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#81
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Driving on the unaccustomed side of the road
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Driving on the unaccustomed side of the road
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#83
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Driving on the unaccustomed side of the road
Alan wrote:
In re-reading this thread, I realised no-one had mentioned the main problem I found, and which also occurred to an American friend who visited me here. It's OK to say "keep the white line on the driver's side" but I consistently allowed insufficient room between the passenger side and the kerb. Your brain is used to seeing a certain distance between you and that white line, whether on the left or right; you have become trained to position your body in a certain location relative to those lines. Also, you automatically stay a little further away from oncoming traffic in that unfamiliar position. At least, that's what happened in my case. So the result was, after wiping out the passenger mirror a few times (thank goodness they spring back now) I learned to consciously remind myself to move closer to that white line on the left in the US and Europe. For a week or two there I'd hear a strangled "too close" from my wife and look across to see electric poles flashing a few inches past her window. Like I said, I hardly hit anything :-) Cheers, Alan A friend of mine came over to Europe last year and he experienced the same problem. For his first drive (with me as passenger), he drove along a quiet, tree-lined road - with the trees right on the edge of the road. It was rather unnerving having them flash by just inches from me. I believe the empirical evidence suggests that in collisions between trees and cars, cars come off worse. I suggested (frequently) that he move a little to the left. Joseph --multiplaza.nl.nu-- |
#84
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Driving on the unaccustomed side of the road
Niels Osmers wrote:
I have 15 years driving experience in germany (right(hand) side). I had no problems driving in Australia 4 years ago. The only problem was the switches for windshield wiper and turn signal, because it was changed in the rental car as well. So I needed 3 of 4 weeks in order to accustom me to it. And then, back home, another 3 weeks to turn it over again. But realy dangarous is to go with an continental european car (right) to England or Ireland (left). I've done this several times and didn't have a problem. The only 'problem' I had was in seeing around the car/truck in front of me before overtaking. Joseph --multiplaza.nl.nu-- |
#85
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Driving on the unaccustomed side of the road
Niels Osmers wrote:
I have 15 years driving experience in germany (right(hand) side). I had no problems driving in Australia 4 years ago. The only problem was the switches for windshield wiper and turn signal, because it was changed in the rental car as well. So I needed 3 of 4 weeks in order to accustom me to it. And then, back home, another 3 weeks to turn it over again. But realy dangarous is to go with an continental european car (right) to England or Ireland (left). I've done this several times and didn't have a problem. The only 'problem' I had was in seeing around the car/truck in front of me before overtaking. Joseph --multiplaza.nl.nu-- |
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