Ok folks, we just got home. I put 1800 miles on a rental car (Audi A4) with a GPS navigation system and all I can say is that if you are planning on going to the UK and you are planning on driving around the country, then please reconsider! Driving on the WRONG SIDE of the road, on narrow country lanes, is not only confusing but it is stressful.
We had a GREAT vacation. People were friendly. The weather was not as bad as we expected but it was generally cooler than we anticipated, summer weather in much of the UK is roughly 60 to 65 degrees during the day, we are more used to 80 to 90 degree summer temperatures. Consequently we purchased some additional sweaters and were glad we brought light jackets. But all that said, the driving sucks.
ROUNDABOUTS are idiotic. I've posted that before, but there is no way to underestimate the confusion some of them cause as it is common to encounter MULTIPLE ROUNDABOUTS that are strung together with about 300 yards between them. I encountered one set that had 4 "roundabouts" in a row, but is was not uncommon to find them in pairs or in a series of 3. A roundabout is basically a 3, 4 or 5 way intersection. They are typically marked with 1 sign in advance and then each of the possible exits is marked, but at an odd angle making viewing it difficult. Also many of these things have 2 or 3 lanes and if you are in the wrong lane you may find yourself going around in a full circle so you can get back to the turn you missed (happened to us 2 or 3 times).
The roads are so damn narrow that they are absurd. Seriously dangerously absurd. MANY of the rural bridges are 1 lane wide but on 2 way roads, encountering another vehicle is more common than you'd suspect on these roads. MANY of the rural roads ("B" class roads) are so narrow that you must pull off the roadway when you encounter oncoming traffic and both cars end up with 2 wheels off the pavement . . . some of these roads were too narrow to allow passing because STONE WALLS were built right to the edge of the road and 1 car would have to back up to a wide spot.
Here in the US we figure about 1 mile per minute for travel time when going any modest distance. In the UK, figure more like 1 mile for every 2 to 3 minutes. So while distances are modest, travel times are MUCH longer than you'd anticipate.
"M" class roads are their version of our "interstate" highways, but they have higher speeds, shorter approach ramps, and narrower lanes.
Did we have fun? Yup. But driving really was fairly unpleasant most of the time, downright scary sometimes, and don't even try to park . . . that topic could be its own thread!
We had a GREAT vacation. People were friendly. The weather was not as bad as we expected but it was generally cooler than we anticipated, summer weather in much of the UK is roughly 60 to 65 degrees during the day, we are more used to 80 to 90 degree summer temperatures. Consequently we purchased some additional sweaters and were glad we brought light jackets. But all that said, the driving sucks.
ROUNDABOUTS are idiotic. I've posted that before, but there is no way to underestimate the confusion some of them cause as it is common to encounter MULTIPLE ROUNDABOUTS that are strung together with about 300 yards between them. I encountered one set that had 4 "roundabouts" in a row, but is was not uncommon to find them in pairs or in a series of 3. A roundabout is basically a 3, 4 or 5 way intersection. They are typically marked with 1 sign in advance and then each of the possible exits is marked, but at an odd angle making viewing it difficult. Also many of these things have 2 or 3 lanes and if you are in the wrong lane you may find yourself going around in a full circle so you can get back to the turn you missed (happened to us 2 or 3 times).
The roads are so damn narrow that they are absurd. Seriously dangerously absurd. MANY of the rural bridges are 1 lane wide but on 2 way roads, encountering another vehicle is more common than you'd suspect on these roads. MANY of the rural roads ("B" class roads) are so narrow that you must pull off the roadway when you encounter oncoming traffic and both cars end up with 2 wheels off the pavement . . . some of these roads were too narrow to allow passing because STONE WALLS were built right to the edge of the road and 1 car would have to back up to a wide spot.
Here in the US we figure about 1 mile per minute for travel time when going any modest distance. In the UK, figure more like 1 mile for every 2 to 3 minutes. So while distances are modest, travel times are MUCH longer than you'd anticipate.
"M" class roads are their version of our "interstate" highways, but they have higher speeds, shorter approach ramps, and narrower lanes.
Did we have fun? Yup. But driving really was fairly unpleasant most of the time, downright scary sometimes, and don't even try to park . . . that topic could be its own thread!
