Military build up and stronger partnership with US
The United Kingdom has always driven on the left side of the road. It was during the 18th century that the Brits chose to adopt this method, when it helped control the flow of horse-drawn carriages on London Bridge. The practice set the trend for many other countries to follow suit, especially during the colonial era when the British Empire dictated that they should.
In 1772, riding on the left became mandatory in Scotland. By the 1830s, Ireland too had sided with the United Kingdom. By then, Wales and Northern Ireland were both left-leaning. The Channel Islands and the Isle of Man are also "lefties."
Malta is the other Mediterranean nation that drives on the left, again because former British rule maintained that it should.
Kenya keeps to the left. Road transport is the oldest and most common form of transport in this East African nation.
Nowadays, left-side traffic prevails mainly in countries that used to be colonies of the United Kingdom. This includes South Africa. In fact, South Africa is one of 14 African countries with left-side road traffic.
Another left-side Southern African nation, Botswana is topographically flat, a fact that facilitates an enviable road system that includes the Phakalane highway out of the capital, Gaborone.
Namibia was subjected to German rule beginning in the 19th century, followed by South African rule for much of the 20th century. It's the association with South Africa, a Commonwealth nation, that led to the left side of the road being the chosen path.
Tanzania follows the LHT rule. Pictured is a busy intersection in Dar es Salaam with separate lanes for the city's Dar Rapid Transit (DART) public transport system.
Uganda was a protectorate of the British Empire from 1894 to 1962. As such, LHT was adopted in the late 19th century.
Zambians drive on the left side of the road. The highway that links Zambia with Zimbabwe passes the mighty Victoria Falls on the Zambezi River.
They drive on the left in Bhutan, but driving per se is a risky business. Sheer drops, hairpin turns, inclement weather, and regular landslides make taking to the wheel a sometimes life or death decision no matter what side of the road you're on.
Another legacy of British colonial rule, traffic stays on the left in Hong Kong until it reaches a border crossing located well into western Shenzhen on mainland China. It remains to be seen how much longer Beijing's special administrative region will keep driving on the left.
Sixteen Asian countries drive on the left side of the road, among them India. India has the second-largest road network in the world, and one of the most chaotic. According to the World Economic Forum, India universally has the highest number of road fatalities, at 250,000 deaths a year.
Back in the day, Indonesia was a Dutch colony, the Dutch East Indies. The territory was originally LHT, but when the Netherlands changed to riding on the right in 1795 after Napoleon decreed that it should. But Dutch colonies in the Far East continued their old practices.
An interesting theory suggests why Japan drives on the left side of the road. During the Edo period (1603–1868), most samurai wore their swords on their left hand side, their right hands usually the stronger with which to draw them. If two samurai swordsmen were to cross paths walking on the right-hand side of a footpath, their blades would have crossed over and potentially bumped into each other, causing inconvenience or even injury. It therefore made sense to both to remain well to the left of a path or track. This logic was eventually applied to the road transport network, or so many choose to believe.
The fact that Singapore drives on the left is also a legacy left behind by the British. This view shows cars driving on a freeway in front of the impressive Marina Bay Sands Hotel.
Although never a British colony or part of the British Empire, Thailand drives on the left side of the road because of Siam's (the official name until 1939) alliance with England in the 19th century and subsequent British influence over the Thai royal family.
British colonial rule is why Australia drives on the left side. And by all accounts those down under readily embraced the left-hand traffic rule, probably because it made both cultural and economic sense to do so.
In the 1840s, its colonial ruler Great Britain made it mandatory for New Zealand to drive on the left side of the road.
The anomaly on this list is a revelation. The United States Virgin Islands is the only place under United States jurisdiction where the rule of the road is to drive on the left. But just to confuse matters, virtually all passenger vehicles are left-hand drive due to imports of US vehicles.
Sources: (Go Compare) (World Economic Forum) (HowStuffWorks)
While Nepal was never colonized, it did serve as buffer state between Imperial China and British India. It was the Brits that won the road race, insisting the Nepalese drive on the left. Today, Nepal has the worst road infrastructure in Asia, according to the World Economic Forum.
Bermuda, a British Overseas Territory anchored in the North Atlantic Ocean, has kept to the left since 1946, when the first private vehicles began appearing on the island's roads.
Caribbean Sea nations that follow the LHT rule include Jamaica. Once a British colony, Jamaica won its independence in 1962 but chose to maintain its left-leaning road network.
The Falkland Islands not only drives on the left, it still features old-fashioned red telephone boxes and operates traditional English pubs.
Despite the fact that Mozambique was ruled over by the Portuguese, and that Portugal switched over to right-hand traffic in 1928, Mozambique opted for LHT because it has land borders with former British colonies, with all of them driving on the left.
Mauritius was a British colony when cars were introduced to the island. This legacy of colonial rule endures.
There are two South American countries that drive on the left. One of these is Guyana. Part of the historic mainland British West Indies, Guyana is the only mainland South American nation in which English is the official language.
LHT was being followed in India and continued in Pakistan after British India was partitioned in 1947. It made sense to keep on the left side of the road, even though two independent sovereign nations had been created.
Similarly, Bangladesh was part of British India and it too decided to stay on the left after the country gained its independence in 1971.
Motorists in Cyprus use the left side of the road. They began doing so when the country was under British colonial rule.
The other LHT South American country is Suriname. Suriname, like Indonesia, a Dutch colony at the time, ignored Napoleon after he took control of the Netherlands, but it was later British colonization of the country that led to this tiny nation (the smallest in South America) adopting the LHT rule.
While the majority of countries in the world drive on the right-hand side of the road, there are 69 nations that do the exact opposite by driving on the left side of the road. That's about 30% of the world’s countries and 35% of the world’s population that keep to the left side of the tarmac. The English started the trend back in the 18th century, and carried the method through during the British Empire and the colonial era. In fact, most of the countries adopting left-side driving owe the practice to the period when Britannia ruled the highways. So, where on Earth are motorists left leaning?
Get into gear and take a drive through this list of countries and territories that drive on the left side of the road.
The dangers of driving on the wrong side of the road
Over 30 countries and territories that drive on the left side of the road
LIFESTYLE Driving
While the majority of countries in the world drive on the right-hand side of the road, there are 69 nations that do the exact opposite by driving on the left side of the road. That's about 30% of the world’s countries and 35% of the world’s population that keep to the left side of the tarmac. The English started the trend back in the 18th century, and carried the method through during the British Empire and the colonial era. In fact, most of the countries adopting left-side driving owe the practice to the period when Britannia ruled the highways. So, where on Earth are motorists left leaning?
Get into gear and take a drive through this list of countries and territories that drive on the left side of the road.