How to cross a road by foot in a country that drives on the "other" side of the road
I'm currently in UB, Mongolia, which has a combination of fairly aggressive driving (though I bet the comments section will list worse countries) and driving on the opposite side of the road than I'm used to in Australia. I've sometimes been looking in the wrong direction for traffic while crossing the road, or assumed that a car coming towards me will safely pass on the far side of the road before I reach it.
How can I handle cars driving on the opposite side of the road to what I'm used to?
Best Answer
I (and the whole country) was raised to do look left, right and again to the left before stepping off the curb. Obviously less efficient to do it in an opposite direction country but if you get used to a three step look around you will be fine in most places.
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What country drives on the opposite side of the road?
Most areas of the world which were formerly British colonies still drive on the left hand side of the road including Australia, the Caribbean, India and South Africa. Japan also drives on the left. Europe generally drives on the right hand side apart from Cyprus, Ireland, Malta and the United Kingdom.Should you walk on the left or right side of the road?
If there is no sidewalk, walk on the left side of the road facing traffic. Always use crosswalks. Look left, then right, then left again before crossing. Yield to vehicles.How do you drive on the right side of the road?
Stay four to five seconds behind the car in front of you, just like you would do when it's raining or snowing. Remember that roundabouts go counterclockwise. Get used to the counterclockwise rotation of roundabouts in places where you drive on the right side of the road. Remember to give the right of way to the left.How do you drive on the left side of the road?
15 tips for driving on the left side of the roadThe Places Where Sneaking Over the US-Canada Border is Legal
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Answer 2
Always expect traffic from both sides.
Always assume the lane you are going to cross is a one way street/lane and you do not know which way the traffic is supposed to go.
If there is a safe point in the crossing, stop and look around again, again both directions and not expecting traffic to come from a certain side.
Do not hurry.
First spend more time looking left, right, left, (or the other way around if in a country with traffic on the left) than you would at home. Better miss an oportunity to cross than start walking when you are not yet sure.
Allow yourself more time to cross the road than you expect to need, that allows for cars on the far side where you expect them to be on the near side, and for cars that slow down before they reach you.
Back home does not mean safe.
And very importantly, when you return home, keep in the habbit for a couple of weeks, (or forever,) as it can be rather dangerous if you have adjusted to traffic on the wrong side of the road and you forget, when falling in routine, that you are back home.
I nearly got hit by a car I had not seen, not looked for, on a road crossing I had been using all my life, very close to my grandmothers house. I had so gotten used to looking the wrong way.
In the years since I have learned to always look both ways, even when I know the road I am about to cross on my daily commute is a one way road.
The famous last words of a victim: Cars do not come from that way!
Answer 3
Don't jaywalk, always cross at corners. Look both ways, twice. Never step off the curb to check traffic.
A few years ago a Japanese scholar visiting chicago stepped off a curb looking right to check traffic. Unfortunately there was traffic, on the left. He was run over and killed. Tragic, but true.
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