Americans are Bad Drivers? UK vs USA Driving Experiences! // American Expat in the UK
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- Опубликовано: 21 июл 2024
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Sorry to say but whilst driving you were a tad too busy talking to inform us of a couple of points of interest that would of backed up what you said on previous vids , the first was the mail boxes at the side of the road because the houses were along way from the road , second you could of jokingly pointed out you were about to go around a bend in the road and lastly what does the orange flashing light above the road mean , " give way / yield " to all ? Other wise a good vid and don't worry as there is a lot of fools on the roads over the pond
This is not you in particular but most Americans doing comparison videos: Your roads are generally not 'Paved' they are Tarmacadam (aka Tarmac). Paving is the use of concrete or similar, tiles/slabs. There are some cobbled (brick) roads in the UK but apart from some peoples drives, I never seen a paved road.
@@lawrenceglaister4364 yes the orange flashing light does mean to yield to traffic coming from the right or left as they usually have a red flashing light which means for them to stop.
That was some beautiful scenery!!
America Driver is Better than UK Drivers
My Dad drove a hire car in Florida and was shocked about how straight the roads are compared to the typically winding and narrower UK roads. I can see the appeal of automatics if you drive everyday in cities with a lot of stop start driving, heavy traffic etc but as a car enthusiast you can't beat a manual sports car for a spirited weekend drive or when doing a track day.
Many many many years ago I worked for the British Department of Transport, and picked up a lot of interesting knowledge. One interesting factoid I was told is that British motorways are deliberately bendy so that drivers remain engaged with the process and don't get lulled into doziness.
The majority of British roads follow the easiest route over the terrain, or have been upgraded from ancient roads and tracks linking our towns. The ones that are arrow straight over long distances are those that follow ancient Roman Roads. They were the trade and marching routes between major Roman army garrison towns. Modern motorways tend to be built as straight as possible, to ease wear on vehicles and the road surface, and make for faster, safer travel.
It is a fair assumption that if you find yourself driving on a straight, single carriageway road in the UK, it is probably a Roman road. There are lots of them throughout the country. Some even have the original names, Fosse Way, Watling Street, Ermine Street, etc. (I have since learned that the names were given by Saxons and Vikings. For example, Waclinga Stræte (Watling Street) is the road (‘Stræte’) to Waclinga’s land.)
I live in Northumberland and there's an old Roman military road which parallels Hadrian's Wall and it's def very straight! The only real problem with it, is that because it's straight there's parts of it that are like a rollercoaster with it going up and down every small hill. If you go fast on that road you get air time!
@@PolarBear4 The road through the village where I live is the Roman road from Coddenham to Peasenhall. It is very straight except where they had to tackle hills, when they worked there way up the hill by turning 45° to the right, then 45° to the left. At the top, they resume being dead straight.
@@PolarBear4 Is that the A69 or id there a smaller road nearer the wall?
@@Thurgosh_OG It’s a different one. The B6138. Known as the Military Road. It goes from Haltwhistle and if you followed it the whole way (when it’s not as straight) you’d stop at the a 69 around Wylam. It’s runs directly parallel to the wall and at times is only a few meters from it.
@@PolarBear4 B6318.👍
The curves are also a good deterrent to falling asleep at the wheel.
on the other hand those same curves are why people drive into trees.
@@readhistory2023 In fact motorways are designed not to be too straight to keep drivers alert.
..unless you fall asleep before you get to them LOL!
@@readhistory2023 Not really.
@@carl48uk Watch out for the trees.😊
Be cool to hear more from your husband about his experiences in America, even from behind the camera if he doesn't want to be on it.
He is getting closer to letting me feature him in a video or at least be on one....let me know if there are any questions you have for him and I'll see if we can convince him! Give the people what they want! ;)
You never know he might a star in the making. Would give you lots more content ideas has a joint couple.
@@GirlGoneLondonofficial: or he could just be your silent side kick leaving the glory all to you. 🙂
If we come across a road as straight and wide as that one, we will perceive it as very safe, so drive at approximately 90mph. Nobody in the UK would have pulled in to let someone pass like you did. There was plenty of room. Most would not even have slowed down. As long as there is a 6" gap between you, that's fine. Door mirrors are a hostage to fortune.
Yes they would and i would suggest a figure approaching 90% of drivers would pull over without much fuss
Merc driver detected.
@@arkroyalrifemoonbasealpha6101: I wouldn't have considered pulling over until I was much closer. I felt that Kalyn stopped when she didn't have to.
@@eattherich9215I probably wouldn't have pulled over either, but it's always as and when you feel comfortable and to stay safe: she did very well, liking to keep a 12-60in gap with other cars.
You are aware that at our traffic lights there are sensors under the tarmac that picks up the presence of a vehicle, so no vehicle the lights change quicker. They can be programmed for buses, so they will get preferential passage.
Being from the UK I'm a manual driver through and through.
My experience of automatic hire cars aboard has varied based on terrain. In The Netherlands and Texas, where it's flat, automatics were fine. In Canada (the Rockies) they were a nightmare. They could never decide what gear they wanted to be in. Constantly changing.
I've also got to say when driving a manual, it feels better when it's right hand drive. At least for right handed people. It feels much more natural to have your dominant hand on the steering wheel and other hand on the gear stick, than it does the other way round.
That is so true, regarding the gear lever.
Also very true these days is the possible confusion of gears with automatic gearboxes which have 7 forward gears.
Modern automatics are fine, but years ago I drove the old three speed ones in the US and they were awful. I am a manual driver through and through, cheaper. lighter, better fuel consumption and more control
In the UK hazard lights are officially only used when you have broken down in a dangerous position. However, over time they have become a "get out of jail free" card for anyone that wants to park badly or do some unorthodox manoeuvre. They are also useful when you want to say thanks to the person behind. Technically illegal, but everyone does it.
While I see what you are getting at but that's not exactly accurate. Hazard lights 'may be used when your vehicle is stationary, to warn that it is temporarily obstructing traffic' (from the UK highway code), covered by legislation LAW RVLR reg 27. On a motorway they can be used to warn drivers behind that there is something up ahead (you do not need to be the cause) that could be a hazard and bus drivers can use them to call for assistance. The rules covering hazard lights do not go into any detail regarding their use. When people use them to try to cover their arse when parking badly, the use of hazard lights would most likely be the correct thing to do if they are causing an obstruction. In that case it would be the parking that would be at fault, not the use of the lights. Hazard lights are simply to make others aware of a potential hazard, nothing more, nothing less, in the same way the horn is there to make others aware of your presence, no more or less (but of course people still use it to beep a hello to someone they know and occasionally taxi drivers uses it to say 'I've arrived and can't be assed getting out of the car and knocking on the door'). These things are not put into a set of black and white rules because there could be so many different instances where they could be used. Overall it's more like 'AAAHHH WATCH YOURSELF, THERE IS SOMETHING HAZARDOUS GOING DOWN!'. When disputed, it's decided in a court.
If you are prone to hurricanes, why not not have traffic lights on a more stable base?
Wagon drivers mainly use their hazard lights on motorways to say thank you to other wagon drivers for letting them know it is safe for them to pull in.
I have never seen a car driver use them
I think you're thinking of a headlight flash rather than hazards.
@@DD-jk3nf *I can't be arsed
The UK uses headlights to say thanks, from the front. Lorries will say thanks by hazards or rear lights, from the rear. A wave is very common from cars, front and back. I have driven automatic and manual, I prefer manual and that is what my car is. French don't say thanks, they just beep at you. They also drive at the speed of light. Same with Germany but without the beep. Does America use "L" plates (Learner) and "P" plates (Passed)? I thank this country for very rare "STOP" signs, they are mostly "GIVE WAY".
In UK, you will require at least 40+hours of driving lessons to learn how to drive and need recently you need to know some basic maintenance of the vehicles and have optional advance lessons to learn how to drive in motorways
The P plate is for Probationary, not pass.
There are no L plates in my state at least (Ohio), but cars owned by driving schools do have stickers that say “student driver - please be patient” or something similar. The problem is that now, if you wait until age 18 to get your license, you don’t have to learn from a trained instructor - you can just be taught by your parents, who may or may not be good drivers or good teachers. I think the driving test here is more thorough than what Kalyn described for Florida, but I’m sure it’s much easier than in the U.K.
@@peterlloyd8313 probationary to show you've just passed, it's just as easy to say they're pass plates 🤷🏼♀️
In Australia we have yellow ‘L’ plates for learners. In New South Wales, you need to complete 120 hours of practical driving (filled into a log book) before you can go for your licence test. When you pass your test, you will be given a Red “P 1” (Provisional) plate for 12 months. You then will progress to the Green ‘P 2” plates for a further 2 years before you are granted your ‘Black’ or unrestricted licence. The colours come from the colour of the original paper licences. We have photo licence now, and even electronic ones on your phone in the Services NSW app. L & P plates must be displayed front and back of the car when being driven by an ‘L’ or “P” plater at all times. There are penalties for failing to display the plates, or displaying the incorrect plates (P plates when you have an unrestricted licence). There are different levels of restrictions on the licences for L, P1 and P2 licence holders… they relate to maximum permitted speeds, number or ages of passengers, curfews etc.
British roads do have chevrons at tight bends, pointing the driver in the right direction, but I've only very occasionally seen flashing warning lights at such bends. Another difference between the US and UK roads involves sensors at traffic lights. UK lights are much more likely to be triggered by approaching traffic, so that the light stays green, if there is no waiting traffic from another direction. They don't always work and I think they are affected by freezing weather, at which point they default to a basic, timed sequence.
Some cities in the US do have sensored lights and bumps but it is not very common.
in the UK if you pass your driving test in a automatic , you can not drive a manual without passing the test again for stick shift (as you call them )
The hire companies don't tell Americans that when they arrive in the UK. My American friends were shocked they could not legally drive a manual transmission car.
@@davidisherwood2756 The UK licence differentiates between a full licence and an automatic only licence. If the licence you have doesn't draw that distinction then neither do we, you are not disbarred.
@@davidisherwood2756 You can though. I used to work for a rental company. If you're visiting the UK you can drive whatever, so long as you're over 25 and have had your license for over a year. If you're resident, the rules are stricter. Many times I'd see an American shocked to discover they'd booked a manual because that's the default option. They'd usually switch to an auto (at greater expense ofc because rental companies are devious as fk - I mean they get American consultants in to teach us how to swindle people while being charming). Some would insist they knew how to drive manual and we'd go to the window to watch them bunny-hop out of the car park in a cloud of clutch smoke.
The REAL thing that upsets Americans hiring cars though is that while their credit card insurance almost always covers them, it's phrased differently to the UK. You need to have collision and loss/theft covered, but US companies term it differently so it looks like they only have collision covered. Rental companies play dumb saying "well, I don't know what you've got on your insurance, I just know that you have to have both of these things to drive in the UK", so that a loss waiver can be sold to you at considerable expense, even though your card almost certainly covers this already but it's hidden in the small print. Americans who're more savvy and patient will ring their insurance companies, but after a long flight, a really long queue and it being late at night, often they'll just take it for hundreds to thousands of pounds more than they expected.
Really dodgy system, but of course the rental agent works on commission, so failing to upsell an average of more than £8-10 per rental day to every customer will severely impact their pay.
Automatic only licence holders can drive a manual gearbox car in the UK, but their automatic licence acts as a provisional licence for a new learner driver. They must have a full manual licence driver sat beside them at all times, and the car should display learner L plates when they are driving a manual car. Not sure if the rules have changed in recent years, but it used to limit the type of manual vehicle an automatic licence holder could drive as an accompanied learner.
@@davidisherwood2756 You are incorrect in your claim as regards Americans driving manual on a US licence in the UK. Americans with a driving licence can drive a manual car as they do not distinguish. There is only one type of driving licence issued in the US, and it does not distinguish between manual and automatic. It is in the Vienna Convention that covers the issue of driving on foreign licences in other countries that they are mutually recognised. Thus Americans with car driving licences can drive on UK roads for up to 12 months on their US licence and it matters not the slightest, legally speaking, that they've never driven a manual. From a driving standards point of view it could if they are unable to control the car, but that's another matter. So please do not go round telling Americans that they can't drive a manual car in the UK on their US licence as it's completely wrong. By all means tell them it's inadvisable, but it is not illegal.
The first time I drove in the US I had just got off a 10 hour flight from London and had to drive through San Francisco and find a remote location (no sat-nav, just a sketch map) in the California hills about 100 miles to the north. So I was driving a strange car with strange rules of the road in an unfamiliar area whilst having not had any sleep for over 24 hrs. I was never so glad to reach my destination unscathed!
David, if you had been involved in an accident in the UK and your lack of sleep had become known, you would most probably be looking at charges from the police. I'm not quite certain, but it bumps you up from "Driving Without Due Care And Attention," into the world of "Careless Driving" and even possibly "Dangerous Driving."
I arrived in New England at night, and I found the combination of lights reducing how much I could perceive and the difference of American road signs quite a challenge.
British(European) road signs Vs American road signs: Europe has a system of circles to instruct or triangles to warn. Circles with a red boarder are must not, and blue circles with a white boarder are must do. 1960s Public Information Films about the new system of signs. Sorry either RUclips or this channel is killing my comments if I try to provide a link, search "European Road Language" for two 32 second PIFs. They also use pictograms to inform rather than words. American signs are the same (Not speed limits) and use words. Words which a stranger has to read, then form a meaning from. The next day in daylight and then after reading a few signs I became more relaxed.
The two odd signs are Give Way, an inverted triangle and Stop the only octagonal road sign. As both are unique you know what the signs mean even if they are covered in snow. My genius local authority has decided to add high vis backing plates to these, so now if it snows we don't know what the sign is.
She needs to rephrase the comment about “Well laid out public transport. “ In London perhaps, the rest of Britain is patchy.
The poor US driving standards are reflected in the statistics for road deaths per 100,000 vehicles per year. The US is the worst, by a long way, of all advanced countries: UK 5.7 (Spain 5.8, Netherlands 6.0, Italy 6.3, Germany 6.4, Australia 7.4, Ireland 7.5, France 8.4, Canada 8.9) USA 14.2.
British driving standards are actually the best in the world, which is significant giving the jammed nature of our roads and Mways.
Pedestrian road casualties might be better measure. Long empty roads where you drive for hours in the US are a different experience from those in the UK so you could have different types of driver injuries. However prevalence of jay walking laws will still have an impact.
@@redf7209 Your comment makes no sense whatsoever. Regardless it took less than a minute on Google to find out that a US pedestrian is around 3 times more likely to be killed by a car than in the UK.
@@jswmonkey197 i wasnt saying it made uk or US better.
@@redf7209 The prevalence of jay walking laws? We don't have any jay walking laws. There are places where pedestrians can't walk, but that other than motorways these are specialised sections of road that are signposted.
That desert light........amazing..
Cannot believe there was no acknowledgement as the car passed you and you even pulled over !!!
While I fully agree that it's always good to thank someone who is trying to be polite I do have to present a pet peeve of mine that does lead to me sometimes not doing it myself: I recently moved from a very crowded city and where I am now people are constantly stopping to let people pass when there's more than enough room for both. Sometimes I lose patience for it and find myself getting grumpy at people who stop to let me pass.
@@moreplease998 ha ha ,,, 😂,, I totally get that... At a very busy UK road junction near where I live people on one side of the road stop to let you out,, flashing and waving, taking no notice of traffic in the opposite direction coming at me... I too get angry, moaning to my wife that I am more than capable of deciding when it's safe to join the traffic.
I know, I instinctively wanted to shout "you're welcome" at them
@@moreplease998 Misery 😊
Interesting, but I noticed @2:20 your passenger/husband from England still had to instruct an American driver in America how to deal with a solitary oncoming car.
They're not used to narrow roads over there, they like to have a couple of cars width space between vehicles when passing 😂
@@davebirch1976I Put this in because Girl Gone has lived in Britain for 10 years, has a UK licence, and drives in the uk where the one car width road room is common in town and country.
@@john_smith1471: Kalyn said 'I'm not good at passing cars'.
@@eattherich9215 Passing is overtaking, she wasn't overtaking, she was on a reduced width section of road, worst thing is the oncoming driver didn't acknowledge Girl gone giving way.
I had two full weeks of lessons (Monday to Friday) failed the test in the next week. One further week of lessons/refresher course, passed the next week, it cost me nothing. I worked for the G.P.O. (General Post Office) at the time so everything was free. I passed my test on 30th October 1973. Drove an automatic between 1990 and 2013, since then a non automatic. The roads in South Africa and Namibia out of the main Towns and Cities I drove on in 1976 were just made by a wheel tractor-scraper (also known as a Tournapull) a type of heavy equipment used for earthmoving. When I was last there in 2016 more tarmac roads existed in further reaches of the Country.
With regard to the comparative width of the road, I recall many years ago riding as a passenger in the rear seat of my bosses normal sized car (Ford Sierra which dates it lol) barreling through the twisty but fairly normal roads of Derbyshire with our Canadian work guest sat up front. My boss who was enjoying the experience, was totally oblivious to the sheer terror experienced by our guest who was only used to typical Canadian/US sized roads. I could see his knuckles progressively turning whiter the harder he gripped the seat in fear!
Your Canadian guest would have been terrified because it would have been like a nightmare; careering along but with no steering wheel or pedals. German and Dutch relations have told me this when being driven in the UK as a front passenger.
I visited my sister who lives in the Toronto burbs and the main roads are three or four lanes in each direction and even the side roads are two lanes wide eiither side.
@@eattherich9215 yup - the difference between a modern carriageway designed for cars and cart track quite possibly over 1000 years old that was widened a bit and had tarmac laid!
for narrow, twisty roads you should try the Scottish Highlands, particularly the A82 north from Glasgow to Inverness, it goes along the side of Loch Lomond for miles, and in some places is so narrow that 2 HGV's or buses cannot pass in opposite directions, but since drivers are generally used to this, it's simply a matter of manners, after Loch Lomond the road then goes cross country, across Rannoch Moor which is very bleak, and though the road is straight it is narrow as Rannoch is essentially a giant peat bog with a railway line built in the late1800's, t his stretch is famous not only for the scenery but also for deer, then you drive through the pass of Glencoe where in the early 18'th century the Union soldiers at the behest of Clan Campbell massacred members of Clan MacDonald and left those who escaped to freeze in the snow, aa narrow zig zag stretch, and on, the road is windy in all places, but you travel through the best scenery.
@@joannagodfrey5111 That's a beautiful road, especially past loch lomond. I've been driven on it a few times between Glasgow and Oban, or whenever I've travelled to Glencoe for climbing. Quite the experience in poor weather as well 😅.
Yes. Sorry it wasn't wide enough for you. A lot of the English cars tend to have steering wheels.
(Fawlty Towers)...
I have driven in various countries, both right or left hand driving. Don't usually have a problem except for the first time when remembering which hand to change gear. Another tip I was given when driving my UK car in Europe is to say hedge. Me as the driver should be by kerbside or the hedge to be in the correct lane.
In UK if a slow vehicle lets you overtake, by pulling over or indicating in to show clear once you have overtaken it is common to use hazard lights to say thank you.
I think that's a relatively recent innovation. I first came across it on holiday in South Africa in 1997, I hadn't seen it in the UK at the time (driving since the mid '80s). Unless it was regional, wasn't in use in the south east.
@@paulqueripel3493 Better to use a quick flick left-right-left on the indicators to express thanks. That way you don't have to remove your hand from the steering wheel or hunt for the hazard light switch. This is both quicker and safer
I've never seen or used hazard lights for that.
I see hazard lights and brake, assuming something's wrong with them (probably -possibly- mental). It frightens me. I certainly don't think "Oh, that's a 'thank you'".
As a Brit who has occasionally driven in the US, I find the first few days ok driving on the 'wrong side' of the road. The danger comes after a few days when you start to get too confident then suddenly find yourself instinctively turning a corner into the oncoming traffic.
As for politeness, I found while driving on the coastal road North of San Fransisco, slow drivers were very good at pulling over to let you pass, and if we did it for another driver they would always honk to say thank you. It's much less common for people to stop and let you pass on a country road in the UK. You just have to hope for a good overtaking spot then take your chance.
My chemistry teacher related the interesting experience, driving in France, of overtaking the vehicle in front by driving on the pavement (sidewalk).
Nice video Kaylin. Thanks for sharing this.
Great show. I have driven in Florida a few times and it seemed to be very busy on the roads. We drove from Tampa to Orlando, taking it in turns to drive. Your driving test sounds so easy, I wish I could of had a driving test like that, I have vague memories of mine, sweating and stressed out gripping the steering wheel.😂😂. Such a relief though when it’s done and dusted, you feel it’s a fantastic achievement. Enjoy your driving.👍
Great vlog! I was laughing at some of your husbands filming and commentary! Brilliant!
Another thing, so I've heard, is that in the US it's legal to turn right on a red light at a junction (if it's otherwise clear I assume). The equivalent (turning left on a red light) isn't legal in the UK - unless there's specifically a green filter arrow indicating that you can.
You are correct. most states allow a right turn on red unless specifically prohibited.
Massachusetts put no turn on red in the majority of intersections the closer you get to Boston. Massachusetts it’s also illegal for video traffic enforcement. You have to be observed by an actual law enforcement officer.
4 way stop sounds like a "filter in turn" in Guernsey. Looks like a UK box junction with the yellow hatch markings, and it is what the name says. You take turns, if 2 cars get to it at the same time, you give way to the right, then take it in turns works pretty well
Long straight roads in uk outside of motorways .. are basically upgraded Roman ones ! Lol
People say that, but I was on the A5 yesterday for about 50 miles and it's actually not very straight.
@@ajs41 Not all of it is on the old road.
Couple of differences I noticed are turning right on a red light in the US, and US (or every one else's) use of toll roads against the UK road tax.
Your best video! Also the best I've seen on this. Thank you.
Parking spaces are two small for for UK cars spaces are still being marked up for the original mini which was a response to the German micro cars so it does need to change
I remember in the UK in the 80s as a girl passenger driving the back lanes at 60 miles an hour at night!!! Ok we could see the headlights and flash each other (your husband will know this) still pretty terrifying. this video is a walk in the park. I have drove in Florida and found the more I relaxed the better my driving. Glad your experiencing both cultures.😀🤗
The older one gets, the more one appreciates the advantage of minimising the chance of killing oneself, one's passengers, other vehicle occupants, pedestrians, and animals.
2:32 as a UK Driver i'd probably have slown down a bit and just continued, knowing i'd get through the gap. Roads in the UK are rarely that much wider than the one at this point. Some are two way with big lorries coming at you and are that wide or narrower, AND are fast roads with a 60mph speed limit AND are twisty roads often with hedges and trees sticking out and obstructing your view.
I switched to automatic a few years ago, basically because using a heavy clutch on a diesel was making my slightly arthritic hip very sore. I drive a VW groupd Skoda and the auto gearbox has seven gears which makes gear change very smooth indeed. I shoul have switched years ago...so much more comfortable.
I took my driver's test in Florida. It was basically in a parking lot. They didn't even take me on the road. My British mother was so pissed she wouldn't let me drive home lol.
Pissed in the U.K. means drunk
@@alemgas yeah I know. I was using it the American way but the UK meaning works for what she did afterwards tho
@@mbell420 nice one cheers
@@alemgas UK here we also say pissed off
@@BeckyPoleninja Also UK, pissed off is angry, pissed is drunk, but Americanisms have crept into the language.
I learned stick when I moved to UK and even though we have automatic now (my wife and I prefer them), I'm glad I learned stick because if I was ever in a situation where I had to drive someone else's car and it was stick then I could drive it. My dad in the US at one point had a stick shift so I could drive that too when I visited.
I say that you are not a real driver unless you learnt on a manual drive car.
I don't know anyone who has a stick shift, I haven't known anyone who's had one for decades. I doubt you'll even be in that situation
I'm American, living in the UK since 2013. I've got a full manual driving licence, and I'm pretty proud of that fact. But I learned manual in 2001 while still in Illinois. Comes in handy, because most of the hire cars or courtesy cars are manual in the UK so I don't want to find myself stuck without something to drive if my own car is in the shop.
Or at the garage, if you're getting it repaired rather than trying to sell it.
It's considered rude if you don't thank the person who let's you pass .
Indeed, but a small number of people are rude.
@@colinelliott5629 true ✋
Easy thing to remember regardless of which side of the road you're driving on is, the passenger door should always be on the side closest to the pavement/sidewalk.
I did once have an embarrassing moment in Florida in a hire car. We drove up from Miami to Orlando and when we arrived in Orlando there was water coming out of the front of the car. I though that somehow I had damaged the radiator, but on phoning the hire company was told that after such a long drive water from ice would come out of the air conditioning and it was perfectly normal.
Only if you're driving a local car.
The only time I have used my Hazzard lights when in the uk is on the motorways at the back of a stop traffic to warn others coming behind
Stops or slows tend to be indicated by the road markings much of the time in the UK
Traffic lights in the UK can sometimes be part time and will flash orange/amber light, more common on light controlled roundabouts than junctions, they are then treated as give way/yield. The same will be done for lights that are not working due to a power outage and those with a white/red X across them. Often down to a computer control failure.
They can be part time in the USA too. From memory, in Miami, at night many junctions showed continuous green on a priority route and flashing yellow on the two minor ones. If approaching a flashing yellow, you had to stop and proceed when clear. That's just as well, or it could double the journey time waiting at red lights on deserted junctions.
The only time I have ever seen anyone use their hazard lights to say thank you was when being overtaken by a large truck, and you give him a quick flash of your headlights to let him know that he is clear and it is safe for him to pull back in. Most of the time, though, even that isn't common; usually they will give you alternative flashes of their left and right indicators.
@@rob-fb5xs UK
People do it a lot around here if you let them out at a junction. I think it has come about because of heavily tinted rear windows that mean that raising a hand as a thank you may not be seen. Personally, I have my window open at junctions like that and wave before I emerge so the other driver knows I'm either accepting their offer or am about to do something tragically stupid.
The reason our cars are smaller is because of the size of the roads. Plus I suppose its more environmentally friendly and cheaper on fuel
When I drove in the USA, the two things I most noticed were all those traffic light intersections which were thoroughly annoying when the traffic was light. I also saw a lot of wrecks near traffic lights too. The other was the absence of lane discipline on the highways. It is thoroughly unsettling for this particular Brit to be passed on both sides (and on some roads in Florida the exits could be on either side of the road).
Nb. On the subject of traffic lights, there is that turn right on red rule, which feels thoroughly alien to me.
The curves are caused by the fields on either side which needed room to turn an ox-plough. Roman roads are straight. Old roads have earth banks you can’t see over, as they’ve worn down over the millennia, except in the last 100 years with the invention tarmac.
It would be interesting to learn about American finger posts. In SW England some finger posts are red (known as red posts) thought to mark where a gibbet stood, with the criminal buried at the crossroads, or markers for stops for prisoners being marched to the coast for transportation, or likely both.
Yes. When I find an old road sunk below the surrounding land, I consider it possible evidence of a road maybe thousands of years old. Ancient roads often followed the ridge, but of course sometimes had to climb gradients.
As for curves; sometimes through roads were preceded by local roads, e.g. from mansion to village, and sometimes following a crooked path around crops or obstacles.
@@colinelliott5629 Sunken roads, or "hollow ways" are often drover's roads. They cleared the road surface of muck and this was piled up on the sides, hence them being built up. These tended to avoid lower ground, as it'd be less boggy in the winter, and as said follow ancient tracks. They have names (as a lot of UK roads have) with names such as Galloway Gate.
@@andrewripley7461 The roads of which I am thinking don't have piled up sides; they are clearly sunk into the ground, almost as if cut. One can still see how the process occurred, because rain water may still run down them, and on those which don't have modern surfaces (now perhaps bridleways), there are signs of this continuing erosion.
The one thing that really got me when I first started driving in the US was the right turn on red light - in the U.K. you don’t go through a red light. In California you can if there’s nothing coming and you’re making a right turn. Got honked & flashed so many times before I realised…
I find in the UK it's mainly when it's dust or dark or raining (basically decreased visibility) that blinking the hazard lights is done, but otherwise people wave. But with narrow streets and cars parked it comes up often. In the US the roads are so wide it almost never happens, I can't remember it happening to me.
In the UK if you pass your driving on Stick shift your license covers both manual and automatic cars, if on the other hand you only pass on an automatic you can ONLY drive an automatic
Straight roads look boring. Is there a danger of falling asleep?
There's a dangerous falling asleep on any road if you're tired enough
Here in the UK....it's not "transmission" it's "gearbox" 🇬🇧🇺🇸
a gearbox is a transmission, whether its auto or manual
Plus technically an auto transmission is just an automatic gearbox 😂 I know we call it gearbox but technically we should refer to it as a manual gearbox as opposed to an automatic one
To be technical, the gearbox (manual or auto) is a part of the transmission , which also includes prop, diff and driveshafts as it transmits the drive from the engine... BA BOOM DR Pedantic strikes again... LOL
@@carl48uk you've taken that too far lol 🤣
in fenlands, the roads tend to be dead straight following drainage diches except for the older main roads which wind about a lot as the road went from dry bit to dry bit.
Yes, we live on the edge of the fens - flat as the eye can see and long straight roads stretching out for miles.
Dead straight until there is a sudden 90 degree bend, with the occasional car in a roadside waterway...
@@TheEulerID you've driven down these roads especially in icy weather they can be lethal
The main reason hazard lights to thank people is mainly when a wagon let's you out, because they usually can't see the driver of the car as they are so high up. That way they know that their kind gesture is appreciated.
In the UK we use to drive on the Left hand side of the road, now we drive on what’s left of the road,
(Especially when it’s full of potholes),
L🤣L
@Nehemiah Scudder ,
I’ve noticed that,
The US seams to have roads in some places where roads wasn’t meant to be,
L🤣L
This episode took me three and a half hours to watch, as I had to go out and do something, but I made it to the end eventually
I do think people make a fuss about this subject as my mum and aunt drive down to Spain from London quite a lot and have never complain. 😀
Yes, whenever we go on holiday abroad ( from the UK) the first thing we do is pick up a hire car from the airport. Everywhere we've been except Australia has been driving on the right -
you have to concentrate a bit more to begin with, but it's not such a big deal.
I'm in UK and come across your channel and it is quite interesting to see the diferrence in both countries. Ive seen in America movies and recently in one of American audit channels that cops in America have a pbysical computer in their cars to check vehicle information, however, in UK, some police cars have ANPR (automatic number plate recognisation) scanners fitted and it scans all the vehicles information such as insurance, mot, who the vehicle is license to, whether it is written off, stolen etc and much more and it seems what I understand in America, officers go to their computer in the car and manually check these.
I was stopped driving my girlfriend's car once, their AMPR detected a woman owner and a male driver. My insurance was fine, it allowed me to drive other cars, didn't get much of an apology though. Think the police officers were a little disappointed.
They don't use it just to check the vehicle information, they use it to check the driver information. Such as if there's an arrest warrant or if they have insurance or not without having their card
@@mr.balloffur ok, in UK, police officers do not have any direct information with regards to arrests or warrants, but all other motoring information, insurance MOT (vehicle inspection) are displayed on their screen on their vehicle and this is retrieved through ANPR cameras at the front of the vehicles
They also use them to access criminal data bases,real time crime mapping, enter their reports and record witness statements
So, what’s the Spanish for “emergency brake when I tap the dashboard”?
Headlights are used to convey a 'thank you' or to beckon you when giving way in traffic
The reason you see so few "Stop Signs" is because of the English Highway Code. If the road you are on enters on to another road (the through road, except crossroads), then you have to give way to the through road. Mostly at crossroads the town council will deside which is the through road and the others will be given a giveway sign. Also you don't see many giveway signs in housing estates because of the Highway Code. I now live in Germany and here you can bearly drive 100 meters without seeing a sign of some sort.
That would be the British Highway Code, there's no English variant of the rules.
@@Thurgosh_OG You are of cause correct ... I've lived in Germany for over 50 years, but still remember having to learn the Highway Code at school before moving to Germany at 17
The UK does have the occasional Stop sign, but only where the side road has very poor visibility onto the main road and it's a dangerous junction. I can think of just one instance, where a very minor unclassified rural side road joins a narrow A road on a bend with high banked hedges either side.
Most roads in the UK used to be pedestrian pathways that became bridleways that became cart tracks. The only straight roads we had were built by The Romans. And they were only as wide as a Roman legion width.
I was in the US and drove over there and it was fine, the roads are big, so much so that I saw one woman "park" her car about 3 feet away from the curb. It was a residential street but still.
Hi
The side of the road should not normally be an issue, as the position of the steering wheel should give a hint, so long as you are using a local car.
With stick shift vs Automatic, the issue should go away soon with the take up of electric cars in the UK (most are single gear, so appear as automatics).
In UK you need o understand the speed limits. There are signs numbers giving speed limit in mph, but there are some areas without these, which are generally either 30mph (in town) or national speed limit (also shown by a sign with a black diagonal line across a white circle), there are various national speed dependant on style of road.
I've driven in both, passed test in both.
Things might be different now, but when I learnt to drive, 40 years ago, most people were taught by parents or family, and then had just a few formal lessons from a driving instructor to be sure you were ready for the test.
On stop signs, you don’t get 4-way stop signs in the UK. They’re like roundabouts with no rules! They’re actually pretty close to a mini roundabout, but as I said, at least with the latter there are clear rules of precedence to follow. Also, you don’t always get road markings with stop signs in the USA. I learnt that to my cost when I first took my driving test in the USA! In the UK, stop signs always have road markings to reinforce.
I passed my test in 1981. Neither of parents drove, so it was the driving school for all of us children.
Years ago Tesco's in Reading had one of those Coca Cola trucks parked up in the car park over Christmas. For the life of me I couldn't work out how they got it in there. It was huge.
Anything based on an old Roman Rd will be straighter - some do still exist, but not very common, you're right
My town has an old roman road, my primary school was named for it. IKNIELD ST. (Worcestershire)
The old Roman Roads such as Watling Street and Fosse Way are straight, but are broken up by road junctions, roundabouts, traffic lights etc.
The age to learn to drive is different. I think the US might be about 15 which is why you have Drivers Ed in high school. In the UK you are not allowed to take lessons until you are 17 which is after you leave school aged 16 (we don’t say graduate from school).
We just leave school and say thank god that is over. My school had no boys so it was really boring.
I live on the south coast of the UK, Prior to Covid it was a fun day out to drive to the ferry port (on the left) go to France and drive the day on the right. Take in the sights and the shops, etc. the home on the ferry and back to driving on the left. NO big deal.
Of course the traffic signs across the channel , like in the UK , conform to an International standard. Even China has the same signage.
Overly straight roads, pointlessly huge cars and automatic gearboxes are three things which I don't like about the idea of driving in US. That's just the physical things. More passively I am not keen on Americans can pass their test at too young an age and they don't have to be taught via a dedicated professional. Automatic vehicles are getting more common in the UK but for youngsters who are taught to drive in them from the get-go it always seems to me to encourage poor driving. Modern ways of teaching driving has changed from when I passed my test as they seem to concentrate now on gas and brake. I received some weird looks from passengers as I was taught to go down through the gearbox to prepare slowing down safely before using the brakes.
Dedicated professional? Please anyone can be driving instructor in the UK 🤣
My school in NY hired a driver’s ed teacher to come to the school and teach the kids who signed up how to drive. Also, our driver’s test always has parallel parking in it. Can’t imagine having to just drive straight into a spot haha! Probably due to differences in the roadways in each state
😄
Did they teach the legal alcohol limits, how to do standardised field sobriety exercises, and how to do a breathalyser test?
I’m forever in the manual transmission boat. I will never forget the day that my car battery died and I couldn’t find jumper cables. Just needed someone to push while I popped the clutch and then drove on over to the AutoZone to get a new battery. Yay for not being stranded! Yes, It’s bad on the clutch but it’ll get you out in a pinch and your battery shouldn’t be dying often enough to cut much life out of the clutch.
Yes, you cant push start a slushbox!
Possibly the use of hazard lights to say thank you in the UK is because so many cars have tinted windows now a days and you want to acknowledge polite driving.
The correct side of the road is the left. The right side may be correct at sea or in the air. The right hand side of the road is the wrong side of the road. Modern roads that follow the route of Roman roads are straight.
Driving a left hand drive K5 Chevy Blazer as my everyday car here in the UK made it harder for me to remember to drive on the left when we visited my sister in California. I found driving in Ca very pleasant and the drivers polite. Driving in and around San Francisco was a lot less stressfull than driving aroung Glasgow or Edinburgh.
It's true that the vast majority of British roads have curves, bends and twisty bits in them, but from personal experience there is one area of Britain with some long straight roads. And that is the Lincolnshire fenland area around Boston. Quite a few times I used to drive on a road that was six or seven miles long without any deviations. I know it's not on the scale of roads in the US, and neither am I claiming it is the longest straight road either in the area or the UK.
We do have stop signs in the UK, but really only at junctions that people need to take more care at.
In Virginia, formal driving lessons are required to get a license if you are a teenager. You must have 45 hours logged behind the wheel. Your formal driving lessons instructor gives you your test and it’s not in a parking lot. My kids were taken on the Beltway around Washington DC for their test. Then you have to go to court to get your permanent license from a judge. I learned to drive a stick at 18. My husband and I didn’t even own an automatic until 2006.
It isn’t “verse”. It is “versus”
If you like driving automatic, all EVs are single geared therefore you can hire a EV. Ie Tesla. There is a long straight road between Oxfordshire and Hampshire. It’s an old Roman road
I'm in UK in London, never knew that
I was just thinking ' he didn' t thank you!' at least I didn' t see any sign of a wave or a flash of lights. I am indignant on your behalf😆
If you let a drive out at a junction, they’ll normally flash their hazard lights as a way of saying thank you.
The edges of fields had to accommodate the swing of oxen drawn ploughs hence the roads following the edges are curved!
When I moved to Virginia from the uk I went to the dmv did an eye sight test theory test and the road test but that only consisted of going around the block compared to the uk test it was a joke and don't get me started on the motorcycle test I got my license for motorcycle without even going on the road
I moved to Canada and walked in gave them my license and walked out ten minutes later after a photograph with a license. No nothing at all.
Another difference I would say is toll roads. I remember driving in Florida and they seem to crop every 30 minutes or so, fuel may be cheaper but the tolls make up the difference. Toll roads are rare in the UK, various bridges (in England), and the Birmingham toll.
There is a quant toll road on a country road near Oxford however in the UK. Something in the deeds that go back hundreds of years and as I recall, one shilling to pass or 5p as it is now.
The local villagers take turns in manning the toll booth and take it very very seriously. I ended up on that road and I had not a penny on me, the toll man reluctantly let me through for free. A few minutes later I realised I had made a mistake and had to return, the only way was back through the toll. Never felt more sheepish in my life.
I think Tom Scott done a video about this bridge recently
They're very popular in europe, france has a good few and they're amazing.
Re the size of cars in the US. If the good folks in the US had to pay $12 a gallon for their petrol (gas), they would all be selling their 8mpg 6 litre engined cars. Us here in the UK look for economy before anything else, so cars tend to be under 2 litres in engine size, or diesels that give 50 - 70mpg. If we could get petrol for £1/gal, we would all be driving V8s 😁😁
This is so true.
Differences I have noted as a UK driver and frequent US passenger - UK has no turn on red, US traffic lights go from green to red with out our red and amber in between. Having been the ‘map reader/sat nav reader’ many times in the US, the road signage is not as good as in the UK. There are far fewer toll roads in the UK.
I can confirm there are many ‘British’ size and style roads in West Virginia, with American size cars on then!
In the US and many other European countries, cars can turn across a light-controlled pedestrian crossing when it is a green man. In those cases, 'green man' just means 'it's kind of a bit safer to cross but you can still get run over' whereas in the UK you know you have the crossing to yourself unless some driver is being a tit.
So bends in the roads are so uncommon that you have warning lights and a sign to let you know that there is a bend in the road! Hahaha (it was only a gentle curve, not a bend)
I thought Drivers Ed had been phased out in a lot of areas? I have a couple of friends in Oregon who did drivers ed at school. Nowadays though, their kids have to pay privately for lessons like in UK (and it's mandatory for under 18s as well).
I would also say that flashing front lights is more often about saying "After you" than "thankyou". Although, you will often see people flash their lights to indicate the other person can go first and then that person flashes their lights at an appropriate time to say thankyou afterwards.
The law on flashing headlights in the UK is very clear: it is supposed to be used only to warn other road users that you are there, the same as sounding your horn. In practice, people do it to indicate all kinds of different things, which can lead to the confusion and misunderstandings which the law is intended to prevent.
I am British and I too opted for an automatic only licemce. Automatic cars are around £1000 more than manual transmissions x
Good Girl! You impress me within the first 30 seconds of your video. Those few words are enough for me to feel comfortable if you were driving the vehicle I was travelling in. Far too many people (even most so-called professionals) make the grievous error of trying to share the eye time between a camera and the road. Personally having spent all my working life behind a steering wheel professionally; I never ever take my eyes from the road. For "road" read in front, to the sides, the rear-view mirrors and the vehicles various gauges. And even after fifty odd year on the road I don't had the audacity to call myself a "Good Driver", only a "Highly Experienced" one.
If you want a straight road , stick to old Roman ones, mostly straight as a dye.
You really need a stick shift if you live somewhere with steep hills and tight bends. The automatic system can only react to what is currently happening. It can't plan ahead for you. sometimes, you want to be in the "wrong" gear for a short time, to save shifting at a bad time, or running out of momentum
Sounds like you need more experience driving an auto on steep hills and tight bends.
Another reason why us Brits drive manual gearbox cars is also if the gearbox fails in any way and you need to get a new gearbox they are cheaper to buy than an automatic gearbox.
Is it
Historically the manual gearbox was cheaper (less complicated) lighter in weight as a consequence and more fuel efficient
@@Mark13091961 and now. I will agree historically they were crap
Straight roads - try the A5, starting at Edgware Road.
A round about are a traffic control measure, used correctly they allow traffic to flow.
Fun video. Just a point though - London is very well set out for public transport - the UK isn't. That's because they spend up to 8x per head on London transport than they do for the rest of the UK. So you might have a slightly skewed perception there.
Compared to the USA the public transport in the UK is superb.
@@RushfanUK In big towns and cities it is. Today I had to get a taxi because otherwise I would have had to wait an hour for the next bus in a small English town.
Yet our Rail network, urban bus services and nationwide coach services belong to another galaxy compared not only to America's but to most W Europe countries As well
@@sarribel I had this conversation with an American staying with me. He was shocked how smooth his travelling from A to B was here in the London. We take it for granted and like to moan about it but we should appreciate what we have.
@@manmaas In London, sure. Try doing the same thing in Newcastle, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, or (god forbid) a town outside of London that isn't a city. You will have a *very* different experience.
Curvy roads... We actually put curves in the roads deliberately. It gives drivers something to do, and thus helps to stop them falling asleep. You have to be paying attention to stay on the roads. We did build straight roads for a long time, so there are still some around, but not many anymore, we engineered the straightness out deliberately.
There are still straight roads. A15 north of Lincoln, A16 south of Boston, A1198 south of Huntingdon, B1183 north of Frithville, B6403. They don't go on for hundreds of miles like some in the USA though.
@@martinconnelly1473 Yep, there's a really nice one that goes across countryside into the top of Bude.
Likely to be military roads, possibly Roman.
The reason for Roundabouts was to reduce the number of traffic accidents caused by bad drivers that ran the red light at the traffic lights.