Posted on 06/06/2013 7:22:11 PM PDT by DogByte6RER
3rd September 1967:
Traffic in Sweden switched from driving on the left to driving on the right
“Dagen H (H day) was the day on which traffic in Sweden switched from driving on the left-hand side of the road to the right. The change was widely unpopular, The campaign included displaying the Dagen H logo on various commemorative items, including milk cartons, men’s shorts and women’s underwear. Swedish television held a contest for songs about the change; the winning entry was Håll dig till höger, Svensson (‘Keep to the right, Svensson’) by Rock-Boris.”
(Excerpt) Read more at retronaut.com ...
Ping
Cracked.com?
That site is run by a bunch of liberal toons.
Good start for Sweden.
Now, time to switch from left side politics to right side politics.
They should have eased into the switch by having the cars drive on the left and trucks on the right. (cough cough)
I recall when that happened in Eastern Kentucky ~ at night! WITH NO HEADLIGHTS EITHER
In the US we tend to stay to the right when going down a supermarket isle or walking on the sidewalk... it's just the opposite somewhere like Britain.
Push your grocery trolley down the right side of the supermarket isle in London and you will cause a pile up :-)
Ping to the Swedish Ping List.
BAD IDEERS PING!
Did the driving patterns that emerged after the automobile became popular (affordable) reflect the patterns that horse and buggy traffic was using?
If you look it up, 60% of the world’s population drives on the right, and 40% on the left, mostly because China drives on the left.
I’ve never had to drive on the left myself, but its scared the holy hell out of me in several Caribbean countries, especially when heading into a roundabout.
Actually, that’s a darn good question.
Can I get on this list?
There are plenty of early photographs of pre-automobile traffic in American cities. I haven’t paid attention, I guess.
e.g. US Virgin Islands.
Drive on the left with left hand cars (wheel closest to the shoulder). Now that's a seat biter!
It’s really not that difficult to switch. When driving, just make sure the driver is toward the middle of the road and the passengers are on the side of the road.
I make the switch frequently. I am a US citizen and I work in Indonesia. The only problems occur is when there is no other traffic on the road.
You should see my kids though when I drive on the left in the US. They really hollar at me, “MOM GET OVER YOU’RE IN THE MIDDLE!!!!” Me: “NO ONE ELSE IS AROUND. WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL?” I try to do that at least once when I’m in the states.
Sorta reminds one of Massachusetts, where everyone drives in the middle.
But it probably is as old as roads. Also ships have similar rules.
Nope. Japan does. From the air, I think Japan look a lot like England, except the pattern of the fields is more regular. The similarity is spooky for the brief period of time between when you can see traffic moving on the left side of the road, and when you can see the Japanese writing on bill boards and buildings.
Of course every Englishman and every Japanese I have ever mentioned that too has taken offense...
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