he visited St Thomas (US Virgin Islands) and found that one drives on the left side of the road, but the cars are all US-standard, with the driver sitting on the left-hand side of the car. "Confusing enough to be on the 'wrong' side, but passing on the narrow roads was a real treat. You really depend on the passenger! Ease out across the center line and get either approval or a loud 'NO!' from the passenger."

Malcolm Roe says that in Cyprus, both north and south, they drive on the left. "However, because of the political isolation of the North, vehicles are imported from Turkey, mostly second hand. As a consequence the same situation has arisen as in the US Virgin Islands: i.e., left hand drive cars driven on the left."

What about trains?

It is the signaling equipment that determines whether a double track railway goes on the left or on the right.  Modern main-line railways are usually equipped to allow traffic at full speed in either direction on either track, and in some cases it is normal to use both tracks for trains in the same direction simultaneously.  But on tracks with older signaling equipment, as well as on lines with heavy traffic such as metros and suburban traffic, each track is almost always used in one direction only.  Most railway authorities then have a general rule. (Jens Brix Christiansen)

Specific rules for some European countries:

Left: Sweden, UK, Belgium, France, Switzerland, Italy
Right: Norway, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands

Most of the time, countries pick one side or the other for their trains, there are often exceptions, sometimes for reasons which are unknown, at least to us, and sometimes for historically interesting reasons.

• In France (where cars keep to the right), most trains run on the left, but the the Paris Metro runs on the right, as does one line of the RER commuter system (which is run by the city transit system (RATP) rather than the national railway, SNCF). (Mark Brader)
• Russia's exception is that while trains in most of the country run on the right, the trains on the line between Moscow and Ryazan run on the left. This line was designed and built by British engineers. (Sergey Fedosov)
• Most trains in Britain operate on the left, like road traffic, but there are a number of short sections on the London Underground where for one reason or another they operate on the right. (Mark Brader)
• In the USA and Canada, trains generally keep to the right, with one interesting exception: the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad, running on the left. Two reasons have been suggested for the C&NW's left-hand operation. One possibility is that its original construction was financed by British capital, which influenced the track plans. The other is that the stations, oriented for inbound traffic, were arbitrarily placed all on one side of the tracks when the line was single-track, and when the second track was added it was impractical to change all the station alignments so the outbound track ended up on the left. (Don Howard, Eric Zimmerman)
• In Korea the trains drive on the left,presumably because the system was built by the Japanese when Korea was a Japanese colony. The Seoul subway, on the other hand, was constructed beginning in the 1980s with French aid; by that time, Korean and French drivers were both driving on the right, so the subway does too... except for one subway line which connects directly to the National Railway, and therefore must be on the left. "It can be confusing when deciding which side of a concourse to board a train," says Douglas Clark.

Rui Gustavo Crespo notes that where neighboring countries run their trains on opposite sides of the track, trains must switch sides at the border. "In Netherlands trains run on the right, but in Belgium they move on the left. Last Sunday I travelled between the two countries. At Roosendal (a Dutch city close to the border), the train stopped at the railway station and had to wait for permission to move to the left track: from then, although we were still in Netherlands, our train was conducted on the left."

And boats?

Rob Dvorak writes (20 Feb 1997), "It's nice to know all shipping and boating is keep to the right. Even in the GB intercostal waterways and canals it is keep to the right. I wonder how the British like that?"

POPULATION DISTRIBUTION

Having often encountered the implicit assumption that everyone but England and some of her colonies drive on the right side of the road, I compiled from the above list, a quick table of populations to provide a clue as to just how evenly the sides are represented. As it turns out, some 4 billion people drive right, and 2 billion drive left (when they drive at all that is). So a goodly third of the world drives on the left.

Right Side Drivers                Left Side Drivers                  

China, Mainland   1,210,004,956   India               952,107,694    
United States       265,562,845   Indonesia           206,611,600    
Brazil              162,661,214   Pakistan            129,275,660    
Russia              148,178,487   Japan               125,449,703    
Nigeria             103,912,489   Bangladesh          123,062,800    
Mexico               95,772,462   Thailand             58,851,357    
Germany              83,536,115   United Kingdom       58,489,975    
Philippines          74,480,848   South Africa         41,743,459    
Vietnam              73,976,973   Tanzania             29,058,470    
Iran                 66,094,264   Kenya                28,176,686    
Egypt                63,575,107   Nepal                22,094,033    
Turkey               62,484,478   Uganda               20,158,176    
France               58,040,988   Malaysia             19,962,893    
Italy                57,460,274   Sri Lanka            18,553,074    
Ethiopia             57,171,662   Australia            18,260,863    
Ukraine              50,864,009   Mozambique           17,877,927    
Zaire                46,498,539   Zimbabwe             11,271,314    
Burma                45,975,625   Somalia               9,639,151    
South Korea          45,482,291   Malawi                9,452,844    
Spain                39,181,114   Zambia                9,159,072    
Poland               38,642,565   Hong Kong             6,305,413    
Colombia             36,813,161   Papua New Guinea      4,394,537    
Argentina            34,672,997   Ireland               3,566,833    
Sudan                31,065,229   New Zealand           3,547,983    
Morocco              29,779,156   Singapore             3,396,924    
Algeria              29,183,032   Jamaica               2,595,275
Canada               28,820,671   Lesotho               1,970,781
Peru                 24,523,408   Bhutan                1,822,625
North Korea          23,904,124   Namibia               1,677,243
Uzbekistan           23,418,381   Botswana              1,477,630
Afghanistan          22,664,136   Trinidad and Tobago   1,272,385
Venezuela            21,983,188   Mauritius             1,140,256
Romania              21,657,162   Swaziland               998,730
China, Taiwan        21,465,881   Fiji                    782,381
Iraq                 21,422,292   Cyprus                  744,609
Saudi Arabia         19,409,058   Guyana                  712,091
Ghana                17,698,271   Macau                   496,837
Kazakstan            16,916,463   Suriname                436,418
Syria                15,608,648   Solomon Islands         412,902
Netherlands          15,568,034   Malta                   375,576
Ivory Coast          14,762,445   Brunei                  299,939
Chile                14,333,258   Maldives                270,758
Cameroon             14,261,557   Bahamas, The            259,367
Madagascar           13,670,507   Barbados                257,030
Yemen                13,483,178   Saint Lucia             157,862
Ecuador              11,466,291   Saint Vincent           118,344
Guatemala            11,277,614   Virgin Island            97,120
Cuba                 10,951,334   Grenada                  94,961
Cambodia             10,861,218   Dominica                 82,926
Burkina Faso         10,623,323   Kiribati                 80,919
Greece               10,538,594   Seychelles               77,575
Belarus              10,415,973   Antigua and Barbuda      65,647
Angola               10,342,899   Guernsey                 62,920
Czech Republic       10,321,120   Bermuda                  62,099
Belgium              10,170,241   Saint Kitts and Nevis    41,369
Hungary              10,002,541   Cook Islands             19,561
Serbia                9,979,116   Turks and Caicos Islands 14,302
Portugal              9,865,114   British Virgin Islands   13,195
Mali                  9,653,261   Anguilla                 10,424
Niger                 9,113,001   Nauru                    10,273
Senegal               9,092,749   Tuvalu                   10,146
Tunisia               9,019,687
Sweden                8,900,954
Bulgaria              8,612,757
Dominican Republic    8,088,881
Austria               8,023,244
Azerbaijan            7,676,953
Guinea                7,411,981
Switzerland           7,207,060
Bolivia               7,165,257
Chad                  6,976,845
Rwanda                6,853,359
Haiti                 6,731,539
Burundi               5,943,057
Tajikistan            5,916,373
El Salvador           5,828,987
Benin                 5,709,529
Honduras              5,605,193
Paraguay              5,504,146
Libya                 5,445,436
Israel                5,421,995
Slovakia              5,374,362
Denmark               5,249,632
Georgia               5,219,810
Finland               5,105,230
Croatia               5,004,112
Laos                  4,975,772
Sierra Leone          4,793,121
Togo                  4,570,530
Kyrgyzstan            4,529,648
Moldova               4,463,847
Norway                4,383,807
Nicaragua             4,272,352
Jordan                4,212,152
Turkmenistan          4,149,283
Eritrea               3,909,628
Lebanon               3,776,317
Lithuania             3,646,041
Armenia               3,463,574
Costa Rica            3,463,083
Central African       3,274,426
Albania               3,249,136
Uruguay               3,238,952
United Arab Emirates  3,057,337
Bosnia and Herzegov.  2,656,240
Panama                2,655,094
Congo                 2,527,841
Mongolia              2,496,617
Latvia                2,468,982
Mauritania            2,336,048
Oman                  2,186,548
Liberia               2,109,789
Macedonia             2,104,035
Slovenia              1,951,443
Kuwait                1,950,047
Estonia               1,459,428
West Bank             1,427,741
Gambia, The           1,204,984
Gabon                 1,172,798
Guinea-Bissau         1,151,330
Gaza Strip              923,940
Bahrain                 590,042
Comoros                 569,237
Qatar                   547,761
Cape Verde              449,066
Equatorial Guinea       431,282
Djibouti                427,642
Luxembourg              415,870
Iceland                 270,292
Western Sahara          222,631
Belize                  219,296
Western Samoa           214,384
Vanuatu                 177,504
Guam                    156,974
Sao Tome                144,128
Micronesia              125,377
Andorra                  72,766
Marshall Islands         58,363
Northern Mariana         52,284
Monaco                   31,719
Liechtenstein            31,122
Gibraltar                28,765
San Marino               24,521
Wallis and Futuna        14,659

Total             3,814,799,906   Total             1,949,490,917    

To those who can't add:

Almost twice as many drive on the Right