Transcript of Bitesize Ep 93- Transcript

Charlie :
Hello and welcome back to the British English Podcast. I'm your host, Charlie Baxter, here to help you not only speak British English, but also think like a Brit. Today, we're going to be getting into a topic that I'm sure many of you have wondered about. Um, no, not not why the British people drink an English breakfast tea at any time of the day, including just before bed. Um, no, it's it's it's. Why on earth do we drive on the left side of the road? Now, I know some of you, especially those of you from countries that drive on the quote unquote right. Or should I say the wrong the wrong side of the road, might think we're a bit mad for sticking to the left, but let me tell you, there's a method to our madness. And by the end of this episode, you'll see why driving on the left is, in fact far from mad, but even the right way to drive. Yes, we're in the minority. About 35% of the world drives on the left, but sometimes being in the minority is a sign you're on to something special. Like, um, you know, having baked beans for breakfast. So buckle up, baby. Adjust your mirrors and let's hit the road, Jack. And don't you come back until you're driving on the left side. Which makes total sense, even if the rest of the world is telling us no. All right, first up, let's get to the history. The history.

Charlie :
Um, you might be wondering why the UK, Japan, Australia and a number of other countries drive on the left. And it turns out it's not just because we like to be different. Um, historically, it's and I don't mean to rub you up the wrong way, but it is the correct side to travel on, at least if you want to stay alive. You see, back in the day, and I'm talking way back before cars, we rode horses, not hatchbacks. So here's the proof. Most people actually let me check. Okay, roughly 90% of the world's population are right handed. So imagine you're on your horse trotting along in medieval Britain and some shady character approaches you on their horse. Right? You're about 50m away. Getting closer. Clop clop clop. Imagine you've got a sword and you want to protect yourself. You don't want to, you know, get it out now because that shows that you're the shady character, but you want to have it ready, and you want to be able to defend yourself effectively, right? Now think about which side you want them passing. Do you want them passing on your left side where your sword is stowed because your right handed? And which would mean you would have to bring the sword out, and then you'd have to lean across your horse trying to attack them or defend on the far side from where your right hand is. No, you want them on the other side.

Charlie :
You want them passing you on your right side. So you are on the left side of the of the track, if you will, and the stranger that is coming towards you is on your right side because your dominant hand, your sword hand is available to defend or attack if you're the naughty one. Easy-peasy right? Have I just blown your mind? You may be thinking, come on, Charlie, if that's all you've got, I'm just going to change to another episode. Well, just. I've got more, I've got more. Trust me, I've got more. But when I heard that, I was like, oh my God. Yeah, that makes total sense, right? It's all about survival. It's all about feeling, um, ready for the attacker coming past you. So this wasn't just a British thing. People all over the world followed this custom. Like even in Japan, samurai, in fact, would keep their swords on their left side of their body for the very same reason. The left side habit was practical and we Brits just happened to stick with it all the way into the era of cars. But why didn't the whole world keep this sensible tradition? Well, as with many things, we have Napoleon or his full name was his full name Napoleon Bonaparte. Is that right? Is that how you say it? Let's see how they say it in French.

Charlie :
Oh That's lovely. Napoleon Bonaparte. I haven't quite got it. I sound a bit Italian, I think. Or just like a Brit trying to be Italian instead of French. But yes, Napoleon. We all know Napoleon, right? Hopefully you do. The former emperor of the French. We have him to thank for a lot of things. Or blame or blame, depending on your perspective. You see, Napoleon, and bless his short stature, was a lefty. Meaning he was a left handed person. He was a lefty and he wanted his armies to march on the right. So his sword hand, his left could stay free for battle. Um, I don't quite understand why that's the case. Why? Why would he want that? But I'm going to leave it there. I've. I've had a little Google, and the images show that this was the case. So he did want everyone on his, on his right so he could yield his weapon on the left. Now, when Napoleon conquered half of Europe, it seems the whole emperor thing went to his head a bit and he started to realise that he could really call the shots. Right. You know, you've just conquered half of Europe. So he made right side travel, the rule in the territories he controlled. I mean, it kind of makes sense because it shows that you've conquered that land, I suppose, right? I don't know, to be honest. I'm out of my depth here. I've not conquered anything, and I don't really know how I'd feel if I did.

Charlie :
I'd probably say sorry. Um. And then say Either side is fine and that would be chaos. So I'd be doing a worse job than Napoleon. So just to clarify, I'm probably not as great an emperor as Napoleon was. And shock horror, I know, shock horror, right? So this little right side revolution spread through mainland Europe and voila, France, Germany, Italy and the rest of the continent started driving on the right. But here in the UK, obviously, we said, um, you're all right, mate, jog on. Because, I mean, we weren't about to let Napoleon tell us what to do. Oh no. No siree. So we stuck to our trusty left side ways because we knew we were right, even if the rest of Europe decided to switch sides. And then if we look at other nations like Japan, I think it also helps being an island nation, because you don't have that confusion at the border. Right? But yeah, Japan, they had their own reasons for driving on the left. But when they started modernising their infrastructure during the insert word that I don't know how to say. Maggie. Maggie. Meiji. Meiji restoration. They turned to the UK. Was it the UK or was it just England or Great Britain then? So the UK was founded in 1801 and we're talking about a time 1868. Okay. Wow. Okay. So it was the UK. So they turned to the UK for help building their railways.

Charlie:
If you've forgotten, we're talking about Japan. So when the British engineers came and built the trains, they were like, um, we put the trains on the left and yeah, that kind of works. So do you want to do that? And they said yes. And um, yeah, the rest is history. Japan continued to be another proud left side driver and they haven't looked back since. But what about America? I hear you say. Now I know what you're thinking. Napoleon. He didn't get over there, did he? No, no, Napoleon Bonaparte never made it to America. So? So true. You're right. He didn't conquer America. So why do the Yanks drive on the right? Well, it's got nothing to do with swords and everything to do with wagons. Yeah, you heard me. Wagons. Back in the 18th and 19th centuries, Americans were using massive freight wagons to move goods across the country. But these wagons didn't actually come with a built in driver's seat because they were trying to maximise the load. And they were like, oh, the driver can figure that out. So the driver would have to sit on one of the horses. So think about it yourself. You've got a massive wagon and you've got at least four horses pulling this wagon, which horse would you sit on? If you're right handed and you need to control the reins, and possibly, if you're into that kind of thing, whip a horse now and again to keep them trotting along.

Charlie:
So which hand do you want? You want your right hand to whip, right? And again, think about the sword kind of thing. Do you want the horses on your right side or your left side? You want them on your right, don't you? You don't want to lean across and whip. How would you get the one right next to you? It's impossible. So they chose to sit on the back left horse. Now stay with me. If you're sitting on the left, where do you want oncoming traffic to pass? You want it on the left, of course, so you can see them because you can't really see past the the horse on your right that is going past the traffic. If it was going past on that side. So you want to pass them on the left side, so you can easily judge how close you are to that wagon. You know they didn't have roadside assistance back then. Hitting another wagon or a horse was catastrophic. You know, you can't just. I mean, it is a long wait, I understand. You have to wait at least 3 to 5 hours sometimes to get rescued from roadside assistance, which in some countries, depending on how blessed you are in your culture, that can be one of the most traumatising events of the year for many people. It was a nightmare. I was on the side of the road for.

Charlie:
Five hours and I didn't have a single bit of food.

Charlie:
Not gonna lie, I've had too many coffees today. I had one at 3:00, which is way too late for me. Way too late. So basically you're on the left side. You want to pass on the left. So this means they kept to the right side of the road, So it wasn't a Frenchman that arrogantly made the Americans change their way. It just made sense for them with those big freight wagons. And as America grew and modernised, this right side custom stuck. And by the time cars came along, it was already the norm. Plus, you know, they were trying to revolt against the British Empire. What better way to say f you than by doing something completely opposite to the colonising country? And that's how the right side of the road became the norm in the States. Now, you might be wondering, is there any real difference in safety between driving on the left versus the right? And actually there is. Research shows that left side driving gives us that have chosen to stick to the left side. It gives us an edge when it comes to visibility and safety. But before I tell you, I do want to warn you that we're now officially getting into the weeds, right? Um, so being that most people are right eye dominant, driving on the left means your right eye. Your stronger eye is closer to the oncoming traffic, giving you a better view of what's happening on the road. I know, I know, I warned you, we're getting pedantic now, but, um, you know, to quote a great philosopher called Dominic Toretto from The Fast and the furious, it doesn't matter if you win by an inch or a mile.

Charlie:
Winning is winning. Um, I'll let you make the logical leap as to why I said that. Because, to be honest, I'm not even sure myself. But to continue to prove why left is right and right is wrong. Um huh. It feels more natural to keep your stronger hand. Your right hand. The most of us on the steering wheel. Now, I know the hand position ten and two is what the driving instructors of the world teach us. But for the most part, people adopt a one handed approach to try and mimic the great philosopher Dominic Toretto. As soon as the l-plates are removed. Right. And, you know, with manual cars, you're changing gears with your left hand in a car in the UK, and you're dealing with the radio and the aircon and stuff, which leaves the dominant hand or arm securely in place. Whereas in comparison, the Germans, they're bombing down that autobahn at 200 miles an hour, holding the steering wheel with just the non-dominant hand, which just seems outrageous, is it not? Hey, come on, you guys, that is just naughty. And let's also speak about those pesky cyclists for a moment. I use that term confidently as I am a keen cyclist, so I think that means I'm allowed to take the piss out of cyclists.

Charlie:
That's how it works, isn't it? A pesky cyclist I'm one of those pesky cyclists, huh? Either way, driving on the left also means that cyclists are more likely to mount and dismount on the kerb side of the road, making it safer for them as well. And if that just went over your head, just think about what side of a bike or even like a horse. Would you try to get on it? Now? Unless you're the 10 to 15% of lefties in the world, you will be inclined to mount a bike from the left side of it. Your right side dominant. You want to get on it from the left side. If you are an anomaly, let me know in the comments. I think Spotify now encourages comments in each episode, which is lovely to read, isn't it? So yeah, get active in there if you want. This is obviously a controversial topic, isn't it? So yeah, if you're in a country that drives on the right, this means your body is standing on the inside of the bike, which would be like in the middle of the road, not the middle of the road. But, you know, you would be the middle of the road side, which would make it more dangerous than mounting from the kerb side. Um, yes. I am aware that this episode is probably more dangerous than all of the above mentioned, as it could well be sending some drivers to sleep as I speak, so I've likely done no one any favours with this one.

Charlie:
So we'll wrap it up by saying, um, you know, driving on the right might be more common worldwide, but we left siders have some solid logic on our side. So to the 65% of you listening, you're just doing it wrong. Okay, now, I'm sure most of you will be annoyed by that statement, but if for some reason it does inspire you to change your ways, then please take it up with your local government first. And don't just take action upon it yourself because unfortunately, they will arrest you for reckless driving fairly quickly. Or worse, you'll end up challenging everyone you come across to a game of chicken before the inevitable head on collision with someone who's either in need of an ego boost or they're just texting on their phone. So yeah, I'm not trying to change the world. Um. Shock, horror. I'm not a Napoleon, right? I'm not Napoleon. So don't just change sides because I said so, as that sadly won't hold up in court. Thankfully, that's all for today's episode. I kind of jest. I hope you enjoyed this nerdy little deep dive into the left versus right driving debate. And this was all thanks to a student who came to the live podcast event in London who gave me a lovely book called Brilliant Maps An Atlas for Curious Minds. I have a curious mind, it seems.

Charlie:
And I hope you have a curious mind. And you didn't fall asleep at the wheel for today's episode. But yeah, if you've got any thoughts on this or any stories to share about driving in different countries, feel free to leave a comment on Spotify or find me on Instagram at the British English Podcast as I'd love to read your thoughts. Okay, until next time, stay on the same side of the road. Please don't swap over. It'll be carnage. And drive safe. You've been listening to me, Charlie, and the host of the British English Podcast. Bye bye.