How to Drive Safe on Either Side of the Road

Many of us sometimes wonder why Indians were trained to drive on the left side of the road, while individuals in other countries drive on the right all the time. Many scholars have tried to find a solution to this question, but no one has got any concrete solution till now. Indians learned to drive on the left from the British, and like every other thing, we never questioned it.

The right side of the car is the dominant side for most people, and so is the right eye. Many of the countries initially decided on the left side driving. Driving on the left gives a better chance to handle the oncoming vehicles in case of emergencies. The hazard awareness and peripheral vision of the right eye is almost always better than the left eye. However, after a lot of political turmoil during the 19th century, many countries swapped sides to enforce new regulations.

Regardless of the side of the road you drive or the placement of steering wheel in your car, the road safety statistics do not reveal significant differences. To determine road safety, several other factors are also important such as the condition of the car, requirements to procure a driving license and the driving culture. Mere driving on the left side or the right side does not guarantee more safety on the road compared to the other. Consider the following points in mind while driving on a different side of the road than the home country.

Research the driving laws

Driving in a new country is not a joke. When you are in control of the steering wheel, you keep several lives at stake. Therefore, it is important to get accustomed to the road rules and the basic phrases of that country in their language. English is not found everywhere in the world, so you must brush up your linguistic skills before you go. This will also help you to ask for directions in case you feel lost.

Mark the places

Whether you want to visit the home of a friend or a tourist place, you must research for them well in advance and mark them on a paper map. Once you have the paper work done, you will have fewer chances of getting lost, and you can keep your complete concentration on the road.

Adjust the headlights

To adjust the headlights, you can buy the headlamp converters to make sure that the lights can adapt to driving on the conflicting side. Please ensure that the packaging contains clear instructions, and they should be easily removable. Headlights play a major role in driving on either side of the road, so you should buy a reliable set of headlamp converters.

Don’t follow the fast lane

On both sides of the road, the fast lane for speeding vehicles is the one away from the sides of the road. Since you are new to the opposite lane, do not try speed up as you may be putting up everyone on the road at risk.

The roundabouts

When you start driving on the different side of the road, you have to take care of the direction of vehicles moving around the roundabouts as well. The unfamiliar clockwise or anti-clockwise movement of the cars makes it quite difficult to adapt to drive.

Take turns carefully

Make sure that you look into every mirror of the car before making a turn, and do not forget your blind spots. The vehicles behind you are never aware of your newcomer status in their country, so it is better to give them proper indications before you take a turn.

Take frequent breathers

You may feel tired just after driving for a few kilometers in a foreign land, so it is better to take frequent breaks that will let you relax within a few minutes. Then you can get back to the road and enjoy driving.

The car rentals or the cabs

Being confident about driving in a different country is a different matter and being over-confident about is totally another concern. If you have even a slight doubt that you will not be able to handle your friend's car or the car rental in a foreign state, you must dodge the idea altogether and hire a cab. Else, in India, for example, you can use the MyChoize car rental app to hire a Self-Drive Car. However, hire a car only if you are very confident to drive. 

It is entertaining, but stressful to drive a car in a foreign land, and you need to analyze yourself properly before jumping into the driving seat. Just a little mistake may cost you a lot more than you expect. That is why; ask a friend about the driving culture in their land before asking for their car to drive to have the complete fun of driving a car.