Left-hand traffic feels wrong for about twenty minutes and then becomes automatic — if you set a few habits before you leave the airport car park.
Before you move
- Set the mirrors and the seat while parked, and note where the indicator stalk is on your right, not your left.
- Decide in advance: the left lane is the slow lane, the right lane is for overtaking.
- Adjust the air conditioning and phone mount before you start; do not fiddle at the first junction.
The first hour
Leave the airport and follow one main road for a while without turning. The biggest mistake is turning into the wrong lane at an intersection while thinking about navigation. Set the route so the first ten minutes are straight.
- At roundabouts, flow is clockwise.
- When turning left, you cross no traffic; when turning right, you cross the oncoming flow — take your time.
- Keep the centre line on your right. If you find yourself with the line on your left, you are in the wrong lane: stop and correct it.
Quick self-checks
- Wipers and indicators are swapped compared with European cars — the first surprise turn will clean the windscreen. Fine, just do not panic.
- When reversing out of a parking bay, remember the driver’s side is the right-hand one.
- On multi-lane roads, stay in the left lane unless overtaking; the right lane is not a cruising lane.
By the time you reach your hotel you will have stopped thinking about it. The adaptation is short; the habits you set beforehand decide how smooth it is.
