Nobody really seems to know how it started. One popular theory is that it’s because most people are right-handed. Horses are usually mounted from the left, by riders holding the reins in their right hand. And people walking their horses will use the right-hand rule to keep the meeting horses separated. Others refer to fast and easy access to the whip, or to the sword for defense. And so forth.
So, why do the Brits and 75 other countries (many of them former British colonies) still drive to the left?
The short story is that it was officially regulated in the London Bridge Act in 1765. Now, more than 250 years later, the main argument is that it would be both complicated and far too costly to change. In the 1960s, the British considered switching to right-hand traffic (RHT), but declared it unsafe and too costly.
In 1969, costs to rebuild motorway road junctions, redesign and replace road markings and signs, and more were calculated at £264 million, corresponding to some £3.4 billion today. Considering today’s more sophisticated traffic solutions the real figure would be much higher than that.
If and when the UK and other left-driving countries would take the plunge to the right, they would also have to deal with the steering wheel being on the wrong side. Some would say that the combination of left-hand drive and the left-hand steering wheel is outright dangerous as the driver cannot see oncoming traffic when attempting to overtake another car.
The positioning of the steering wheel also has a huge impact on the vehicle industry. The additional costs to produce and distribute two versions of all or most car models is a factor with a number of competitive implications.
Several countries have shifted from left to right
Portugal shifted from LHD to RHD in 1928. In Italy, the various regions applied their own rules until after the Second World War. Ireland was part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 1801 to 1922, and drive to the left to this day! Since the UK left the European Union, Ireland and Malta are the only member states driving to the left.
The traffic revolution might not have been a major challenge in 1917 when Russia shifted from left to right or when Czechoslovakia did it in 1939.
But in September 1967 Sweden, with land borders to both Norway and Finland, made the switch a formidable success. Traffic accidents were actually reduced, arguably due to a combination of excellent government planning and disciplined drivers. The immediate effect of the changeover was that number of deaths dropped from 1,313 in 1965 to 1,077 in 1967.
Interestingly, the decision to turn right was made a few years after a popular referendum ruled that Sweden should remain on the lefthand side. Today, virtually everybody would agree that the politicians were right.
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