Posted on 08/31/2014 12:55:44 PM PDT by the scotsman
We drive on the left, but which side do we walk on?
'Some friends from Australia asked me this question as we battled down London's Oxford Street the other day, weaving our way through determined shoppers, rushing office workers and ambling tourists.
The answer is we don't. The British have little sense of pavement etiquette, preferring a slalom approach to pedestrian progress. When two strangers approach each other, it often results in the performance of a little gavotte as they double-guess in which direction the other will turn.
The British are ambulatory anarchists. We are oblivious to the Rules for pedestrians helpfully published by Her Majesty's Government. There are 35 in total but, frankly, who knew and who cares?
Rule Number One tells us we must "avoid being next to the kerb with your back to the traffic" which implies we ought to walk on the left of the pavement. Such advice is blithely ignored, as any stroll down a busy high street will confirm.
An attempt to bring order to this chaos was suggested in 2000, amid reports of rising "pavement rage". The Fast Lane Campaign proposed designated coloured lanes for pedestrians walking along Oxford Street in London - a fast lane for those rushing to get from A to B and a slow lane for window-shoppers and dawdlers.
Inevitably, the idea was laughed away. One group representing the rights of pedestrians dismissed it as anathema to the anarchic spirit of British walkers.
The British are bemused by countries which police pedestrians - treating those who don't use designated crossings as criminals.
Telling people how to walk is simply not British.'
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.co.uk ...
Yes, they walk silly and do not know how to spell curb.
Drive a car and this is a non-problem.
Pity for Saint Swisher he wasn’t a Python fan. It possibly could have raised his IQ a point or two and saved his life.
Walk This Way
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKttENbsoyk
That’s silly.
Our curb means to restraint something or someone.
Hence why we use ‘kerb’ when talking about the edge of a pavement.
Quite sensible imo.
The curb restrains errant cars...
Anyone who’s ever walked in Midtown Manhattan on a weekday knows that New Yorkers aren’t big believers in “sidewalk etiquette” either.
Seems I recall one etiquette rule (British?), that the gentleman walk on the outside or next to the kerb/curb and protect the lady from carriage splashes or other refuse (horse manure?) thrown up from the street. (I had 19th century relatives.)
“Advice for foreigners on how Britons walk”
Don’t you guys walk with your tails between your legs, at least when it comes to standing up to “new arrivals” that rape your native girls by the THOUSANDS?
Most British men still do that, albeit unconsciously most of the time.
Same here, I feel ill at ease if I am walking on the inside. It’s like standing for a lady or opening the door for her nibs—it’s inbred, I suppose.
Like tyred cars and storeyed buildings :)
Ouch!
Is this from The Ministry of Silly Walks?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.