View source for Left- and right-hand traffic

{{short description|Directionality of traffic flow by jurisdiction}}
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[[File:Countries driving on the left or right.svg|thumb|upright=1.35|Countries by direction of road traffic, 2020s
{{legend|#204A87|Left-hand traffic}} {{legend|#CC0000|Right-hand traffic}} {{legend|#808080|No data}}]]

'''Left-hand traffic''' ('''LHT''') and '''right-hand traffic''' ('''RHT''') are the practices, in [[bidirectional traffic]], of keeping to the left side or to the right side of the road, respectively. They are fundamental to [[traffic flow]], and are sometimes called the ''[[Traffic#Rules of the road|rule of the road]]''.<ref name="kincaid">{{Cite book |last=Kincaid |first=Peter |title=The Rule of the Road: An International Guide to History and Practice |publisher=Greenwood Press |date=December 1986 |pages=50, 86–88, 99–100, 121–122, 198–202 |isbn=978-0-313-25249-5}}</ref> The terms right- and left-hand ''drive'' refer to the position of the driver and the [[steering wheel]] in the vehicle and are, in automobiles, the reverse of the terms right- and left-hand ''traffic''. The rule also includes where on the road a vehicle is to be driven, if there is room for more than one vehicle in one direction, and the side on which the vehicle in the rear overtakes the one in the front. For example, a driver in an LHT country would typically overtake on the right of the vehicle being overtaken.

RHT is used in 165 countries and territories, mainly in the Americas, [[Continental Europe]], most of Africa and mainland Asia (except [[South Asia]] and [[Thailand]]), while 75 countries use LHT,<ref name="chartsbin">{{cite web|title=Worldwide Driving Orientation by Country|url=http://chartsbin.com/view/edr|access-date=13 December 2016|archive-date=25 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225111225/http://chartsbin.com/view/edr|url-status=live}}{{Circular reference|date=November 2020}}</ref> which account for about a sixth of the world's land area, a quarter of its roads, and about a third of its population.<ref name="wsj">{{cite news |last1=Barta |first1=Patrick |title=Shifting the Right of Way to the Left Leaves Some Samoans Feeling Wronged |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB125086852452149513 |work=The Wall Street Journal |access-date=4 December 2016 |archive-date=5 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220605100337/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB125086852452149513 |url-status=live }}{{subscription required}}</ref> In 1919, 104 of the world's territories were LHT and an equal number were RHT. Between 1919 and 1986, 34 of the LHT territories switched to RHT.<ref name="watson">{{cite web|last1=Watson|first1=Ian|title=The rule of the road, 1919–1986: A case study of standards change|url=http://www.ianwatson.org/rule_of_the_road.pdf|access-date=30 November 2016|archive-date=10 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211010161416/http://www.ianwatson.org/rule_of_the_road.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

While many of the countries using LHT were part of the [[British Empire]], others such as [[Indonesia]], [[Japan]], [[Nepal]], [[Bhutan]], [[Macau]], [[Thailand]], [[Mozambique]] and [[Suriname]] were not. [[Sweden]] and [[Iceland]], which have used RHT since [[Dagen H|September 1967]] and [[H-dagurinn|late May 1968]] respectively, previously used LHT. Most of the countries that were part of the [[French colonial empire|French Colonial Empire]] adopted RHT.

Historical switches of traffic handedness have often been motivated by factors such as changes in political administration, a desire for uniformity within a country or with neighboring states, or availability and affordability of vehicles.

In LHT, traffic keeps left and cars usually have the steering wheel on the right (RHD: right-hand drive) and [[roundabout]]s circulate clockwise. RHT is the opposite: traffic keeps right, the driver usually sits on the left side of the car (LHD: left-hand drive), and roundabouts circulate counterclockwise.

In most countries, rail traffic follows the handedness of the roads; but many of the countries that switched road traffic from LHT to RHT did not switch their trains. Boat traffic on [[Body of water|bodies of water]] is RHT, regardless of location. Boats are traditionally piloted from the [[starboard]] side (and not the port side like RHT road traffic vehicles) to facilitate [[priority to the right]].

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==Background==
[[File:Driving standards historic.svg|thumb|upright=1.35|Countries with left- and right-hand traffic, currently and formerly. Changes since 1858 when [[Finland]] changed to the right are taken into account.<br/>{{legend|#cc0000|Drives on the right}}{{legend|#f57900|Formerly drove on the left, now drives on the right}}{{legend|#204a87|Drives on the left}}{{legend|#5c3566|Formerly drove on the right, now drives on the left}}{{legend|#4e9a06|Formerly a mix of left and right in various parts of the country, now drives on the right}}{{legend|#FFFF00|Formerly a mix of left and right in various parts of the country, now drives on the left}}{{legend|#808080|No data}}]]

Historically, many places kept left, while many others kept right, often within the same country. There are many myths that attempt to explain why one or the other is preferred.<ref name="mcmanus"/> About 90 percent of people are [[handedness|right-handed]],<ref>{{cite news |last1=Searing |first1=Linda |title=The Big Number: Lefties make up about 10 percent of the world |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/the-big-number-lefties-make-up-about-10-percent-of-the-world/2019/08/09/69978100-b9e2-11e9-bad6-609f75bfd97f_story.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=27 November 2019 |archive-date=12 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190812171100/https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/the-big-number-lefties-make-up-about-10-percent-of-the-world/2019/08/09/69978100-b9e2-11e9-bad6-609f75bfd97f_story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and many explanations reference this. Horses are traditionally mounted from the left, and led from the left, with the reins in the right hand. So people walking horses might use RHT, to keep the animals separated. Also referenced is the need for pedestrians to keep their swords in the right hand and pass on the left as in LHT, for self-defence. It has been suggested that wagon-drivers whipped their horses with their right hand, and thus sat on the left-hand side of the wagon, as in RHT. Academic Chris McManus notes that writers have stated that in 1300, [[Pope Boniface VIII]] directed pilgrims to keep left; others suggest that he directed them to keep to the right, and there is no documented evidence to back either claim.<ref name="mcmanus"/>

===Africa===
{{multiple image
|width = 100
|footer = Roundabout signs used in [[Southern African Development Community]]
|image1 = SADC road sign R137.svg
|caption1 = LHT roundabout
|image2 = SADC road sign R137-RHT.svg
|caption2 = RHT roundabout
}}The British Empire introduced LHT in the [[East Africa Protectorate]] (present-day [[Kenya]]), the [[Protectorate of Uganda]], [[Tanganyika Territory|Tanganyika]] (formerly part of [[German East Africa]]; present-day [[Tanzania]]), [[Rhodesia]] (present-day [[Zambia]]/[[Zimbabwe]]), [[Eswatini]] and the [[Cape Colony]] (present-day [[South Africa]] and [[Lesotho]]), as well as in [[British West Africa]] (present-day Ghana, Gambia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria);<ref name="TBD Gambia">[https://books.google.com/books?id=22wMAQAAIAAJ&q=%22drive+on+the+right%22 ''Tourist and Business Directory – The Gambia''], 1969, page 19</ref> former British West Africa, however, has now switched to RHT, as all its neighbours, which are mostly former French territories, use RHT. South Africa, formerly the Cape Colony, introduced LHT in former [[German South West Africa]], present-day [[Namibia]], after the end of [[World War I]].

Sudan, formerly part of [[Anglo-Egyptian Sudan]], switched to RHT in 1973.  Most of its neighbours were RHT countries, with the exception of Uganda and Kenya, but since the independence of [[South Sudan]] in 2011, all of its neighbours drive on the right (including South Sudan, despite its land borders with two LHT countries).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/acc_e/ssd_e/wtaccssd6_leg_51.pdf|title=LAWS OF SOUTH SUDAN, ROAD TRAFFIC AND SAFETY BILL, 2012|access-date=21 May 2020|archive-date=30 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730014335/https://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/acc_e/ssd_e/wtaccssd6_leg_51.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

Although [[Portugal]] switched to RHT in 1928, its [[Portuguese Mozambique|colony of Mozambique]] remained LHT because it has land borders with former British colonies (with LHT).

France introduced RHT in [[French West Africa]] and the [[Maghreb]],{{Citation needed|date=February 2020}} where it is still used. Countries in these areas include [[Mali]], [[Mauritania]], [[Ivory Coast]], [[Burkina Faso]], [[Benin]], [[Niger]], [[Morocco]], [[Algeria]], and [[Tunisia]]. Other French former colonies that are RHT include [[Cameroon]], [[Central African Republic]], [[Chad]], [[Djibouti]], [[Gabon]], and the [[Republic of the Congo]].

[[Rwanda]] and [[Burundi]] are RHT but are considering switching to LHT (see "Potential future shifts" section below).

===Americas===
====United States====
In the late 18th century, right-hand traffic started to be introduced in the United States based on [[teamster]]s' use of large freight wagons pulled by several pairs of horses and without a driver's seat; the (typically right-handed) [[postilion]] held his whip in his right hand and thus sat on the left rear horse, and therefore preferred other wagons passing on the left so that he would have a clear view of other vehicles.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lyoDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA37 |title=Why We Drive on the Right of the Road, ''Popular Science Monthly'', Vol.126, No.1, (January 1935), p.37 |access-date=25 April 2012|date=January 1935 }}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=February 2020}} The first keep-right law for [[driving in the United States]] was passed in 1792 and applied to the [[Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike]].<ref name="On The Right Side of the Road">{{cite web|url=https://highways.dot.gov/highway-history/general-highway-history/right-side-road|title=On The Right Side of the Road|last=Weingroff|first=Richard|publisher=United States Department of Transportation|access-date=10 January 2014|archive-date=6 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230906042810/https://highways.dot.gov/highway-history/general-highway-history/right-side-road|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Massachusetts]] formalized RHT in 1821.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://archives.lib.state.ma.us/handle/2452/110303|title=An Act Establishing the Law of the Road|publisher=Massachusetts General Court|access-date=14 February 2014|archive-date=18 September 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140918031615/http://archives.lib.state.ma.us/handle/2452/110303|url-status=live}}</ref> However, the [[National Road]] was LHT until 1850, "long after the rest of the country had settled on the keep-right convention".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hayes |first1=Brian |title=Infrastructure: a field guide to the industrial landscape |date=2005 |publisher=WW Norton |location=New York |isbn=0-393-05997-9 |page=330}}</ref> Today the United States is RHT except the [[United States Virgin Islands]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usvitourism.vi/travel_tips|title=Travel Tips &#124; US Virgin Islands|publisher=Usvitourism.vi|access-date=25 April 2012|archive-date=16 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110316035344/http://www.usvitourism.vi/travel_tips|url-status=dead}}</ref> which is LHT like many neighbouring islands.

Some special-purpose vehicles in the United States, like certain postal service trucks, garbage trucks, and parking-enforcement vehicles, are built with the driver's seat on the right for safer and easier access to the curb. A common example is the [[Grumman LLV]], which is used nationwide by the [[United States Postal Service|US Postal Service]] and by [[Canada Post]].

====Other countries in the Americas====
[[File:Nb-stj-1899.jpg|thumb|Parts of Canada were LHT until the 1920s, shown here in [[Saint John, New Brunswick]], 1898.]]

In Canada, the provinces of [[Quebec]] and [[Ontario]] were always RHT because they were created out of the former French colony of [[New France]].<ref name="cbc">{{cite news|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/new-brunswick-driving-laws-1.4925856|title=The day New Brunswick switched to driving on the right|publisher=CBC News|access-date=11 April 2019|archive-date=11 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411172313/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/new-brunswick-driving-laws-1.4925856|url-status=live}}</ref> The province of [[British Columbia]] changed to RHT in stages from 1920 to 1923,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.th.gov.bc.ca/publications/roadrunners/1966/1966_03_march.pdf|title=Change of Rule of Road in British Columbia 1920|date=March 1966|work=The British Columbia Road Runner|access-date=27 August 2017|archive-date=20 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171020071518/https://www.th.gov.bc.ca/publications/roadrunners/1966/1966_03_march.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://vancouversun.com/life/week+history+switching+from+left+right+thing/11625241/story.html|title=Week in History: Switching from the left was the right thing to do|last=Griffin|first=Kevin|date=1 January 2016|work=[[Vancouver Sun]]|access-date=26 August 2017|archive-date=27 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170827045523/http://www.vancouversun.com/life/week+history+switching+from+left+right+thing/11625241/story.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[New Brunswick]], [[Nova Scotia]], and [[Prince Edward Island]] in 1922, 1923, and 1924 respectively,<ref name="ns1758.ca">{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180808012644/http://ns1758.ca/auto/automobiles.html|url=http://ns1758.ca/auto/automobiles.html|title=Highway Driving Rule Changes Sides|last=Smith|first=Ivan|work=History of Automobiles – The Early Days in Nova Scotia, 1899–1949|archive-date=8 August 2018|access-date=27 August 2017}}</ref> and the [[Dominion of Newfoundland]] (part of Canada since 1949)<ref>{{cite web |last1=Snyder |first1=Timothy |last2=Rowe |first2=F.W. |title=Newfoundland Bill |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/newfoundland-bill |website=The Canadian Encyclopedia |access-date=30 July 2019}}</ref> in 1947, in order to allow traffic (without side switch) to or from the United States.<ref name="A triumph for left over right">{{cite news|url=https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/columnists/a-triumph-for-left-over-right-56169697.html|title=A triumph for left over right|last=Dyer|first=Gwynne|date=30 August 2009|newspaper=[[Winnipeg Free Press]]|access-date=27 August 2017|archive-date=27 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170827210937/https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/columnists/a-triumph-for-left-over-right-56169697.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the [[West Indies]], colonies and territories drive on the same side as their parent countries, except for the [[United States Virgin Islands]]. Many of the island nations are former British colonies and drive on the left, including [[Jamaica]], [[Antigua and Barbuda]], [[Barbados]], [[Dominica]], [[Grenada]], [[Saint Kitts and Nevis]], [[Saint Lucia]], [[Saint Vincent and the Grenadines]], [[Trinidad and Tobago]], and [[The Bahamas]]. However, most vehicles in The Bahamas,<ref name="bahamas">[https://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&tbm=bks&ei=wfvFXrzgILOg8gKPkoX4Dw&q=%22although+as+the+majority+of+the+hire+cars+are+left+hand+drive+American+models%22&oq=%22although+as+the+majority+of+the+hire+cars+are+left+hand+drive+American+models%22&gs_l=psy-ab.3...4639.4639.0.6200.1.1.0.0.0.0.93.93.1.1.0....0...1c.1.64.psy-ab..0.0.0....0.tSjFg70YGpM ''Dive the Bahamas: Complete Guide to Diving and Snorkelling''], Lawson Wood, Interlink Publishing Group, 2007, page 23</ref> [[Cayman Islands]],<ref name="caymans">[https://books.google.com/books?id=8UMDsRwk10AC&dq=%22cayman+islands%22+%22left+hand+drive%22&pg=PA46 ''Adventure Guide to the Cayman Islands''], Paris Permenter, John Bigley, Hunter Publishing, Inc, 2001, page 46</ref> [[Turks and Caicos Islands]]<ref name="turks and caicos">[https://books.google.com/books?id=EkeY2SlUEkwC&dq=%22Turks+and+Caicos%22+%22left+hand+drive%22&pg=PA50 ''Turks and Caicos''], Bradt Travel Guides, Annalisa Rellie, Tricia Hayne, 2008, page 50</ref> and both the [[British Virgin Islands]],<ref name="Fodor" /> and the [[United States Virgin Islands]] are LHD due to their being imported from the United States.<ref name="Fodor">[https://books.google.com/books?id=73995EWYNEsC&q=%22british+virgin+islands%22+%22left+hand+drive%22 ''U. S. and British Virgin Islands 2006''], Fodor's Travel Publications, 2005, page 28</ref>

[[File:International bridge - Letham, Guyana (23025487324).jpg|thumb|Crossover bridge near the [[Takutu River Bridge]] between Guyana (LHT) and Brazil (RHT)]]

[[Brazil]], a Portuguese colony until the early 19th century, had in the 19th and the early 20th century mixed rules, with some regions still on LHT, switching these remaining regions to RHT in 1928, the same year Portugal switched sides.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www2.camara.leg.br/legin/fed/decret/1920-1929/decreto-18323-24-julho-1928-516789-publicacaooriginal-1-pe.html|title=Decreto nº 18.323, de 24 de Julho de 1928|website=Cãmara dos Deputados|access-date=11 April 2019|archive-date=28 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230928082833/https://www2.camara.leg.br/legin/fed/decret/1920-1929/decreto-18323-24-julho-1928-516789-publicacaooriginal-1-pe.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Other Central and South American countries that later switched from LHT to RHT include Argentina,<ref>[https://www.infobae.com/sociedad/2024/06/10/el-dia-en-que-en-la-argentina-se-paralizo-el-transito-para-dejar-de-manejar-a-la-inglesa-y-circular-por-la-derecha/ El día en que en la Argentina se paralizó el tránsito para dejar de manejar “a la inglesa” y circular por la derecha] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250302170633/https://www.infobae.com/sociedad/2024/06/10/el-dia-en-que-en-la-argentina-se-paralizo-el-transito-para-dejar-de-manejar-a-la-inglesa-y-circular-por-la-derecha/ |date=2 March 2025 }}, ''Infobae'', 10 June 2024 (in Spanish).</ref> Panama,<ref>[http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1943/04/25/page/10/article/panama-shifts-to-right-handed-driving-of-cars Panama Shifts To Right Handed Driving Of Cars] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170111081559/http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1943/04/25/page/10/article/panama-shifts-to-right-handed-driving-of-cars |date=11 January 2017 }}, ''[[Chicago Tribune]]'', 25 April 1943</ref> Paraguay,<ref>[http://www.abc.com.py/edicion-impresa/suplementos/abc-revista/enterese-1219611.html De izquierda a derecha] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303225444/http://www.abc.com.py/edicion-impresa/suplementos/abc-revista/enterese-1219611.html |date=3 March 2018 }}, ''[[ABC Color]]'', 2 March 2014</ref> and Uruguay.<ref name="Autoblog"/>

[[Suriname]], along with neighbouring [[Guyana]], are the only two remaining LHT countries in [[South America]].<ref name="tbr2015" />

===Asia===
[[File:Lotus-bridge-macau.jpg|thumb|The [[Lótus Bridge|Lotus Bridge]] exchanges between LHT in [[Macau]] and RHT in [[mainland China]].]]

LHT was introduced by the UK in [[Presidencies and provinces of British India|British India]] (now [[India]], [[Pakistan]], [[Myanmar]], and [[Bangladesh]]), [[British Malaya]] and [[British Borneo]] (now [[Malaysia]], Brunei and Singapore), as well as [[British Hong Kong]]. These countries, except Myanmar, are still LHT, as well as neighbouring countries [[Bhutan]] and [[Nepal]]. Myanmar switched to RHT in 1970,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.minordiversion.com/2012/03/the-unique-world-of-burmese-driving/|title=The Unique World of Burmese Driving|date=14 March 2012|website=a minor diversion|access-date=28 September 2015|archive-date=29 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150929064533/http://www.minordiversion.com/2012/03/the-unique-world-of-burmese-driving/|url-status=live}}</ref> although much of its infrastructure is still geared to LHT as its neighbours India, Bangladesh and [[Thailand]] use LHT. Most cars are used RHD vehicles imported from Japan.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://www.ft.com/content/414ecaaa-cd09-11e6-b8ce-b9c03770f8b1 | title = Myanmar's car market set to take new direction | first1 = Motokazu | last1 = Matsui | first2 = Takemi | last2 = Nakagawa | newspaper = [[Financial Times]] | location = London | date = 2 January 2017 | archive-date = 22 February 2018 | access-date = 25 May 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180222230034/https://www.ft.com/content/414ecaaa-cd09-11e6-b8ce-b9c03770f8b1 | url-status = live }}</ref> [[Afghanistan]] was LHT until the 1950s, in line with Pakistan (former part of British India).<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NubtDf2T3cAC&q=Right+hand+traffic+Afghanistan+by+Ghulam+Mohammad+Farhad%2C+the+Mayor+of+Kabul%2C%5B&pg=PA70|title=Inside Afghanistan: End of the Taliban Era?|first =L. R. |last = Reddy|publisher=APH|year=2002|isbn=9788176483193|access-date=31 August 2015}}</ref>

Although [[Portuguese Timor]] (present-day [[East Timor]]), which shares the island of [[Timor]] with [[Indonesia]], who is LHT, switched to RHT with [[Portugal]] in 1928,<ref name="kincaid" /> it switched back to LHT in 1976 during the [[Indonesian occupation of East Timor]].

In the 1930s, parts of [[China]] such as the [[Shanghai International Settlement]], [[Guangdong|Canton]] and Japanese-occupied [[Manchukuo|northeast China]] used LHT. However, in 1946 the [[Republic of China (1912–1949)|Republic of China]] made RHT mandatory in [[China]] (including [[Taiwan]]). Taiwan was LHT under [[Taiwan under Japanese rule|Japanese colonization]] from 1895–1945. [[Portuguese Macau]] (present-day Macau) remained LHT, along with [[British Hong Kong]], despite being transferred to China in 1999 and 1997 respectively.

Both [[North Korea]] and [[South Korea]] use RHT since 1946, after liberation from [[Korea under Japanese rule|Japanese colonialization]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=9QVNAQAAMAAJ&q=%22regulation+of+vehicular+and+pedestrian+traffic%22+ ''Summation: United States Army Military Government Activities in Korea''], 1946, page 12</ref>

The [[Philippines]] was mostly LHT during its [[History of the Philippines (1521–1898)|Spanish]]<ref>[https://www.flickr.com/photos/bibliotecabne/8219320037/ Plaza Mayor de Manila] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171020070816/https://www.flickr.com/photos/bibliotecabne/8219320037/ |date=20 October 2017 }}, by [[José Honorato Lozano]] (1815/21(?)-1885), in the album [https://www.flickr.com/photos/bibliotecabne/sets/72157632106172948/ ''Vistas de las islas Filipinas y trajes de sus habitantes''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171020070822/https://www.flickr.com/photos/bibliotecabne/sets/72157632106172948 |date=20 October 2017 }}, published 1847. Collection of the [[Biblioteca Nacional de España]].</ref> and [[History of the Philippines (1898–1946)|American]] colonial periods,<ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/0m11Gs7Ubas Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20160321135649/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0m11Gs7Ubas Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0m11Gs7Ubas|title=ESCOLTA MANILA PHILIPPINES- YEAR 1903|date=6 March 2010|via=YouTube|access-date=14 March 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/ZOI6rc38Qic Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20091218073733/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOI6rc38Qic Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOI6rc38Qic|title=Manila – Castillian Memoirs 1930s|date=19 April 2008|via=YouTube|access-date=14 March 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref> as well as during the [[Commonwealth of the Philippines|Commonwealth era]].<ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/dvpbsyNcI3I Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20080625095622/http://www.youtube.com:80/watch?v=dvpbsyNcI3I Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvpbsyNcI3I|title=Manila, Queen of the Pacific 1938|date=6 May 2008|via=YouTube|access-date=14 March 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref> During the [[Japanese occupation of the Philippines|Japanese occupation]], the Philippines remained LHT,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ccftde6aZ4s|title=Manila Nostalgia: Dewey Boulevard during the Japanese occupation.|date=26 June 2013|via=YouTube|publisher=Manila Nostalgia|last=Goupal|first=Lou|access-date=14 March 2017|quote=Original video clips from a Japanese propaganda film shot in early 1942.|archive-date=6 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170406115353/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ccftde6aZ4s|url-status=live}}</ref> as was required by the Japanese;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.topgear.com.ph/features/feature-articles/how-ph-became-a-left-hand-drive-country|title=How the Philippines became a left-hand-drive country|date=10 March 2015|website=[[Top Gear Philippines]]|last=Tadeo|first=Patrick Everett|access-date=14 March 2017}}</ref> but during the [[Battle of Manila (1945)|Battle of Manila]], the liberating American forces drove their tanks to the right for easier facilitation of movement. RHT was formalized in 1945 through a decree by president [[Sergio Osmeña]].<ref name="E.O. 34 1945">{{cite web|url=http://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/1945/03/10/executive-order-no-34-s-1945/|title=Executive Order No. 34, s. 1945|work=officialgazzete.gov.ph|access-date=11 November 2017|archive-date=9 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109032955/http://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/1945/03/10/executive-order-no-34-s-1945/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Even though RHT was formalized, RHD vehicles such as public buses were still imported into the Philippines until a law passed banning the importation of RHD vehicles except in special cases. These RHD vehicles are required to be converted to LHD.<ref name=":0" />

Japan was never part of the British Empire, but its traffic also drives on the left. Although this practice goes back to the Edo period (1603–1868), it was not until 1872 – the year Japan's first railway was introduced, built with technical aid from the British – that this unwritten rule received official acknowledgment. Gradually, a massive network of railways and tram tracks was built, with all railway vehicles driven on the left-hand side. However, it took another half-century, until 1924, until left-hand traffic was legally mandated. Post-[[World War II]] [[Okinawa Prefecture|Okinawa]] was ruled by the [[United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands]] until 1972, and was RHT until [[730 (transport)|6 a.m. the morning of 30 July 1978, when it switched back to LHT]].<ref>{{cite news |first=Andrew H. |last=Malcolm |url=https://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0D1FFD355513728DDDAC0894DF405B888BF1D3 |title=U-Turn for Okinawa: From Right-Hand Driving to Left; Extra Policemen Assigned |work=The New York Times |date=5 July 1978 |page=A2 |archive-date=6 December 2013 |access-date=12 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131206005913/http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0D1FFD355513728DDDAC0894DF405B888BF1D3 |url-status=live }}</ref> The conversion operation was known as 730 (''Nana-San-Maru'', which refers to the date of the changeover). Okinawa is one of only a few places to have changed from RHT to LHT in the late 20th century. While Japan drives on the left and most Japanese vehicles are RHD, imported vehicles (e.g. BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche) are generally bought as LHD since LHD cars are considered to be status symbols.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The birthplace of iconic cars, where cars with both left and right hand drive are allowed {{!}} Japan Motor |url=https://japan-motor.com/en/blog/post/how-popular-are-left-hand-drive-cars-japan |access-date=2023-05-07 |website=japan-motor.com |archive-date=7 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230507113348/https://japan-motor.com/en/blog/post/how-popular-are-left-hand-drive-cars-japan |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Vietnam]] became RHT as part of [[French Indochina]], as did [[Laos]] and [[Cambodia]]. In Cambodia, RHD cars, many of which were smuggled from Thailand, were banned in 2001, even though they accounted for 80% of vehicles in the country.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/1096303.stm|title=Cambodia bans right-hand drive cars|date=1 January 2001|publisher=BBC News|access-date=12 January 2007|archive-date=25 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225111204/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/asia-pacific/1096303.stm%20/default.stm|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Europe===
In a study of the ancient traffic system of [[Pompeii]], Eric Poehler was able to show that drivers of carts drove in the middle of the road whenever possible. This was the case even on roads wide enough for two lanes.{{r|poehler|p=136}} The wear marks on the kerbstones, however, prove that when there were two lanes of traffic, and the volume of traffic made it necessary to divide the lanes, the drivers always drove on the right-hand side.{{r|poehler|pp=150–155}} These considerations can also be demonstrated in the archaeological findings of other cities in the [[Roman Empire]].<ref name="poehler">{{cite book |first=Eric E. |last=Poehler |title=The Traffic System of Pompeii |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |location=[[New York City|New York]] |year=2017 |isbn=9780190614676 |oclc=1105466950}}</ref>{{rp|pp=218–219}}

One of the first references in England to requiring traffic direction was an order by the London [[Court of Aldermen]] in 1669, requiring a man to be posted on [[London Bridge]] to ensure that "all cartes going to keep on the one side and all cartes coming to keep on the other side".<ref>{{cite thesis |last1=Latham |first1=Mark |title=The London Bridge Improvement Act of 1756: A Study of Early Modern Urban Finance and Administration |url=https://figshare.com/articles/The_London_Bridge_Improvement_Act_of_1756_A_Study_of_Early_Modern_Urban_Finance_and_Administration/10097465 |publisher=University of Leicester|date=18 December 2009|type=PhD}}</ref> It was later legislated as the [[London Bridge Act 1756]] ([[29 Geo. 2]] c. 40), which required that "all carriages passing over the said bridge from London shall go on the east side thereof" – those going south to remain on the east, i.e. the left-hand side by direction of travel.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Statutes at Large from the 26th to the 30th Year of King George III |date=1766 |publisher=Printed by J. Bentham |url=https://archive.org/details/statutesatlarge57britgoog/page/n574/mode/2up}}</ref> This may represent the first statutory requirement for LHT.<ref name="hamer">{{cite journal|last1=Hamer|first1=Mike|date=25 December 1986 – 1 January 1987|title=Left is right on the road|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qfak8nsMNGIC&pg=PA16|journal=New Scientist|issue=20 December 1986/1 January 1987|pages=16–18|access-date=7 October 2016}}{{Dead link|date=March 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

In the [[Kingdom of Ireland]], a law of 1793 (33 Geo. 3. c. 56 (I)) provided a ten-[[shilling]] fine to anyone not driving or riding on the left side of the road within the [[county of the city]] of [[Dublin]], and required the local road overseers to erect written or printed notices informing road users of the law.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6oZRAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA798 |title=Statutes Passed in the Parliaments Held in Ireland |volume=1789–1793|date=14 August 1799|publisher=George Grierson, printer to the King's Most Excellent Majesty}}</ref> The [[Road in Down and Antrim Act 1798]] (38 Geo. 3. c. 28 (I)) required drivers on the road from Dublin to [[Donadea]] to keep to the left. This time, the punishment was ten shillings if the offender was not the owner of the vehicle, or one [[Irish pound]] (twenty shillings) if he/she was.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0G9BAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA416 |title=Statutes Passed in the Parliaments Held in Ireland ...: From the Third Year of Edward the Second, A.D. 1310 [to the Fortieth Year of George III A.D. 1800, Inclusive].|date=14 August 1799|publisher=G. Grierson, printer to the King's Most Excellent Majesty}}</ref> The [[Grand Juries (Ireland) Act 1836]] ([[6 & 7 Will. 4]] c. 116) mandated LHT for the whole country, violators to be fined up to five shillings and imprisoned in default for up to one month.<ref>{{cite book |title=A collection of the public general statutes |date=1836 |publisher=Eyre and Spottiswoode |location=London |pages=1030–1031 |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/acollectionpubl01britgoog/page/1030 |chapter=6 & 7 Will. 4 c. 116 s.156 |via=Internet Archive}}</ref>

An oft-repeated story is that [[Napoleon]] changed the custom from LHT to RHT in France and the countries he conquered after the [[French Revolution]]. Scholars who have looked for documentary evidence of this story have found none, and contemporary sources have not surfaced, {{as of|1999|lc=y|post=.}}<ref name="watson" /><!-- Not true there are earlier source 1954 https://www.google.de/books/edition/Einigkeit/jdFZAAAAYAAJ?hl=de&gbpv=1&bsq=napoleon+rechtsverkehr&dq=napoleon+rechtsverkehr&printsec=frontcover --> In 1827, twelve years after Napoleon's reign, Edward Planta wrote that, in [[Paris]], "The coachmen have no established rule by which they drive on the right or left of the road, but they cross and jostle one another without ceremony."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jGMDAAAAQAAJ&q=%22drive+on+the+right%22&pg=RA1-PA118|title=A New Picture of Paris, Or, The Stranger's Guide to the French Metropolis: Also, a Description of the Environs of Paris|first=Edward|last=Planta|date=30 June 1831|publisher=S. Leigh and Baldwin and Cradock}}</ref>

Rotterdam had no fixed rules until 1917,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.engelfriet.net/Alie/Hans/rechtsrijden.htm |title=De geschiedenis van het linksrijden |publisher=Engelfriet.net |access-date=14 May 2014 |archive-date=25 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225111208/http://www.engelfriet.net/Alie/Hans/rechtsrijden.htm%20 |url-status=live }}</ref> although the rest of the Netherlands was RHT. In May 1917 the police in Rotterdam ended traffic chaos by enforcing right hand traffic.

In Russia, in 1709, the Danish envoy under Tsar [[Peter the Great]] noted the widespread custom for traffic in Russia to pass on the right, but it was only in 1752 that [[Elizabeth of Russia|Empress Elizabeth]] officially issued an edict for traffic to keep to the right.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.worldstandards.eu/cars/driving-on-the-left/ |title=Why do some countries drive on the left and others on the right? |work=WorldStandards.eu |access-date=20 July 2021 |archive-date=12 July 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240712123607/https://www.worldstandards.eu/cars/driving-on-the-left/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Ecke Kärntnerstraße Annagasse mit Werbetafel Tabarin und Chapeau Rouge ca 1930.jpg|thumb|Left-hand traffic in [[Vienna]], Austria, {{circa|1930}}]]
[[File:Danish motorcyclists about to cross the border between Sweden and Norway in 1934.png|thumb|Border sign showing change of traffic direction between Sweden and Norway in 1934]]
After the [[Austro-Hungarian Empire]] broke up, the resulting countries gradually changed to RHT. In Austria, [[Vorarlberg]] switched in 1921,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Vasold |first1=Manfred |year=2010 |title=Obacht! Linksverkehr |url=http://www.deutsches-museum.de/fileadmin/Content/data/020_Dokumente/040_KuT_Artikel/2010/34-2-57.pdf |journal=Kultur & Technik |access-date=13 December 2016 |archive-date=23 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923223325/http://www.deutsches-museum.de/fileadmin/Content/data/020_Dokumente/040_KuT_Artikel/2010/34-2-57.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> [[North Tyrol]] in 1930, [[Carinthia]] and [[East Tyrol]] in 1935, and the rest of the country in 1938.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://graz.radln.net/cms/beitrag/10908163/36832857/ |title=1938 wechselte man nicht nur die Straßenseite – ARGUS Steiermark – DIE RADLOBBY |website=graz.radln.net |access-date=2019-04-04 |archive-date=4 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190404115510/http://graz.radln.net/cms/beitrag/10908163/36832857/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> In [[Romania]], [[Transylvania]], the [[Banat]] and [[Bukovina]] were LHT until 1919, while [[Wallachia]] and [[Moldavia]] were already RHT. [[Partitions of Poland]] belonging to the [[German Empire]] and the [[Russian Empire]] were RHT, while the former [[Austrian Partition]] changed in the 1920s.<ref name="Komunikacja.krakow.eurocity.pl">{{cite web |url=http://komunikacja.krakow.eurocity.pl/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=412&Itemid=226 |title=Krakowska Komunikacja Miejska – autobusy, tramwaje i krakowskie inwestycje drogowe – History of the Cracow tram network |date=3 March 2006 |publisher=Komunikacja.krakow.eurocity.pl |access-date=11 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060516030528/http://komunikacja.krakow.eurocity.pl/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=412&Itemid=226 |archive-date=16 May 2006 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Croatia-Slavonia switched on joining the [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia]] in 1918, although [[Istria County|Istria]] and [[Dalmatia]] were already RHT.<ref name="croatiaslavonia">{{cite news |url=https://archive.org/details/01703017.5423.emory.edu |title=Austria, including Hungary, Transylvania, Dalmatia and Bosnia |last=Baedeker |first=Karl |access-date=28 July 2017 |year=1900 |page=xiii–xiv |quote="In Styria, Upper and Lower Austria, Salzburg, Carniola, Croatia, and Hungary we keep to the left, and pass to the right in overtaking; in Carinthia, Tyrol, and the Austrian Littoral (Adriatic coast: Trieste, Gorizia and Gradisca, Istria and Dalmatia) we keep to the right and overtake to the left. Troops on the march always keep to the right side of the road, so in whatever part of the Empire you meet them, keep to the left."}}</ref> The [[switch to right-hand traffic in Czechoslovakia|switch in Czechoslovakia]] from LHT to RHT had been planned for 1939, but was accelerated by the start of the [[German occupation of Czechoslovakia]] that year.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.radio.cz/en/section/curraffrs/seventy-five-years-of-driving-on-the-right |title=Seventy-five years of driving on the right |date=18 March 2014 |publisher=[[Radio Prague]] |access-date=1 April 2017 |archive-date=1 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170401233010/http://www.radio.cz/en/section/curraffrs/seventy-five-years-of-driving-on-the-right |url-status=live }}</ref>

In Italy, it had been decreed in 1901 that each [[Provinces of Italy|province]] define its own [[traffic code]], including the handedness of traffic,<ref name=biocca/> and the 1903 [[Baedeker]] guide reported that the rule of the road varied by region.<ref name="mcmanus"/> For example, in [[Northern Italy]], the provinces of [[Province of Brescia|Brescia]], [[Province of Como|Como]], [[Province of Vicenza|Vicenza]], and [[Province of Ravenna|Ravenna]] were RHT while nearby provinces of [[Province of Lecco|Lecco]], [[Province of Verona|Verona]], and [[Province of Varese|Varese]] were LHT,<ref name=biocca/> as were the cities [[Milan]], [[Turin]], and [[Florence]].<ref name="mcmanus">{{cite book |last1=McManus |first1=Chris |title=Right Hand Left Hand: the origins of asymmetry in brains, bodies, atoms, and cultures |date=2002 |publisher=Harvard University Press |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts |isbn=0-674-00953-3 |page=247 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=20oza63ZuG4C |access-date=5 November 2019}}</ref> In 1915, [[allies of World War I|allied]] forces of [[World War I]] imposed LHT in areas of military operation, but this was revoked in 1918. [[Rome]] was reported by [[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe|Goethe]] as LHT in the 1780s. [[Naples]] was also LHT although surrounding areas were often RHT. In cities, LHT was considered safer since pedestrians, accustomed to keeping right, could better see oncoming vehicular traffic.<ref name=biocca/> In 1923 [[Benito Mussolini]] decreed that all LHT areas would gradually transition to RHT.<ref name=biocca>{{cite web |last1=Biocca |first1=Dario |title=Quando l' Italia si buttò a destra |url=https://ricerca.repubblica.it/repubblica/archivio/repubblica/2011/07/24/quando-italia-si-butto-destra.html |website=[[la Repubblica]] |access-date=4 November 2019 |language=it |date=2011-07-24}}</ref>

Portugal switched to RHT in 1928.<ref name="kincaid" />

Finland, formerly part of LHT Sweden, switched to RHT in 1858 as the [[Grand Duchy of Finland]] by Russian decree.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://home.aland.net/bosse/hogertrafik.htm|title=Högertrafik i Sverige och Finland|work=aland.net|access-date=1 April 2015|archive-date=25 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225111215/http://home.aland.net/bosse/hogertrafik.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>

Spain switched to RHT in 1918, but not in the entire country. In [[Madrid]] people continued to drive on the left until 1924 when a national law forced drivers in Madrid switch to RHT.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://revista.dgt.es/es/motor/noticias/2020/07JULIO/0715-Conducir-derecha.shtml#:~:text=El%2066%25%20de%20la%20poblaci%C3%B3n,se%20iba%20por%20la%20izquierda.|title=¿Por qué circulamos por la derecha?|work=dgt.es|access-date=2 January 2024|archive-date=2 January 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240102175451/https://revista.dgt.es/es/motor/noticias/2020/07JULIO/0715-Conducir-derecha.shtml#:~:text=El%2066%25%20de%20la%20poblaci%C3%B3n,se%20iba%20por%20la%20izquierda.|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Madrid Metro]] still uses LHT.

Sweden switched to RHT in 1967, having been LHT from about 1734<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vardo.aland.fi/hogertrafik.htm|title=Högertrafik|publisher=vardo.aland.fi|language=sv|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071203201537/http://www.vardo.aland.fi/hogertrafik.htm|archive-date=3 December 2007|access-date=11 August 2006}}</ref> despite having land borders with RHT countries [[Norway]] and Finland, and approximately 90% of cars being left-hand drive (LHD).<ref name="Réalités">[https://books.google.com/books?id=TdYnAQAAIAAJ&q=%22left+hand+drive%22 ''Réalités''], Issues 200–205, Société d'études et publications économiques, 1967, page 95</ref> [[1955 Swedish driving side referendum|A referendum in 1955]] overwhelmingly rejected a change to RHT, but, a few years later, the government ordered it and it occurred on Sunday, 3 September 1967<ref>{{cite web|url=http://realscandinavia.com/this-day-in-history-swedish-traffic-switches-sides-september-3-1967/|title=This Day in History: Swedish Traffic Switches Sides – September 3, 1967|date=3 September 2014|access-date=21 October 2019|archive-date=19 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230519070802/http://realscandinavia.com/this-day-in-history-swedish-traffic-switches-sides-september-3-1967/|url-status=live}}</ref> at 5&nbsp;am. The accident rate then dropped sharply,<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0%2C9171%2C941144%2C00.html|title=Sweden: Switch to the Right|date=15 September 1967|magazine=Time|access-date=31 October 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121018034155/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,941144,00.html|archive-date=18 October 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> but soon rose to near its original level.<ref name="salon20090814">{{cite web|url=http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2009/08/14/driving_on_left/|title=Salon News: Whose side of the road are you on?|last=Mieszkowski|first=Katharine|date=14 August 2009|work=Salon|access-date=12 December 2010|archive-date=21 January 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110121005051/http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2009/08/14/driving_on_left/|url-status=live}}</ref> The day was known as Högertrafikomläggningen, or [[Dagen H]] for short.

When Iceland switched to RHT the following year, it was known as ''Hægri dagurinn'' or ''[[H-dagurinn]]'' ("The H-Day").<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.mbl.is/frettir/innlent/2013/05/26/45_ar_fra_haegri_umferd/|title=45 ár frá hægri umferð|work=[[Morgunblaðið]]|date=26 May 2013|language=is|trans-title=45 years with right-hand traffic|archive-date=7 July 2019|access-date=11 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190707155602/https://www.mbl.is/frettir/innlent/2013/05/26/45_ar_fra_haegri_umferd/|url-status=live}}</ref> Most passenger cars in Iceland were already LHD.

The United Kingdom is LHT, but two of its [[British Overseas Territory|overseas territories]], [[Gibraltar]] and the [[British Indian Ocean Territory]], are RHT. In the late 1960s, the British [[Department for Transport]] considered switching to RHT, but declared it unsafe and too costly for such a built-up nation.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8239048.stm|title=Could the UK drive on the right?|first=Tom|last=Geoghegan|date=7 September 2009|publisher=BBC News|access-date=4 July 2012|archive-date=1 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120801220244/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8239048.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> Road building standards, for motorways in particular, allow asymmetrically designed road junctions, where merge and diverge lanes differ in length.<ref>{{cite journal|year=2006|title=Layout of Grade Separated Junctions|url=http://www.dft.gov.uk/ha/standards/dmrb/vol6/section2/td2206.pdf|publisher=The Highways Agency|journal=Design Manual for Roads and Bridges|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110504112611/http://www.dft.gov.uk/ha/standards/dmrb/vol6/section2/td2206.pdf|archive-date=2011-05-04|pages=4.9ff}}
</ref>

Today, four countries in Europe continue to use LHT, all island nations: the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland (formerly part of the UK), [[Cyprus]] and [[Malta]] (both former British colonies).

=== Oceania ===
[[File:drive on left in australia.jpg|thumb|upright|A sign on the [[Great Ocean Road]], heavily visited by international tourists, reminding motorists to keep left in Australia]]

Many former British colonies in the region have always been LHT, including Australia, New Zealand, [[Fiji]], [[Kiribati]], [[Solomon Islands]], [[Tonga]], and [[Tuvalu]]; and nations that were previously administered by Australia: [[Nauru]] and [[Papua New Guinea]].

==== New Zealand ====
[[File:Drive on the left in NZ 20171228.jpg|thumb|Multilingual sign at [[Waiotapu]] to remind tourists to drive on the left in [[New Zealand]].]]
Initially traffic was slow and very sparse, but, as early as 1856, a newspaper said, "The cart was near to the right hand kerb. According to the rules of the road, it should have been on the left side. In turning sharp round a right-hand corner, a driver should keep away to the opposite side." That rule was codified when the first [[New Zealand Road Code#History|Highway Code]] was written in 1936.<ref>{{Cite web |date=4 December 1936 |title=ROAD SAFETY. OTAGO DAILY TIMES |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/ODT19361204.2.13.9 |access-date=2021-10-27 |website=paperspast.natlib.govt.nz}}</ref>

==== Samoa ====
[[Samoa]], a former German colony, had been RHT for more than a century, but switched to LHT in 2009,<ref name="BBC Samoa">{{Cite news | title = Samoan cars ready to switch sides | publisher = BBC News | date = 7 September 2009 | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/8240992.stm | access-date = 7 September 2009 | first = Nick | last = Bryant | archive-date = 25 February 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210225045819/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/8240992.stm | url-status = live }}</ref> making it the first territory in almost 30 years to change sides.<ref name="reuters Samoa" /> The move was legislated in 2008 to allow Samoans to use cheaper vehicles imported from Australia, New Zealand, or Japan, and to harmonise with other South Pacific nations. A political party, [[The People's Party (Samoa)|The People's Party]], was formed by the group People Against Switching Sides (PASS) to protest against the change, with PASS launching a legal challenge;<ref>{{cite web |last1=Whitley |first1=David |title=Samoa provokes fury by switching sides of the road |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/news/5732906/Samoa-provokes-fury-by-switching-sides-of-the-road.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/news/5732906/Samoa-provokes-fury-by-switching-sides-of-the-road.html |archive-date=11 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live | date = 3 July 2009 | website=The Telegraph |access-date=12 September 2019}}{{cbignore}}</ref> in April 2008 an estimated 18,000 people attended demonstrations against switching.<ref name="BBC Samoa2">{{Cite news | title = Samoa drivers brace for left turn | publisher = BBC News | date = 6 September 2009 | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/8236773.stm | access-date = 7 September 2009 | first = Michael | last = Dobie | archive-date = 24 February 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220224122801/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/8236773.stm | url-status = live }}</ref> The motor industry was also opposed, as 14,000 of Samoa's 18,000 vehicles were designed for RHT and the government refused to meet the cost of conversion.<ref name="reuters Samoa">{{Cite news|  title =Outcry as Samoa motorists prepare to drive on left|  work =Reuters| date = 7 September 2009 | url = https://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSTRE5861QV20090907| access-date = 7 September 2009| first=Pauline| last=Askin}}</ref> After months of preparation, the switch from right to left happened in an atmosphere of national celebration. There were no reported incidents.<ref name="wsj" /> At 05:50 local time, Monday 7 September, a radio announcement halted traffic, and an announcement at 6:00 ordered traffic to switch to LHT.<ref name="BBC Samoa" /> The change coincided with more restrictive enforcement of speeding and seat-belt laws.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/world/samoan-drivers-change-from-right-hand-side-of-the-road-to-the-left/story-e6frf7lf-1225770454009 |title=Samoan drivers change from right-hand side of the road to the left |work=Herald Sun |access-date=31 October 2012}}</ref> That day and the following were declared public holidays, to reduce traffic.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10523412 |title=Samoa announces driving switch date|work=The New Zealand Herald |date= 25 July 2008|access-date=10 June 2012 |first=Cherelle |last=Jackson}}</ref> The change included a three-day ban on alcohol sales, while police mounted dozens of checkpoints, warning drivers to drive slowly.<ref name="wsj" />

=== Potential future shifts ===
{{update section|date=September 2023}}
[[Rwanda]] and [[Burundi]], former Belgian colonies in [[Central Africa]], are RHT but are considering switching to LHT<ref name="rwandaburundi">{{cite news|url=https://24tanzania.com/burundi-rwanda-to-start-driving-on-the-left/|title=Burundi, Rwanda to start driving on the left|last=Nkwame|first=Marc|date=27 July 2013|newspaper=DailyNews Online|access-date=28 May 2016|archive-date=25 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225111224/https://24tanzania.com/burundi-rwanda-to-start-driving-on-the-left/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="rwandatransport">{{cite web|url=http://www.rwandatransport.com/2013/07/rwanda-to-adopt-eac-driving-standards/|title=Rwanda to adopt EAC driving standards|author=Peter|work=Rwanda Transport|access-date=12 August 2013|archive-date=25 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225111124/http://www.rwandatransport.com/2013/07/rwanda-to-adopt-eac-driving-standards/|url-status=dead}}</ref> like neighbouring members of the [[East African Community]] (EAC).<ref name="independent1">{{cite web |url=http://www.independent.co.ug/index.php/news/regional-news/78-regional-news/1458-rwanda-wants-to-drive-on-the-left |title=Rwanda wants to drive on the left |publisher=Independent.co.ug |date=3 June 2012 |access-date=10 June 2012 |archive-date=14 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314061551/http://www.independent.co.ug/index.php/news/regional-news/78-regional-news/1458-rwanda-wants-to-drive-on-the-left |url-status=dead }}</ref> A survey in 2009 found that 54% of Rwandans favoured the switch. Reasons cited were the perceived lower costs of RHD vehicles, easier maintenance and the political benefit of harmonising traffic regulations with other EAC countries. The survey indicated that RHD cars were 16% to 49% cheaper than their LHD counterparts.<ref name="business">{{cite web |url=http://allafrica.com/stories/201009271438.html |title=East Africa: Rwanda Looks to the Left |publisher=allAfrica.com |date=27 September 2010 |access-date=10 June 2012 |archive-date=20 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020071830/http://allafrica.com/stories/201009271438.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2014, an internal report by consultants to the Ministry of Infrastructure recommended a switch to LHT.<ref name="ETRR">{{cite journal|last1=Bari|first1=Mahabubul|title=The study of the possibility of switching driving side in Rwanda|journal=European Transport Research Review|volume=6|issue=4|pages=439–453|date=29 July 2014|doi=10.1007/s12544-014-0144-2|bibcode=2014ETRR....6..439B |doi-access=free | issn=1866-8887}}</ref> In 2015, the ban on RHD vehicles was lifted; RHD trucks from neighbouring countries cost $1,000 less than LHD models imported from Europe.<ref>[https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/Rwanda/Business/Right-hand-drive-vehicles-return-on-Rwandan-roads-/1433224-2652722-1hwl76/index.html Right-hand-drive vehicles return on Rwandan roads] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200319050229/https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/Rwanda/Business/Right-hand-drive-vehicles-return-on-Rwandan-roads-/1433224-2652722-1hwl76/index.html |date=19 March 2020 }}, ''[[The East African]]'', 13 March 2015</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Tumwebaze|first1=Peterson|title=Govt okays importation of RHD trucks, to decide on other vehicle categories in October|url=http://www.newtimes.co.rw/section/article/2014-09-09/538/business-govt-okays-importation-of-right-hand-drive-trucks,-to-decide-on-other-vehicle-categories-in-october|access-date=29 October 2014|work=The New Times|date=9 September 2014|ref=newtimes2}}</ref>

==Changing sides at borders==
[[File:Laos - Traffic Switchover Point.svg|thumb|upright|Traffic Switchover sign at the [[First Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge]]]]

Although many LHT jurisdictions are on islands, there are cases where vehicles may be driven from LHT across a border into a RHT area. Such borders are mostly located in Africa and southern Asia. The [[Vienna Convention on Road Traffic]] regulates the use of foreign registered vehicles in the 78 countries that have ratified it.

LHT Thailand has three RHT neighbours: Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar. Most of its borders use a simple traffic light to do the switch, but there are also interchanges that enable the switch while keeping up a continuous flow of traffic.<ref name="cnt">{{cite web|last1=Jennings|first1=Ken|title=What Happens When Left-Hand Roads Meet Right-Hand Roads|url=http://www.cntraveler.com/stories/2013-04-15/lotus-bridge-macau-maphead-ken-jennings|website=Conde Nast Traveler|date=15 April 2013|access-date=18 November 2016|archive-date=19 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161119182223/http://www.cntraveler.com/stories/2013-04-15/lotus-bridge-macau-maphead-ken-jennings|url-status=live}}</ref>

There are six road border crossing points between Hong Kong and mainland China. In 2006, the daily average number of vehicle trips recorded at [[Lok Ma Chau]] was 31,100.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.yearbook.gov.hk/2006/en/13_08.htm |title=Hong Kong 2006 – Transport – Cross-Boundary Traffic |publisher=Government of Hong Kong |date=15 August 2007 |access-date=12 December 2010 |archive-date=20 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720034325/http://www.yearbook.gov.hk/2006/en/13_08.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> The next largest is [[Man Kam To]], where there is no changeover system and the border roads on the mainland side [[Wenjindu]] intersect as one-way streets with a main road.

The [[Takutu River Bridge]] (which links LHT Guyana and RHT Brazil<ref name="Takutu bridge opens to traffic">{{cite web|url=http://www.stabroeknews.com/2009/news/local/04/27/takutu-bridge-opens-to-traffic-2 |title=Takutu bridge opens to traffic |publisher=Stabroeknews.com |date=27 April 2009 |access-date=12 December 2010}}</ref>) is the only border in the Americas where traffic changes sides.

==Road vehicle configurations==
[[File:Legality of wrong-hand-drive vehicles.svg|thumb|upright=1.35|Legality of wrong-hand-drive vehicles by country
{{legend|#ff0000|Usage illegal}}
{{legend|#ffbb00|Usage legal, but registration illegal or unknown}}
{{legend|#00bb44|Registration illegal for normal vehicles, with exceptions for special (e.g. diplomatic) vehicles}}
{{legend|#0000ff|Registration and usage legal}}
{{legend|#C1C1C1|No data}}]]

===Steering wheel position===
<!-- **This page uses UK spelling variations. Please do not change this spelling to curb.** -->
In RHT jurisdictions, vehicles are typically configured as '''left hand drive''' (LHD), with the [[steering wheel]] on the left side of the passenger compartment. In LHT jurisdictions, the reverse is true as the '''right hand drive''' (RHD) configuration. In most jurisdictions, the position of the steering wheel is not regulated, or explicitly permitted to be anywhere.<ref>[https://curia.europa.eu/juris/liste.jsf?language=en&num=C-61/12&td=ALL Court of Justice of the European Union, C-61/12 – Commission v Lithuania], European Union, steering wheel can be anywhere, 2014-03-20.</ref> The driver's side, the side closer to the centre of the road, is sometimes called the ''offside'', while the passenger side, the side closer to the side of the road, is sometimes called the ''nearside''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://dictionary.reverso.net/english-cobuild/nearside |title=Nearside (dictionary definition) |publisher=Dictionary.reverso.net |access-date=12 December 2010 |archive-date=1 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001182040/http://dictionary.reverso.net/english-cobuild/nearside |url-status=live }}</ref><!-- This article uses UK English. -->

Most [[windscreen wiper]]s are preferentially designed to better clean the driver's side of the [[windscreen]] and thus have a longer wiper blade on the driver's side and wipe up from the passenger side to the driver's side. Thus on LHD configurations, they wipe up from right to left, viewed from inside the vehicle, and do the opposite on RHD vehicles.{{citation needed|date=May 2023}}

In both LHD and RHD vehicles, gear shifters are in the same position, and the shift patterns are not reversed.

Historically there was less consistency in the relationship of the position of the driver to the handedness of traffic. Most American cars produced before 1910 were RHD.<ref name="On The Right Side of the Road"/> In 1908 [[Henry Ford]] standardised the [[Model T]] as LHD in RHT America,<ref name="On The Right Side of the Road"/> arguing that with RHD and RHT, the passenger was obliged to "get out on the street side and walk around the car" and that with steering from the left, the driver "is able to see even the wheels of the other car and easily avoids danger."<ref>{{cite book|last1=Miller|first1=Wayne|title=Car Crazy: The Battle for Supremacy between Ford and Olds and the Dawn of the Automobile Age|date=2015|publisher=PublicAffairs|isbn=9781610395526|page=279|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JgIrCgAAQBAJ&q=car+crazy+wayne+miller&pg=PR4|access-date=12 December 2016}}</ref> By 1915, other manufacturers followed Ford's lead, due to the popularity of the Model T.<ref name="On The Right Side of the Road"/>

In specialised cases, the driver will sit on the nearside, or curbside. Examples include:
*Where the driver needs a good view of the nearside, e.g. [[street sweeper]]s, or vehicles driven along unstable road edges.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lhdspecialist.com/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110921030931/http://www.lhdspecialist.com/location_of_the_steering_wheel.php|url-status=dead|title=天彩彩票_官网手机版|archive-date=21 September 2011|website=lhdspecialist.com}}</ref> Similarly in mountainous areas the driver may be seated opposite side so that they have a better view of the road edge which may fall away for very many metres into the valley below. Swiss Postbuses in mountainous areas are a well known example.
*Where it is more convenient for the driver to be on the nearside, e.g. delivery vehicles. The [[Grumman LLV]] postal delivery truck is widely used with RHD configurations in RHT North America. Some [[Unimog]]s are designed to switch between LHD and RHD to permit operators to work on the more convenient side of the truck.

Generally, the convention is to mount a motorcycle on the left,<ref>{{cite web|last1=Hinchliffe|first1=Mark|title=How to mount your motorbike|url=https://motorbikewriter.com/mount-motorbike/|access-date=11 December 2016|date=11 March 2014|archive-date=7 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160907120732/http://motorbikewriter.com/mount-motorbike/|url-status=live}}</ref> and [[kickstand]]s are usually on the left<ref name="tips">{{cite web|title=MOUNTING AND DISMOUNTING A MOTORCYCLE|url=http://www.motorcycletesttips.uk/motorcycle-riding-tutorials/mounting-and-dismounting-a-motorcycle/|website=Motorcycle Test Tips|access-date=11 December 2016}}</ref> which makes it more convenient to mount on the safer kerbside<ref name="tips"/> as is the case in LHT. Some jurisdictions prohibit fitting a [[sidecar]] to a motorcycle's offside.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2003/si/5/made/en/print|title=S.I. No. 5/2003 – Road Traffic (Construction and Use of Vehicles) Regulations 2003|work=[[Irish Statute Book]]|pages=42. (1)|no-pp=yes|quote=where a side–car is attached to a mechanically propelled bicycle, the side–car shall be ... fitted on the left side of the vehicle|access-date=6 November 2017}}; {{cite web|url=https://www.magireland.org/2014/news-media/motorcycle-sidecar-trailer-legislation/|title=Motorcycle Sidecar & Trailer legislation|date=9 February 2014|work=MAG Ireland|publisher=Irish Motorcyclists Association|access-date=6 November 2017|archive-date=7 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107012741/https://www.magireland.org/2014/news-media/motorcycle-sidecar-trailer-legislation/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url= http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1986/1078/made | title= The Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 – Section 93 | publisher= UK Government | date= 25 June 1986 | access-date= 9 December 2012 | archive-date= 14 November 2012 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121114084723/http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1986/1078/made | url-status= live }}</ref>

In 2020, there were 160 LHD heavy goods vehicles in the UK involved in accidents ({{#expr:160/3175 * 100 round 0}}%) for a total of 3,175 accidents, killing 215 people ({{#expr:215/4271 * 100 round 0}}%) for a total of 4271.<ref>Department for Transport statistics, Reported Road Casualties Great Britain Annual Report 2020, RAS40005, Reported accidents, vehicles and casualties by severity, vehicle type and left hand drive, Great Britain, 2020</ref>

It has been suggested that right-hand drive vehicles, and hence the left-hand traffic direction, are associated with greater safety. As most drivers are right-handed, the dominant right hand remains controlled on the steering wheel while the non-dominant left hand can manipulate gears.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Advantages and Disadvantages of Left Hand Drive Cars in UK |url=https://lefthanddrives.com/the-advantages-and-disadvantages-of-left-hand-drive-cars-in-uk/ |website=Left Hand Drives|date=28 July 2020 }}</ref> The right field of vision may also be more dominant, thereby permitting a superior view of oncoming traffic.

===Dashboard configuration===
{{unreferenced section|date=February 2023}}
Some manufacturers primarily produce left-hand drive vehicles, due to the larger or nearer market for such vehicles. For such models supplied to left-hand traffic markets, in the right-hand drive configuration, the manufacturer may reuse the same [[dashboard]] configuration as is used in the left-hand drive models, with the steering column and pedals moved to the right-hand side. Oft-used controls (such as audio volume and fan controls) that were placed near the left-hand driver for ease of access, are now situated on the far side of the [[Center console (automobile)|center console]] for the right-hand driver. This may make them more difficult to reach quickly or without looking away from the road ahead.

In some cases, the manufacturer's dashboard design incorporates blanks and modular components, which permits the controls and underlying electronics to be rearranged to suit the right-hand drive model. This may be done in the factory, after import, or as an after-market modification.

===Headlamps and other lighting equipment===
{{Main|Headlamp}}
[[File:Low beam light pattern for right-hand traffic.svg|thumb|Bird's-eye view of low beam light pattern for RH traffic, with long seeing range on the right and short cutoff on the left so oncoming drivers are not dazzled]]

Most low-beam headlamps produce an asymmetrical light suitable for use on only one side of the road. Low beam headlamps in LHT jurisdictions throw most of their light forward-leftward; those for RHT throw most of their light forward-rightward, thus illuminating obstacles and road signs while minimising glare for oncoming traffic.

In Europe, headlamps approved for use on one side of the road must be adaptable to produce adequate illumination with controlled glare for temporarily driving on the other side of the road,<ref name="R112">{{cite web|url=http://www.unece.org/fileadmin/DAM/trans/main/wp29/wp29regs/R112rev2_e.pdf|title=UN Regulation 112, "Motor vehicle headlamps emitting an asymmetrical passing beam or a driving beam or both and equipped with filament lamps"|access-date=21 October 2019}}</ref>{{RP|p.13 ¶5.8}}. This may be achieved by affixing masking strips or prismatic lenses to a part of the lens or by moving all or part of the headlamp optic so all or part of the beam is shifted or the asymmetrical portion is occluded.<ref name=R112/>{{RP|p.13 ¶5.8.1}} Some varieties of the [[Headlamp#Projector (polyellipsoidal) lamps|projector-type headlamp]] can be fully adjusted to produce a proper LHT ''or'' RHT beam by shifting a lever or other movable element in or on the lamp assembly.<ref name=R112/>{{RP|p.12 ¶5.4}} Some vehicles adjust the headlamps automatically when the car's [[GPS]] detects that the vehicle has moved from LHT to RHT and vice versa.{{Citation needed|date=January 2018}}

====Rear fog lamps====
In Europe since the early 1980s,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1989/1796/schedule/11/made |website=legislation.gov.uk |title=The Road Vehicles Lighting Regulations 1989 Schedule 11 |access-date=2 April 2022}}</ref> cars must be equipped with one or two red [[Automotive Lighting#Rear fog lamps|rear fog lamps]]. A single rear fog lamp must be located between the vehicle's longitudinal centreline and the outer extent of the driver's side of the vehicle.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.unece.org/fileadmin/DAM/trans/main/wp29/wp29regs/2015/R048r12e.pdf|title=Regulation No. 48 |website=UNECE |date=16 October 2014 |access-date=21 October 2019}}</ref>

===Crash testing differences===
[[Australasian New Car Assessment Program|ANCAP]] reports that some RHD cars imported to Australia did not perform as well on crash tests as the LHD versions, although the cause is unknown, and may be due to differences in testing methodology.<ref>{{cite web|title=Popular family SUV Hyundai Tucson slammed for 'four-star' Australian crash test result|url=http://www.news.com.au/technology/innovation/motoring/popular-family-suv-hyundai-tucson-slammed-for-fourstar-australian-crash-test-result/news-story/466995147eb262b628fc71ca5e1cd89b|access-date=5 November 2017 |publisher=News.com.au |date=11 November 2015 |first1=Joshua |last1=Dowling |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211206034200/https://www.news.com.au/technology/innovation/motoring/popular-family-suv-hyundai-tucson-slammed-for-fourstar-australian-crash-test-result/news-story/466995147eb262b628fc71ca5e1cd89b |archive-date= 6 December 2021 }}</ref>

==Rail traffic==
{{main|Double-track railway}}
<!--[[File:Rail handedness by country.svg|thumb|upright=1.35|{{legend|#cc0000|Trains use right-hand track}}{{legend|#204a87|Trains use left-hand track}}{{legend|#d3d3d3|Rail traffic is mixed or lacking}}]]-->

=== National rail ===
[[File:Handedness of rail traffic worldwide.png|thumb|upright=1.35|Handedness of rail traffic worldwide]]

In most countries, rail traffic travels on the same side as road traffic. However, there are many instances of railways built using LHT British technology which remained LHT despite their nations' road traffic becoming RHT. Examples include: [[Rail transport in Argentina|Argentina]], [[Rail transport in Belgium|Belgium]], [[Rail transport in Bolivia|Bolivia]], [[Rail transport in Cambodia|Cambodia]], [[Rail transport in China|China]], [[Rail transport in Egypt|Egypt]], [[Rail transport in France|France]], [[Rail transport in Iraq|Iraq]], [[Rail transport in Israel|Israel]], [[Rail transport in Italy|Italy]], [[Rail transport in Laos|Laos]], [[Rail transport in Monaco|Monaco]], [[Rail transport in Morocco|Morocco]], [[Rail transport in Myanmar|Myanmar]], [[Rail transport in Nigeria|Nigeria]], [[Rail transport in Peru|Peru]], [[Rail transport in Portugal|Portugal]], [[Rail transport in Senegal|Senegal]], [[Rail transport in Slovenia|Slovenia]], [[Rail transport in Sweden|Sweden]], [[Rail transport in Switzerland|Switzerland]], [[Rail transport in Taiwan|Taiwan]], [[Rail transport in Tunisia|Tunisia]], [[Rail transport in Uruguay|Uruguay]] and [[Rail transport in Venezuela|Venezuela]]. France is mainly LHT for trains except for the classic lines in [[Alsace–Lorraine]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Strasbourg to Paris Driver's eye view PREVIEW |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdOJZ9imhq8 |date=13 February 2017 |via=YouTube |publisher=Video 125 |access-date=11 March 2019}}{{cbignore}} Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/EdOJZ9imhq8 Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20190918215937/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdOJZ9imhq8&gl=US&hl=en Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}.</ref> which were converted from LHT to RHT under German administration from 1870 to 1918. In North America, multi-track rail lines with [[centralized traffic control]] are typically signaled to allow operation on any track in both directions, and the side of operation will vary based on the railroad's specific operational requirements.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Lundsen |first1=Carsten |title=North American Signaling Basics |url=http://www.lundsten.dk/us_signaling/movement.html |date=27 September 1998 |website=Railroad Rules, Signaling, Operations |access-date=17 October 2022 |archive-date=9 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220809222905/http://www.lundsten.dk/us_signaling/movement.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In practice however, rail traffic is more often RHT. 

[[File:Kereta MRT Jakarta sedang melewati jalur peralihan antara jalur layang dan jalur bawah tanah.jpg|thumb|[[Jakarta MRT]] is a train that uses the right lane which is dominated by the left lane on highways in Indonesia.]]

[[Rail transport in Indonesia|Indonesia]] is the only country in the world which has RHT for rails (even for newer rail systems such as the LRT and the MRT systems) and LHT for roads.

=== Metro/Tram/Light rail ===
Metro and light rail sides of operation vary and might not match railways or roads in their country. Some systems where the metro matches the side of the national rail network but not the roads include those in [[Bilbao metro|Bilbao]], [[Buenos Aires]], [[Cairo Metro|Cairo]], [[Catania Metro|Catania]], [[Jakarta MRT|Jakarta]], [[Lisbon Metro|Lisbon]], [[Lyon Metro|Lyon]], [[Naples Metro|Naples]], and [[Rome Metro|Rome]]. A small number of cities, including [[Madrid Metro|Madrid]] and [[Stockholm Metro|Stockholm]], originally ran on the same side as road traffic when the systems opened in 1919 and 1950 respectively, but had road traffic change in 1924 and 1967 respectively. Conversely, metros in France (except for the aforementioned Lyon) and mainland China run on the right just like roads, while mainline trains run on the left.

A small number of systems have situational reasons to differ from the norm. On the [[MTR]] in Hong Kong, the section originally known as the [[Ma On Shan line]] (now part of the Tuen Ma line) runs on the right to make interchanging with the East Rail line easier, while the rest of the system runs on the left. On the [[Seoul Metropolitan Subway]], lines that integrate with Korail (except Line 3, which is disconnected from the rest of the network) run on the left, while the lines that are not run on the right. In [[Nizhny Novgorod Metro|Nizhny Novgorod]], Line 2 runs on the left due to the track layout when it first opened as a branch of Line 1. In [[Lima and Callao Metro|Lima]], Line 1 runs entirely on the left, while Line 2 runs entirely on the right.

[[Metro Line M1 (Budapest Metro)|Metro Line M1 in Budapest]] is the only metro line to have switched sides. It originally ran on the left but switched to right hand-running during the line's reconstruction around 1973.

The former [[Rochester subway]], that operated from 1927 to 1956 ran on the left to let unidirectional vehicles with doors on the right use stations with island platforms.

Because trams frequently operate on roads, they generally operate on the same side as other road traffic.

==Boat traffic==
{{Unreferenced section|date=December 2023}}[[File:Riverine Patrol Boat Cockpit Console.jpg|thumb|Helmsman's station on a Philippine Marine Corps patrol boat]]

Boats are traditionally piloted from [[starboard]] (the right-hand side) to facilitate [[priority to the right]]. 
According to the [[International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea]], water traffic is effectively RHT: a vessel proceeding along a narrow channel must keep to starboard, and when two power-driven vessels are meeting head-on both must alter course to starboard also.

Typically, especially for larger vessels, a radio call will be made between two vessels, or with a [[Vessel traffic service|Vessel Traffic Service (VTS)]] to co-ordinate if the vessels will pass "green-to-green" or "red-to-red". Marine traffic uses a system of green lighting for the starboard (right-hand) side and red for port (left-hand) side: to pass "green-to-green" the green (starboard, right-hand) side of the vessels will pass each other, essentially being left-hand traffic. Similarly, passing "red-to-red" means the red (port, left-hand) side of the vessels will pass each other, forming right-hand traffic.

In busy waterways, directional shipping lanes may be set up to facilitate handedness of traffic. For example, the [[Strait of Dover]] (Pas-de-Calais) on the [[English Channel]] uses RHT with North Sea-bound vessels following the French coast and Atlantic-bound vessels following the English coast.

==Aircraft traffic==
For aircraft, the US [[Federal Aviation Regulations]] suggest RHT principles, both in the air and on water, and in aircraft with side-by-side cockpit seating, the pilot-in-command (or more senior flight officer) traditionally occupies the left seat.<ref>{{Cite web |title=FAR Part 91 Sec. 91.115 |url=http://www.airweb.faa.gov/REGULATORY_AND_GUIDANCE_LIBRARY%5CRGFAR.NSF/0/2EA99FD06D59A9BC852566CF00614DEA |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181010060732/http://www.airweb.faa.gov/REGULATORY_AND_GUIDANCE_LIBRARY%5CRGFAR.NSF/0/2EA99FD06D59A9BC852566CF00614DEA |archive-date=10 October 2018 |website=Federal Aviation Administration |quote=When aircraft, or an aircraft and a vessel, are approaching head-on, or nearly so, each shall alter its course to the right to keep well clear.}}</ref> However, helicopter practice tends to favour the right hand seat for the pilot-in-command, particularly when flying solo.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://pilotteacher.com/are-helicopters-flown-from-the-left-or-right-seat/|title=Are Helicopters Flown from the Left or Right Seat? It Depends! |website=Pilot Teacher |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230928082627/https://pilotteacher.com/are-helicopters-flown-from-the-left-or-right-seat/ |archive-date= 28 September 2023 }}</ref>

==Worldwide distribution by country==
Of the 195 countries currently recognised by the [[United Nations]], 141 use RHT and 54 use LHT on roads in general.

A country and its territories and dependencies are counted as one. Whichever directionality is listed first is the type that is used in general in the traffic category.
{{sticky header}}
{| class="wikitable sortable sticky-header"
! scope="col" colspan="2" style="width: 200px;" | Country
! Road traffic
! Date of<br/>switch
! Notes, exceptions
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Afghanistan}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| 
| Kabul adopted RHT in 1955.{{citation needed|date=November 2021}}
|-
| colspan="2" | {{flagcountry|Albania}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sixt.co.uk/driving-tips/albania/|title=Driving Tips: Albania|website=Sixt rent a car|access-date=2019-04-03|archive-date=4 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190404044158/https://www.sixt.co.uk/driving-tips/albania/|url-status=live}}</ref>
|
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Algeria}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.adcidl.com/Driving-in-Algeria.html|title=Driving in Algeria|website=adcidl.com|access-date=2019-04-03|archive-date=13 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220713133510/http://www.adcidl.com/Driving-in-Algeria.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
|
|[[French Algeria|Part of France]] until 1962.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Andorra}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT<ref>{{cite web|date=9 April 2021|title=Andorra Driving Guide 2021|url=https://internationaldriversassociation.com/andorra-driving-guide/|access-date=2021-06-17|website=International Drivers' Association|archive-date=13 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220713172503/https://internationaldriversassociation.com/andorra-driving-guide/|url-status=live}}</ref>
|
|Landlocked between France and Spain.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Angola}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sixt.co.uk/driving-tips/angola/|title=Driving Tips in Angola |website=Sixt rent a car|access-date=2019-04-03 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190403230935/https://www.sixt.co.uk/driving-tips/angola/ |archive-date= 2019-04-03 }}</ref>
| {{dts|1928}}
| [[Portuguese Angola|Portuguese colony]] until 1975.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Antigua and Barbuda}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.antiguarentalcar.com/road-safety-guidelines.html|title=Road Safety Guidelines For Visitors – Drive-a-Matic Car Rentals Antigua|website=antiguarentalcar.com|access-date=2019-04-03|archive-date=13 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220713164424/https://www.antiguarentalcar.com/road-safety-guidelines.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
|
| These Caribbean islands were a British colony until 1958. 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Argentina}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|10 June 1945}}
|The anniversary on 10 June is still observed each year as ''Día de la Seguridad Vial'' (road safety day).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.argentina.gob.ar/seguridadvial/dia-nacional-de-la-seguridad-vial-por-un-transito-seguro-respetuoso-y-con-lugar-para|title=10 de Junio: Día Nacional de la Seguridad Vial|date=9 June 2021 }}</ref>
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Armenia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT<ref>{{cite web|url=https://armenianweekly.com/2018/01/10/armenian-government-plans-ban-right-hand-drive-vehicles-drivers-protest-decision/|title=Armenian Government Plans to Ban Right-Hand Drive Vehicles; Drivers Protest Decision|date=2018-01-10|website=The Armenian Weekly|access-date=2019-04-03|archive-date=14 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220714113737/https://armenianweekly.com/2018/01/10/armenian-government-plans-ban-right-hand-drive-vehicles-drivers-protest-decision/|url-status=live}}</ref>
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Australia}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| British colonies before 1901. Includes [[Australian external territories]].
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Austria}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|1921–38
|Originally LHT, like most of [[Austria-Hungary]], but switched sides after the [[Anschluss|annexation of Austria]] by Nazi Germany.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Azerbaijan}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Bahamas}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT<ref name="tbr2015">{{cite web |title=Compilation of Foreign Motor Vehicle Import Requirements |url=https://www.trade.gov/td/otm/assets/auto/TBR2015Final.pdf |publisher=United States Department of Commerce International Trade Administration Office of Transportation and Machinery |access-date=9 April 2019 |date=December 2015 |archive-date=12 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190412034513/https://www.trade.gov/td/otm/assets/auto/TBR2015Final.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>
|
| British colony before 1973. Caribbean island. Most passenger vehicles are LHD due to them being imported from the United States.<ref name="bahamas"/>
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Bahrain}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1967|11}}
| Former British protectorate. Switched to the same side as its neighbours.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8v1CAQAAIAAJ&q=%22driving+on+the+right+was+effected+smoothly%22|title=Bahrain Government Annual Reports|publisher=Times of India Press|year=1968|page=158}}</ref> An island nation, linked by road to the Arabian mainland [[King Fahd Causeway|since 1986]].
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Bangladesh}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| Part of Pakistan before 1971, which was part of [[British Raj|British India]] before 1947.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Barbados}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| This Atlantic island state was a British colony before 1966.

|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Belarus}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT<ref>{{cite web |title=Driving in Belarus |url=https://www.autoeurope.co.uk/driving-information-belarus/ |website=autoeurope |access-date=11 April 2019 |archive-date=13 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220713133801/https://www.autoeurope.co.uk/driving-information-belarus/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Belgium}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1899}}<ref name="ida">{{cite web |title=The history of left- and right-hand traffic |url=https://idaoffice.org/posts/the-history-of-left-and-right-hand-traffic/ |website=International Driving Authority |access-date=11 April 2019 |archive-date=5 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211105112255/https://idaoffice.org/posts/the-history-of-left-and-right-hand-traffic/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Belize}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1961}}<ref name="kincaid"/>
| [[British Honduras|British colony]] before 1981. Switched to same side as neighbours.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Benin}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|Part of [[French West Africa]] before 1960.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Bhutan}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| Under British protection before 1949.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Bolivia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| 
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Bosnia and Herzegovina}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1918}}
| Switched sides after the collapse of [[Austria-Hungary]].
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Botswana}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
|[[Bechuanaland Protectorate|British colony]] before 1966.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Brazil}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1928}}
| [[Colonial Brazil|Portuguese colony]] before 1822.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Brunei}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| British protection until 1984.
|- 
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Bulgaria}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|- 
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Burkina Faso}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Part of French West Africa before 1958.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Burundi}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| [[Ruanda-Urundi|Belgian colony]] before 1962. Considering switching to LHT.<ref name="rwandaburundi"/>
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Cambodia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| [[French protectorate of Cambodia|French protectorate]] before 1953.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Cameroon}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1961}}
|
|-
| rowspan="13" | {{Flagcountry|Canada}}
| {{flagcountry|Alberta}}
| rowspan="13" style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| 
| 
|-
| {{flagcountry|British Columbia}}
| 1920–1922 
| Interior changed 15 July 1920, Vancouver and the coastal area 1 January 1922
|-
| {{flagcountry|Manitoba}}
| 
| 
|-
| {{flagcountry|New Brunswick}}
| {{dts|1 December 1922}}
| 
|-
| {{flagcountry|Newfoundland and Labrador}}
| {{dts| 2 January 1947}}
| Was a [[Dominion of Newfoundland|British Dominion]] until 1949.
|-
| {{flagcountry|Northwest Territories}}
| 
| 
|-
| {{flagcountry|Nova Scotia}}
| {{dts|15 April 1923}}
| 
|-
| {{flagcountry|Nunavut}}
| 
| 
|-
| {{flagcountry|Ontario}}
| 
| 
|-
| {{flagcountry|Prince Edward Island}}
| {{dts|1 May 1924}}
| 
|-
| {{flagcountry|Quebec}}
| 
| 
|-
| {{flagcountry|Saskatchewan}}
| 
| 
|-
| {{flagcountry|Yukon}}
| 
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Cape Verde}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1928}}
| [[Portuguese Cape Verde|Portuguese colony]] before 1975.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Central African Republic}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| rowspan="2" | French colonies before 1960.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Chad}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|-
| rowspan="3" | {{Flagcountry|China}}
| [[Mainland China|Mainland]]
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1946}}
| Parts of China were LHT in the 1930s.
|- 
| {{Flagcountry|Hong Kong}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| Hong Kong was a [[British Hong Kong|British colony]] from 1841 to 1941 and from 1945 to 1997, when the dependent territory was transferred to China.
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Macau}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| Macau was under [[Portuguese Macau|Portuguese rule]] until 1999, when the dependent territory was transferred to China.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Colombia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Comoros}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| [[French Comoros|French colony]] before 1975.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Republic of Congo}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| [[French Congo|French colony]] before 1960.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Democratic Republic of the Congo}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| [[Belgian Congo|Belgian colony]] before 1960. RHD vehicles are common, especially in the southeast.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Costa Rica}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sistema Costarricense de Información Jurídica |url=http://www.pgrweb.go.cr/scij/Busqueda/Normativa/normas/nrm_articulo.aspx?param1=NRA&nValor1=1&nValor2=73504&nValor3=130675&nValor4=-1&nValor5=101&nValor6=04/10/2012&strTipM=FA |access-date=2023-09-17 |website=pgrweb.go.cr}}</ref>
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Côte d'Ivoire}}<br/>(Côte d'Ivoire)
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Part of French West Africa before 1960.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Croatia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1926}}
| Was then part of the [[Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes]].
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Cuba}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Cyprus}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| Under UK administration before 1960. Island nation. ''[[De facto]]'' divided between the [[Republic of Cyprus]], the [[Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus]], the [[United Nations Buffer Zone in Cyprus|UN buffer zone]] and the British base areas of [[Akrotiri and Dhekelia]]. All are LHT.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Czech Republic}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1939}}
| [[Switch to right-hand traffic in Czechoslovakia|Switched]] during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia. 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Denmark}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| 
| Includes the [[Faroe Islands]] and [[Greenland]].
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Djibouti}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|[[French Somaliland|French]] [[French Territory of the Afars and the Issas|colony]] before 1977.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Dominica}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| British colony before 1978. Caribbean island.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Dominican Republic}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Ecuador}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Egypt}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|El Salvador}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Equatorial Guinea}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| [[Spanish Guinea|Spanish colony]] before 1968.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Eritrea}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|8 June 1964}}
| [[Italian Eritrea|Italian colony]] before 1942.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Estonia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Eswatini}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| British protectorate until 1968. Continues to drive on the same side as neighbouring countries.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Ethiopia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|8 June 1964}}
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Fiji}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| The island nation was a [[Colony of Fiji|British colony]] before 1970. 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Finland}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|8 June 1858}}
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|France}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT 
| {{dts|1792}}
| Includes [[French Polynesia]], [[New Caledonia]], [[Saint Pierre and Miquelon]], [[Wallis and Futuna]], [[French Guiana]], [[Réunion]], [[Saint Barthélemy]], the [[Collectivity of Saint Martin]], [[Guadeloupe]], and [[Mayotte]]. 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Gabon}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT 
|
|French colony before 1960.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Gambia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1 October 1965}}
| [[Gambia Colony and Protectorate|British colony]] until 1965. Switched to RHT on 1 October 1965 being surrounded by the former French colony of Senegal.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=22wMAQAAIAAJ&q=%221st+October%2C+1965%22|title=Tourist and Business Directory, The Gambia|year=1969|page=19}}</ref>
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Georgia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| About 40% of vehicles in Georgia are RHD due to the low cost of used cars imported from Japan.{{citation needed|date=November 2020}}
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Germany}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT<ref>{{cite web|last1=Hillger|first1=Don|last2=Toth|first2=Garry|title=Right-Hand/Left-Hand Driving Customs|url=http://rammb.cira.colostate.edu/dev/hillger/driving-customs.htm|publisher=Colorado State University|access-date=13 December 2016|archive-date=25 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225111126/http://rammb.cira.colostate.edu/dev/hillger/driving-customs.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Ghana}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|4 August 1974}}
| [[Gold Coast (British colony)|British colony]] until 1957. Ghana switched to RHT in 1974,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ghanalegal.com/?id=3&law=391&t=ghana-laws|title=Right-Hand Traffic Act|publisher=Ghanalegal.com|access-date=14 May 2014|archive-date=11 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220511023926/https://ghanalegal.com/?id=3&law=391&t=ghana-laws|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UyCl5iWBSzwC&q=ghana+drive+right+1974&pg=PA5|journal=Daily Graphic|issue=7526|date=21 December 1974|page=9|title=Daily Graphic: Issue 7526 December 21 1974|last1=Nkrumah|first1=I. K.}}</ref> a [[Twi language]] slogan was "Nifa, Nifa Enan" or "Right, Right, Fourth".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cec.vcn.bc.ca/rdi/kw-trv.htm|title=Studies Among the Akan People of West Africa Community, Society, History, Culture; With Special Focus on the Kwawu by Phil Bartle, PhD|first=Phil|last=Bartle|publisher=Cec.vcn.bc.ca|access-date=14 May 2014|archive-date=25 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225111213/http://cec.vcn.bc.ca/rdi/kw-trv.htm%20|url-status=live}}</ref> Ghana has also banned RHD vehicles – it prohibited new registrations of RHD vehicles after 1 August 1974, three days before the traffic change.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Greece}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| 1926
| Originally LHT (albeit unofficially) since independence. The establishment of the traffic code switched traffic officially to RHT traffic in 1926.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Grenada}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| British colony before 1974. Caribbean island.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Guatemala}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Guinea}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Part of French West Africa before 1958.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Guinea-Bissau}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1928}}
| [[Portuguese Guinea|Portuguese colony]] until 1974. Drives on the same side as its neighbours.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Guyana}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| [[British Guyana|British colony]] until 1966. One of the only two countries in continental America which are in LHT, the other being Suriname.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Haiti}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|[[Saint-Domingue|French colony]] until 1804.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Honduras}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Hungary}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1941}}
| Originally LHT, like most of [[Austria-Hungary]], but switched sides during [[World War II]]. 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Iceland}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|26 May 1968}}
| This Atlantic island nation changed to RHT on [[H-dagurinn]]. Most passenger cars were already LHD.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|India}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
|Part of [[British Raj|British India]] before 1947.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Indonesia}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT<ref name="basement">{{cite web|title=Right-Hand Traffic versus Left-Hand Traffic|url=https://basementgeographer.com/right-hand-traffic-versus-left-hand-traffic/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170210083750/https://basementgeographer.com/right-hand-traffic-versus-left-hand-traffic/|url-status=dead|archive-date=10 February 2017|website=The Basement Geographer|access-date=22 November 2018}}</ref>
| 
|Roads and railways were built by the Dutch, with LHT for roads to conform to British and Japanese standards and RHT for railways to conform with Dutch standards. [[Rapid transit in Indonesia|Urban railways]] also use RHT.  Did not change sides, unlike the Netherlands, in 1906. 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Iran}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Iraq}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Ireland}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| What is now the [[Republic of Ireland]] was part of the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|United Kingdom before 1922]]. The Republic covers most of the island of [[Ireland]]; the rest of Ireland is part of [[Northern Ireland]], which remains part of the United Kingdom, which is also LHT.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Israel}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Italy}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| 1924–26
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Jamaica}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| [[Colony of Jamaica|British colony]] before 1962. Caribbean island. Most passenger vehicles are RHD, tractor-trailers and other heavy-duty trucks are mostly LHD due to being imported from the United States.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tenfourmagazine.com/2019/02/trucking-around-the-world/trucking-in-jamaica/ |title=Trucking in Jamaica &#124; 10-4 Magazine |publisher=Tenfourmagazine.com |date=2011-12-12 |accessdate=2022-02-16 |archive-date=1 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220201051938/https://www.tenfourmagazine.com/2019/02/trucking-around-the-world/trucking-in-jamaica/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://jis.gov.jm/fire-service-comfortable-with-left-hand-drive-trucks/ |title=Fire Service Comfortable With Left Hand Drive Trucks – Jamaica Information Service |publisher=Jis.gov.jm |date=2022-02-11 |accessdate=2022-02-16 |archive-date=1 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220201051939/https://jis.gov.jm/fire-service-comfortable-with-left-hand-drive-trucks/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Japan}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT<ref>{{cite web | title = Why Does Japan Drive on the Left | publisher = 2pass.co.uk | url = http://www.2pass.co.uk/japan.htm | access-date = 11 August 2006 | archive-date = 25 December 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181225111219/https://www.2pass.co.uk/404error.htm | url-status = live }}</ref>
|
| LHT was enacted in law in 1924. One of the few non-British-colony countries to use LHT. [[Okinawa Prefecture]] was RHT from [[United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands|24 June 1945]] to [[730 (transport)|30 July 1978]] because of American rule.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Jordan}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Kazakhstan}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Kenya}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kra.go.ke/customs/faqcustoms2.html#Q1 |title=Customs Services Department – Frequently Asked Questions |publisher=KRA |access-date=12 December 2010 |archive-date=25 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225111100/https://www.kra.go.ke/index.php#Q1 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
| 
| Part of the [[Kenya Colony|British East Africa Protectorate]] before 1963.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Kiribati}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| This Pacific island nation was a British colony before 1979.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Kosovo}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT 
| 
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Kuwait}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|British Protectorate until 1961.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Kyrgyzstan}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| In 2012, over 20,000 cheap used RHD cars were imported from Japan.<ref name="kyrgyzstan-rhd">{{cite news|title=Over 20,000 Right Hand Drive Cars Imported in Kyrgyzstan in 2012|url=http://www.satrapia.com/news/article/over-20000-right-hand-drive-cars-imported-in-kyrgyzstan-in-2012/|newspaper=The Gazette of Central Asia|date=8 May 2013|publisher=Satrapia|archive-date=25 December 2018|access-date=10 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225111054/http://gca.satrapia.com/over-20000-right-hand-drive-cars-imported-in-kyrgyzstan-in-2012|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Laos}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|[[French protectorate of Laos|French protectorate]] until 1953. The [[First Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge]] is LHT in connection to Thailand.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Latvia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| 
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Lebanon}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| [[French Mandate of Lebanon]] before 1946.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Lesotho}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| British protectorate from 1885 to 1966. Enclave of LHT South Africa.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Liberia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|Was under [[Colony of Liberia|American control]].
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Libya}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| [[Italian Libya|Italian colony]] from 1911 to 1947.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Liechtenstein}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Landlocked between Switzerland and Austria.
|- 
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Lithuania}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Luxembourg}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Madagascar}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| This island nation was a [[French Madagascar|French colony]] until 1958.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Malawi}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| British colony before 1964.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Malaysia}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| [[British Malaya|British colony]] before 1957.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Maldives}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| This island nation was a British colony before 1965.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Mali}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Part of [[French West Africa]] before 1960.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Malta}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| [[Crown Colony of Malta|British colony]] before 1964. Island nation.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Marshall Islands}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Was under [[Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands|American control]].
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Mauritania}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Part of [[French West Africa]] before 1960. Mining roads between [[Fderîck]] and [[Zouérat]] are LHT.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.panoramio.com/photo/9441095?tag=Mauritania|title=Photo of All Change. Swop Over Point for the Traffic !|publisher=Panoramio|access-date=10 June 2012|archive-date=18 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140118095031/http://www.panoramio.com/photo/9441095?tag=Mauritania|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Mauritius}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
|This island nation was a [[British Mauritius|British colony]] before 1968.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Mexico}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Micronesia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Was under [[Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands|American control]].
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Moldova}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Monaco}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Was under French control.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Mongolia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Montenegro}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Morocco}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Under [[French protectorate in Morocco|French]] and [[Spanish protectorate in Morocco|Spanish protection]] until 1956.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Mozambique}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| [[Portuguese Mozambique|Portuguese colony]] until 1975. Drives on the same side as its neighbours.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Myanmar}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT 
| {{dts|6 December 1970}}<ref>[https://www.irrawaddy.com/specials/on-this-day/day-myanmar-started-driving-right.html The Day Myanmar Started Driving on the Right] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230217042135/https://www.irrawaddy.com/specials/on-this-day/day-myanmar-started-driving-right.html |date=17 February 2023 }}, ''[[The Irrawaddy]]'', 6 December 2019</ref>
| [[British rule in Burma|British colony]] until 1948. Switched to RHT under the orders of Ne Win. Theories emerge on the reasoning behind this switch; one claimed that he met an astrologer that recommended him to switch the country's traffic to the right in order to make the nation prosper, while another claimed that international visits caused him to notice that most countries are RHT and so decided to convert the country's handedness of traffic in order to connect Myanmar's roads with other countries' roads in the future.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Namibia}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| {{dts|1920}}
| When South Africa occupied [[German South West Africa]] in [[World War I]], it switched to LHT. [[South West Africa]] was administered by South Africa 1920–1990.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Nauru}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| {{dts|1918}}
|This island nation was administered by Australia until 1968. 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Nepal}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| Shares open land border with LHT India.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Kingdom of the Netherlands}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1 January 1906}}<ref name="NED">{{cite web|url=http://www.volkskrant.nl/economie/de-claim-links-rijden~a358071/|title=De Claim links rijden|work=De Volkskrant|language=nl|first = Peter | last = van Ammelrooy|date=12 September 2009|access-date=14 May 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200321062714/https://www.volkskrant.nl/economie/de-claim-links-rijden~b9113fe3/|archive-date=21 March 2020}}</ref>
| Includes [[Aruba]], [[Curaçao]], and [[Sint Maarten]].
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|New Zealand}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/2004/0427/latest/DLM302188.html?search=qs_all%40act%40bill%40regulation_left+side+road_resel&p=1 |title= 2.1 "Keeping Left" – Land Transport (Road User) Rule 2004 – New Zealand Legislation |publisher= New Zealand Government |access-date= 28 November 2010 |archive-date= 9 May 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220509075322/https://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/2004/0427/latest/DLM302188.html?search=qs_all%40act%40bill%40regulation_left+side+road_resel&p=1 |url-status= live }}</ref>
|
| These Pacific islands, including territories [[Niue]] and [[Cook Islands]], were former British colonies.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Nicaragua}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Niger}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Part of French West Africa before 1958.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Nigeria}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|2 April 1972}}
| [[Colonial Nigeria|British colony]] until 1960. Under the military government, it switched to RHT due to being surrounded by RHT former French colonies.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|North Korea}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT 
| {{dts|1946}}
| Was LHT during the period of [[Korea under Japanese rule|Japanese rule]]. Switched to RHT after the [[Surrender of Japan]].
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|North Macedonia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Norway}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Oman}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT<ref>{{cite web|access-date=8 August 2006|publisher=Foreign & Commonwealth Office (fco.gov.uk)|title=Travel advice by country, Oman|url=http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travelling-and-living-overseas/travel-advice-by-country/middle-east-north-africa/oman|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408184423/http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travelling-and-living-overseas/travel-advice-by-country/middle-east-north-africa/oman|archive-date=8 April 2008}}</ref>
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Pakistan}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|  
| Part of [[British Raj|British India]] before 1947.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Palau}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Most passenger vehicles are RHD due to them being imported from Australia and Japan.{{citation needed|date=October 2021}} Palau was under [[Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands|American control]].
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Palestine}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Panama}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1943}}
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Papua New Guinea}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| After Australia occupied [[German New Guinea]] during World War I, it switched to LHT.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Paraguay}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|25 January 1945}}
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Peru}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Philippines}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1946}}
| Was LHT during the [[Captaincy General of the Philippines|Spanish]] and [[Insular Government of the Philippine Islands|American]] colonial periods. Switched to RHT after the [[Battle of Manila (1945)|Battle of Manila]] in 1945.<ref name="E.O. 34 1945"/> RHD vehicles such as imported buses were still used up until the late 1980s.<ref>{{Cite web |date=30 August 2020 |first=Mia |last=Rodriguez |title=Whatever Happened to the Double-Decker Buses That Used to Ply Metro Manila's Roads? |url=https://www.spot.ph/newsfeatures/the-latest-news-features/83393/double-decker-buses-metro-manila-a4362-20200830-lfrm |access-date=2022-11-17 |website=SPOT.PH |archive-date=30 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221130170325/https://www.spot.ph/newsfeatures/the-latest-news-features/83393/double-decker-buses-metro-manila-a4362-20200830-lfrm |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Philippine National Railways]] switched to RHT in 2010. Nowadays RHD vehicles are illegal to register and operate for ordinary use under Republic Act 8506 of 1998 however RHD vintage vehicles made before 1960 in "showroom" condition or off-road specialized vehicles are allowed to be used only for motorsports events.<ref name=":0" />
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Poland}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| South-eastern Poland (former [[Austrian Partition]]) was LHT until the 1920s.<ref name="Komunikacja.krakow.eurocity.pl" />
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Portugal}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT<ref name="basement"/>
| {{dts|1928}}
| Colonies [[Goa]], Macau and Mozambique, which had land borders with LHT countries, did not switch and continue to drive on the left.<ref name="mozrev">[https://books.google.com/books?id=W2oaAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Mozambique+one+drives+on+the+the+left%22 ''Mozambique: memoirs of a revolution''], John Paul, Penguin, 1975, page 41</ref> The [[Porto Metro]] uses RHT.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Qatar}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Former British protectorate. Switched to same side as neighbours.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Romania}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1919}}
| Regions of Romania ([[Transylvania]], [[Bukovina]], parts of the [[Banat]], [[Crișana]] and [[Maramureș]]) that were part of [[Austria-Hungary]] were LHT until 1919.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Russia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| 
|In the [[Russian Far East]], RHD vehicles are common due to the import of used cars from nearby Japan.<ref name="rbth.com">{{cite web |url=https://www.rbth.com/business/2016/08/31/russian-far-east-is-still-attached-to-japanese-cars_625665 |title=Russian Far East is still attached to Japanese cars |publisher=Russia behind the headlines |date=31 August 2016 |access-date=12 August 2017 |archive-date=16 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816060429/https://www.rbth.com/business/2016/08/31/russian-far-east-is-still-attached-to-japanese-cars_625665 |url-status=live }}</ref> The railway between Moscow and [[Ryazan]], the [[Sormovskaya line]] in [[Nizhny Novgorod Metro]] and the [[Moskva River cable car]] use LHT.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Rwanda}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT<ref name=rwandaburundi/>
|
| [[Ruanda-Urundi|Belgian colony]] before 1962. Considering switching to LHT.<ref name="rwandaburundi"/>
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Saint Kitts and Nevis}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
|This Caribbean island nation was a [[Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla|British colony]] before 1983.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Saint Lucia}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| rowspan="2" | This Caribbean island nation was a British colony before 1979.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Saint Vincent and the Grenadines}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Samoa}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| {{dts|7 September 2009}}
| Despite New Zealand occupying [[German Samoa]] during the first World War, the country did not switch to LHT until 2009; this was for economic reasons, to allow cheaper importation of cars from Australia, New Zealand and Japan.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/sep/08/samoa-drivers-switch-left Samoa switches smoothly to driving on the left] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108170757/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/sep/08/samoa-drivers-switch-left |date=8 November 2020 }}, ''[[The Guardian]]'', 8 Sep 2009</ref>
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|San Marino}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Enclaved state surrounded by Italy.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|São Tomé and Príncipe}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1928}}
| [[Portuguese São Tomé and Príncipe|Portuguese colony]] until 1975.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Saudi Arabia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1942}}
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Senegal}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Part of French West Africa before 1960.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Serbia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1926}}
| (As part of [[Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes]]). [[Vojvodina]] was LHT while part of Austria-Hungary.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Seychelles}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| This island nation was a British colony until 1976.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Sierra Leone}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT 
| {{dts|1 March 1971}}<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F80CAAAAMAAJ&q=%22right-hand+traffic+system+on+1st+March+1971%22|title=The Rising Sun: A History of the All People's Congress Party of Sierra Leone|publisher=A.P.C. Secretariat|year=1982|page=396}}</ref>
| [[Sierra Leone Colony and Protectorate|British colony]] until 1961. Switched to RHT being surrounded by neighbouring former French colonies. Furthermore, it banned the importation of RHD vehicles in 2013.<ref name="sierra-leone-RHD">{{cite news|url=https://www.voanews.com/a/sierra-leone-officially-bans-right-hand-vehichles-as-hazards/1751527.html|title=Sierra Leone Bans Right-Hand Vehicles as Hazards|publisher=[[Voice of America]]|first=Nina|last=de Vries|date=17 September 2013|archive-date=20 May 2022|access-date=8 April 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220520051723/https://www.voanews.com/a/sierra-leone-officially-bans-right-hand-vehichles-as-hazards/1751527.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Singapore}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| This island nation was a British colony until 1963. It was also [[Singapore in Malaysia|part of Malaysia]] until 1965.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Slovakia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| 1939–41
| [[Switch to right-hand traffic in Czechoslovakia|Switched]] during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia. 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Slovenia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1926}}
| (As part of [[Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes]].) Officially LHT from 1915 as part of [[Austria-Hungary]]. 
|- 
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Solomon Islands}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| This island nation was a [[British Solomon Islands|British protectorate]] before 1975.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Somalia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT 
| 
| The former [[British Somaliland]] had LHT until it formed a union with the former [[Italian Somaliland]] which had RHT. 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|South Africa}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT<ref>{{cite web|title=Road Rules|url=http://www.sacarrental.com/road-rules.htm|work=SACarRental.com|access-date=15 February 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130102054016/http://www.sacarrental.com/road-rules.htm|archive-date=2 January 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Driving in South Africa Information|url=http://www.drivesouthafrica.co.za/driving-information/south-africa/|work=drivesouthafrica.co.za|access-date=15 February 2014|archive-date=25 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225111114/https://www.drivesouthafrica.com/en/rentals/car-hire/van-hire/south-africa/|url-status=live}}</ref>
| 
| British colony before 1910.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|South Korea}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT 
| {{dts|1946}}
| Was LHT during the period of [[Korea under Japanese rule|Japanese rule]]. Switched to RHT after the [[Surrender of Japan]].
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|South Sudan}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1973}}
| Part of [[Sudan]] until 2011.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Spain}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1924}}
| Up to the 1920s [[Barcelona]] was RHT, and [[Madrid]] was LHT until 1924. The [[Madrid Metro]] still uses LHT.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Sri Lanka}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| [[British Ceylon]] from 1815 to 1948.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Sudan}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1973}}
| Formerly [[Anglo-Egyptian Sudan]], it switched sides 17 years later to match neighbours.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Suriname}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 1920s
| [[Surinam (Dutch colony)|Dutch colony]] until 1975. One of the only two countries in continental America which are in LHT, the other being Guyana. Did not switch sides, unlike the Netherlands itself.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Sweden}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|3 September 1967}}
| The day of the switch was known as ''[[Dagen H]]''. Most passenger vehicles were already LHD.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Switzerland}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{flagicon image|Flag of the Syrian revolution.svg}} [[Syria]]
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Was under [[Syrian Federation|French]] [[State of Syria (1925–1930)|control]].
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Taiwan}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1946}}
| Was LHT during the period of [[Taiwan under Japanese rule|Japanese rule]]. The [[Republic of China (1912–1949)]] changed Taiwan to RHT in 1946 along with the rest of China.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://lis.ly.gov.tw/lghtml/lawstat/version2/01172/0117235060800.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131210214228/http://lis.ly.gov.tw/lghtml/lawstat/version2/01172/0117235060800.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=10 December 2013 |title=違警罰法 (Act Governing the Punishment of Police Offences) |publisher=Passed by the Legislative Yuan |year=1946 |access-date=14 August 2012 }}</ref>
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Tajikistan}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Tanzania}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| Was [[Tanganyika Territory|British colony]] until 1961.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Thailand}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT<ref name="basement"/>
| 
| One of the few non-British-colony LHT countries. Shares a long land border with RHT Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|East Timor}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| {{dts|19 July 1976}}
| [[Portuguese Timor|Portuguese colony]] until 1975. Switched to RHT with Portugal in 1928; following its [[Indonesian occupation of East Timor|annexation by Indonesia]] in 1976, it switched back to LHT, which it has retained since independence.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Togo}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|Part of French West Africa until 1960.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Tonga}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| British [[protectorate]] before 1970. Polynesian island nation.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Trinidad and Tobago}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c1n3oVO5Gv8C&q=Trinidad+and+Tobago+drives+on+the+left.&pg=PA53|title=Trinidad and Tobago Adventure Guide|first1=Kathleen|last1=O'Donnell|first2=Stassi|last2=Pefkaros|publisher=Hunter Publishing, Inc.|year=2000|page=53|isbn=9781556508868}}</ref>
|
| British colony before 1962. Caribbean nation.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Tunisia}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| RHT was enforced in the [[French protectorate of Tunisia]] from 1881 to 1956.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Turkey}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| Except [[Metrobus (Istanbul)|Metrobus]], which is usually LHT.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Turkmenistan}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Tuvalu}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| Formerly a [[Gilbert and Ellice Islands|British colony]]. Became independent in 1978.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Uganda}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
| Part of British [[Uganda Protectorate]] from 1894 until 1962.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Ukraine}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1922}}<ref name="Komunikacja.krakow.eurocity.pl"/>
| Western parts of the country had LHT under Austro-Hungarian Empire
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|United Arab Emirates}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1 September 1966}}<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/2021/09/01/remembering-the-day-dubai-swapped-left-hand-driving-for-right/|date=1 September 2021|title=Remembering the day Dubai swapped left-hand driving for right|first=John|last=Dennehey|archive-date=18 October 2021|access-date=18 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211018190731/https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/2021/09/01/remembering-the-day-dubai-swapped-left-hand-driving-for-right/|url-status=live}}</ref>
| Former [[Trucial States|British protectorate]].
|-
| rowspan="11" |{{Flagcountry|United Kingdom}} and [[British Overseas Territories|overseas territories]]
| Mainland [[United Kingdom]]
| style="background: lightskyblue;" | LHT
|
| An island nation with [[Republic of Ireland–United Kingdom border|a land border]] with the Republic of Ireland, which is also LHT. Also LHT are the [[British Overseas Territories]] of [[Anguilla]], [[Ascension Island]], [[Bermuda]], [[Montserrat]], [[Saint Helena]], and [[Tristan da Cunha]].
|-
| {{flagcountry|British Indian Ocean Territory}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|The largest island, [[Diego Garcia]], was leased to the [[United States Navy]] as a [[US Navy bases|military base]]; the United States is RHT.
|-
| {{flagcountry|British Virgin Islands}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| Most passenger vehicles are LHD due to imports from the United States, which is RHT.<ref name="Fodor" />
|-
| {{flagcountry|Cayman Islands}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
|Most passenger vehicles are LHD due to imports from the United States, which has RHT.<ref name="caymans" />
|-
| {{flagcountry|Falkland Islands}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| Briefly switched to RHT during the [[Falklands War]].
|-
|{{flagcountry|Gibraltar}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1929}}
|[[Gibraltar]] is RHT because of its land border with Spain.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MoAzAQAAMAAJ&q=%22Rule+of+the+Road+Ordinance%22|title=Colonial Reports|series=Annual|volume=1480–1499|year=1930|page=76}}</ref>
|-
|{{flagcountry|Bailiwick of Guernsey|name=Guernsey}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| Was RHT from 1940 to 1945 due to the German occupation.<ref name="channel islands">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-iQNAAAAIAAJ&q=%22rule+of+the+road+was+changed+to+the+right%22|title=The Channel Islands War: 1940–1945|first=Peter|last=King|publisher=Hale|year=1991|page=31|isbn=9780709045120}}</ref>
|-
|{{flagcountry|Isle of Man}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
|
|-
|{{flagcountry|Jersey}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| Was RHT from 1940 to 1945 due to the German occupation.<ref name="channel islands"/>
|-
| {{flagcountry|Pitcairn Islands}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
|There is no official vehicle registration system.
|-
|{{flagcountry|Turks and Caicos Islands}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
|Most passenger vehicles are LHD due to imports from the United States, which has RHT.<ref name="turks and caicos"/>
|-
| rowspan="8" | {{Flagcountry|United States}}
| [[Contiguous United States|Contiguous U.S.]]
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| British colonies before 1776 (de facto) or 1783 (de jure)
|-
| {{flagcountry|Alaska}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| {{flagcountry|Hawaii}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| {{flagcountry|Puerto Rico}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| {{flagcountry|U.S. Virgin Islands}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
| [[U.S. Virgin Islands]], like much of the Caribbean, is LHT and is the only American jurisdiction that still has LHT, because the islands drove on the left when the US purchased the former [[Danish West Indies]] in the 1917 [[Treaty of the Danish West Indies]]. Most passenger vehicles are LHD due to them being imported from the American mainland.<ref name="Fodor"/>
|-
| {{flagcountry|Guam}}
| style="background: lightcoral;" | RHT
|
|
|-
| {{flagcountry|Northern Mariana Islands}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| {{flagcountry|American Samoa}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Uruguay}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT 
| {{dts|2 September 1945}}
| Became LHT in 1918, but as in some other countries in South America, changed to RHT in 1945.<ref name="Autoblog">[http://www.autoblog.com.uy/2015/08/el-dia-en-que-el-rio-de-la-plata-dejo.html El día en que el Río de la Plata dejó de manejar por la izquierda] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220608110433/http://www.autoblog.com.uy/2015/08/el-dia-en-que-el-rio-de-la-plata-dejo.html |date=8 June 2022 }}, Autoblog, 25 August 2015</ref> A speed limit of {{convert|30|km/h|0|abbr=on}} was observed until 30 September for safety.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Uzbekistan}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Vanuatu}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT<ref>{{cite web | title = RHD/LHD Country Guide | publisher = toyota-gib.com | url = https://www.toyota-gib.com/eng/vehicle-sales/lhd-rhd-guide.html | access-date = 22 September 2017 | archive-date = 8 April 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220408161805/https://www.toyota-gib.com/eng/vehicle-sales/lhd-rhd-guide.html | url-status = live }}</ref>
|
| [[New Hebrides|Co-administered under France and the United Kingdom]] until 1980.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Vatican City}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|Enclave of Rome.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Venezuela}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| 
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Vietnam}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
| [[French Indochina|French colony]] until 1954. The [[Long Bien Bridge]] uses LHT.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Western Sahara}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
|
|[[Spanish Sahara|Spanish colony]] until 1976.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Yemen}}
| style="background: lightcoral;"| RHT
| {{dts|1977}}<ref name="kincaid"/>
| [[South Yemen]], formerly the British [[colony of Aden]], changed to RHT in 1977, having become one of a few communist countries to use LHT. A series of postage stamps commemorating the event was issued.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stampworld.com/en/stamps/South-Yemen/Postage%20stamps/?year=1977|title=South Yemen – Postage stamps – 1977|work=stampworld.com|access-date=6 March 2016|archive-date=25 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225111147/https://www.stampworld.com/en/stamps/South-Yemen/Postage%20stamps/?year=1977|url-status=live}}</ref> At that time, [[Yemen Arab Republic|North Yemen]] was already RHT.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Zambia}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
| 
|[[Northern Rhodesia|British colony]] before 1964.
|-
| colspan="2" | {{Flagcountry|Zimbabwe}}
| style="background: lightskyblue;"| LHT
|
|[[Southern Rhodesia|British colony]] before 1965 (de facto) or 1980 (de jure).
|}

===Legality of wrong-hand-drive vehicles by country===
{{more citations needed|section|date=November 2021}}
{{incomplete table|date=October 2021}}
{{sticky header}}
{|class="wikitable sortable sticky-header"
|+Legality of wrong-hand-drive vehicles
! Country
! Usage
! Registration<br/>(diplomatic<br/>vehicles)
! Registration<br/>(normal<br/>vehicles)
! Ref
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Afghanistan}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ariananews.af/right-hand-vehicles-legalized-in-afghanistan/|title=Right-hand vehicles legalized in Afghanistan|date=12 March 2023|publisher=Ariana News|access-date=12 March 2023|archive-date=12 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230312061041/https://www.ariananews.af/right-hand-vehicles-legalized-in-afghanistan/|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Angola}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Argentina}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ar.motor1.com/news/478252/repatriacion-se-trajo-un-honda-s2000-desde-nueva-zelanda-y-con-volante-a-la-derecha/|title=Repatriación: se trajo un Honda S2000 desde Nueva Zelanda (y con volante a la derecha)|quote=En nuestro país no hay ninguna normativa que impida que circulen vehículos con volante a la derecha. De hecho, es una configuración muy común entre los autos clásicos. (In our country there are no regulations that prevent right-hand drive vehicles from circulating. In fact, it is a very common configuration among classic cars.)}}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Armenia}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Australia}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Bahamas}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|<ref name="bahamas"/>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Bahrain}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Bangladesh}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
|{{Flagcountry|Belarus}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Почему белорусы никогда не покупают праворульные автомобили |url=https://www.avtovzglyad.ru/sovety/kupi-proday/2022-09-21-pochemu-belorusy-nikogda-ne-pokupajut-pravorulnye-avtomobili/ |access-date=2023-11-13 |website=avtovzglyad.ru |language=ru}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Почему на некоторых автомобилях из России лучше не приезжать в Беларусь |url=https://abw.by/news/automarket/2019/04/08/izgotovyat-nomera-rastamozhat-i-postavyat-na-uchet-pochemu-na-nekotoryh-avtomobilyah-iz-rossii-luchshe-ne-priezzhat-v-belarus |access-date=2023-11-13 |website=abw.by |language=ru |archive-date=13 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231113162306/https://abw.by/news/automarket/2019/04/08/izgotovyat-nomera-rastamozhat-i-postavyat-na-uchet-pochemu-na-nekotoryh-avtomobilyah-iz-rossii-luchshe-ne-priezzhat-v-belarus |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Belgium}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Bolivia}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Brazil}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
| <ref>{{cite act |type=Resolution |index=528 |date=14 May 2015 |article=1 |legislature=[[Ministry of Transport (Brazil)|Brazilian National Transit Council (Contran)]] |url=https://www.gov.br/transportes/pt-br/assuntos/transito/conteudo-contran/resolucao-contran-no-528-de-14-de-maio-de-2015 |language=Portuguese |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231215124558/https://www.gov.br/transportes/pt-br/assuntos/transito/conteudo-contran/resolucao-contran-no-528-de-14-de-maio-de-2015 |archive-date=15 December 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Contran Resolution No. 528/2015 |url=https://www.interregs.com/catalogue/details/bra-52815/contran-resolution-no-528-2015/prohibition-from-registering-and-licensing-motor-vehicles-with-a-right-hand-drive/ |website=InterRegs |access-date=15 December 2023 |url-access=subscription |archive-date=15 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231215125010/https://www.interregs.com/catalogue/details/bra-52815/contran-resolution-no-528-2015/prohibition-from-registering-and-licensing-motor-vehicles-with-a-right-hand-drive/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|British Virgin Islands}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|<ref name="Fodor"/>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Brunei}}
| {{Yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
| <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.agc.gov.bn/AGC%20Images/LOB/PDF/Cap68subRg1%282.8.07%29.pdf|title=Road Traffic Act|publisher=Government of Brunei}}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Bulgaria}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Burundi}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Cambodia}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Canada}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|<ref name="canada-rhd">{{cite web|url=http://www.icbc.com/library/research_papers/right-hand-drive_vehicles/index.asp |title=Right-hand-drive vehicles |publisher=ICBC  |access-date=2011-01-03 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713001400/http://www.icbc.com/library/research_papers/right-hand-drive_vehicles/index.asp |archive-date=2011-07-13 }}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Cayman Islands}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|<ref name="caymans" />
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Chile}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{no}}
|<ref>{{cite web|url=https://practicatest.cl/blog/normativa-de-transito/modificar-auto-volante-lado-derecho|website=practicatest.cl|title=¿Puedo modificar un auto que tiene el volante en el lado derecho?|quote=La ley chilena indica que en el país solo pueden circular automóviles con el volante a la izquierda, por lo que esos autos solo podrán salir a la calle una vez que se modifique el vehículo cambiando todo el equipamiento de manejo al lado correcto. (Chilean law indicates that only left-hand drive cars can circulate in the country, so those cars can only go out on the street once the vehicle is modified by changing all the driving equipment to the correct side.)|access-date=7 May 2023|archive-date=7 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230507162958/https://practicatest.cl/blog/normativa-de-transito/modificar-auto-volante-lado-derecho|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|China}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
|<ref name="china-RHD">{{cite web|url=https://carnewschina.com/2018/04/03/spotted-in-china-g50-toyota-century-v12-in-black-rhd/|title=Spotted in China: G50 Toyota Century V12 in Black, RHD|first=Joey|last=Wang|date=3 April 2018|website=CarNewsChina.com |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240315115550/https://carnewschina.com/2018/04/03/spotted-in-china-g50-toyota-century-v12-in-black-rhd/ |archive-date= 15 March 2024 }}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Cyprus}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
|{{Flagcountry|Czech Republic}}
|{{Yes}}
|{{Yes}}
|{{Yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Dominican Republic}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|DR Congo}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|El Salvador}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Ethiopia}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Finland}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|France}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Georgia}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| <ref>{{cite journal|title=The causal effect of wrong-hand drive vehicles on road safety|doi=10.1016/j.ecotra.2017.10.002|first=Felix|last=Roesel|journal=Economics of Transportation|volume=11|pages=15–22|year=2021|hdl=10419/170527 |s2cid=115656881 |hdl-access=free}}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Germany}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-12-31 |title=Können Rechtslenker in Deutschland zugelassen werden? |url=https://www.tuningblog.eu/kategorien/tuev-gesetze-verbote/rechtslenker-zulassen-388528/ |access-date=2022-04-28 |website=tuningblog.eu |language=de-DE |archive-date=18 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220118040803/https://www.tuningblog.eu/kategorien/tuev-gesetze-verbote/rechtslenker-zulassen-388528/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Ghana}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Gibraltar}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Greece}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Guernsey}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Guyana}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Honduras}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Hong Kong}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
|<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.td.gov.hk/en/public_services/licences_and_permits/vehicle_first_registration/guidelines_for_importation_and_registration_of_mot/index.html|quote=Application for the registration and licensing of a left hand drive vehicle will not be accepted unless there are special circumstances.|title=GUIDELINES FOR IMPORTATION AND REGISTRATION OF MOTOR VEHICLE|work=Transport Department|access-date=17 November 2022|archive-date=14 December 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221214025950/https://www.td.gov.hk/en/public_services/licences_and_permits/vehicle_first_registration/guidelines_for_importation_and_registration_of_mot/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Hungary}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|India}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
|{{Flagcountry|Indonesia}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-09-18 |title=Terkuak Mobil Dinas Favorit FBI, Masih Digunakan Kedubes AS di Indonesia |trans-title=FBI's most famous operational vehicle is used by US Embassy in Indonesia |url=https://www.suara.com/otomotif/2019/09/18/151500/terkuak-mobil-dinas-favorit-fbi-masih-digunakan-kedubes-as-di-indonesia |access-date=2023-07-02 |website=suara.com |language=id |archive-date=2 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230702074549/https://www.suara.com/otomotif/2019/09/18/151500/terkuak-mobil-dinas-favorit-fbi-masih-digunakan-kedubes-as-di-indonesia |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Nugraha |first=Muhammad Indra |date=2024-08-26 |title=Ada yang Aneh dengan Tesla Cybertruck Pertama di Indonesia |trans-title=Something is strange with first Tesla Cybertruck arrived in Indonesia |url=https://www.viva.co.id/otomotif/mobil/1745873-ada-yang-aneh-dengan-tesla-cybertruck-pertama-di-indonesia?page=all |access-date=2024-08-26 |website=viva.co.id |language=id}}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Iran}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Ireland}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Israel}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Italy}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Japan}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Jersey}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Kazakhstan}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Kenya}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Kyrgyzstan}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|<ref name="kyrgyzstan-rhd"/>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Laos}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Lithuania}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| <ref name=pl-lt/>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Macau}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Malaysia}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Malta}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Micronesia}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Mongolia}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Myanmar}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Nepal}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Netherlands}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|New Zealand}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Nicaragua}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Nigeria}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|North Korea}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Northern Cyprus}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Norway}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Pakistan}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Palau}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Paraguay}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Peru}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Philippines}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
|<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Republic Act No. 8506 {{!}} GOVPH |url=https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/1998/02/13/republic-act-no-8506/ |access-date=2022-03-27 |website=Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines|archive-date=2 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221202115918/https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/1998/02/13/republic-act-no-8506/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Poland}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| <ref name=pl-lt>{{CELEX|62011CJ0639|text=Case C‑639/11 – Judgment of the Court (Fifth Chamber), 20 March 2014. European Commission v Republic of Poland}}, {{ECLI|ECLI:EU:C:2014:173}}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Romania}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| <ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.digi24.ro/stiri/sci-tech/auto/masinile-cu-volan-pe-dreapta-aduse-din-marea-britanie-nu-mai-pot-fi-omologate-in-romania-de-la-1-ianuarie-2021-1427339|date=2021-01-02|title=Mașinile cu volan pe dreapta aduse din Marea Britanie nu mai pot fi omologate în România de la 1 ianuarie 2021|language=ro}}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Russia}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|<ref name="rbth.com"/>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Rwanda}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Saudi Arabia}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Sierra Leone}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
|<ref name="sierra-leone-RHD"/>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Singapore}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.onemotoring.com.sg/publish/onemotoring/en/lta_information_guidelines/buy_a_new_vehicle/self_importation_.MainPar.22837.File.tmp/Car.pdf&ei=Zbj1U9SsN4ahugSWj4DAAw&usg=AFQjCNHTc_pJsESOog6-rHv936wzuqfI-Q |title=PROCEDURES ON IMPORTATION AND REGISTRATION OF A CAR IN SINGAPORE |publisher=LTA |access-date=10 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160407131700/http://www.onemotoring.com.sg/publish/onemotoring/en/lta_information_guidelines/buy_a_new_vehicle/self_importation_.mainpar.22837.file.tmp/car.pdf%26ei%3Dzbj1u9ssn4ahugswj4daaw%26usg%3Dafqjcnhtc_pjsesoog6-rhv936wzuqfi-q |archive-date=7 April 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Slovakia}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Somalia}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Somaliland}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|South Africa}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|South Korea}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|South Sudan}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Spain}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Suriname}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Taiwan}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
| <ref>{{cite web|url=http://law.moj.gov.tw/LawClass/LawSingle.aspx?Pcode=K0040013&FLNO=83|language=zh|title=道路交通安全規則§83-全國法規資料庫入口網站|publisher=Ministry of Justice (Taiwan)|date=2015-08-14|accessdate=2015-10-17|archive-date=2021-05-09|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509051155/https://law.moj.gov.tw/LawClass/LawSingle.aspx?Pcode=K0040013&FLNO=83}}</ref>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Tanzania}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Thailand}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Turkey}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Turks and Caicos Islands}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|<ref name="turks and caicos"/>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Uganda}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Ukraine}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|United Arab Emirates}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|United Kingdom}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|United States}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| 
|-
| {{Flagcountry|U.S. Virgin Islands}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|<ref name="Fodor"/>
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Vietnam}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Yemen}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
|
|-
| {{Flagcountry|Zambia}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{unknown}}
|
|}

According to the [[Vienna Convention on Road Traffic]], which mostly covers Europe, if having a vehicle registered and legal to drive in one of the Convention countries, it is legal to drive it in any other of the countries, for visits and first year of residence after moving. This is regardless of whether it fulfils all the rules of the visitor countries. This convention does not affect rules on usage or registration of local vehicles.

==Gallery==
===Left-hand traffic===
<gallery mode="packed">
File:觀塘道 - panoramio.jpg|Left-hand traffic on [[Kwun Tong Road]] in [[Hong Kong]]
File:Jalan Raya Cilegon - panoramio.jpg|Left-hand traffic in [[Cilegon]], [[Banten]], Indonesia
File:Mumbai 03-2016 109 Western Express Highway near Bandra.jpg|Left-hand traffic on [[Western Express Highway]] in [[Mumbai]], India
File:MacauRuaDoViscondePacoDeArcos1.jpg|Left-hand traffic in [[Macau]]
File:Eshima oohashi 04 (14781816175).jpg|Left-hand traffic on [[Eshima Ohashi Bridge]] in [[Japan]]
File:Along Sukhumvit Road Bangkok (15539992071).jpg|Left-hand traffic in [[Bangkok]], Thailand
File:DriveLeftIRL.jpg|Road sign reminding motorists to drive on the left in [[Ireland]]
File:Drive-on-the-left-kent-1b.jpg|Road sign in [[Kent]], England, placed on right-hand side of the road
File:Fari-Wechsel.jpg|Change of traffic directions at the [[First Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge]]
</gallery>

===Right-hand traffic===
<gallery mode="packed">
File:Antalyaspor Kavşağı - 23.6.15.JPG|Right-hand traffic jam in [[Antalya]], Turkey
File:איילון Highway 20 (Israel) (6).JPG|Right-hand traffic on [[Ayalon Highway]] in [[Israel]]
File:Suez canal street3 - Alexandria,Egypt.jpg|Right-hand traffic in [[Alexandria]], Egypt
File:Garching Bundesautobahn 9.jpg|Right-hand traffic on [[Bundesautobahn 9]] in [[Germany]]
File:Открытие развязки МКАД и Волгоградского проспекта (27).jpeg|Right-hand traffic in [[Moscow]], Russia
File:MRTC 3000 trains from Kamuning footbridge.jpg|Right-hand traffic in [[Metro Manila]], Philippines
File:Traffic Lady. Pyongyang, North Korea. (2604170573).jpg|Right-hand traffic in [[Pyongyang]], North Korea
File:Traffic in Oslo.JPG|Right-hand traffic in [[Oslo]], Norway
File:Gyeongbu Express Way.jpg|Right-hand traffic on [[Gyeongbu Expressway]] in [[South Korea]]
File:Beijing traffic jam.JPG|Right-hand traffic in [[Beijing]], China
File:Taipei Roosevelt Road.JPG|Right-hand traffic in [[Taipei]], Taiwan
File:Kennedy Expressway and Metra.jpeg|Right-hand traffic in [[Kennedy Expressway]], US 
File:Corral Road, Gibraltar.jpg|Right-hand traffic in [[Gibraltar]]
</gallery>

==See also==
*[[Hook turn]]
*[[Traffic-light signalling and operation]]
*[[World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20171020071550/http://www.nicholashodder.com/download/leftright.kmz Google Maps placemarks of border crossings where traffic changes sides] (placemarks file, requires [[Google Earth]])
* [http://www.tramz.com/py/as.html The Extraordinary Street Railways of Asunción, Paraguay]

{{Traffic law}}
{{Road types}}

[[Category:Chirality]]
[[Category:Driving]]
[[Category:Road transport]]
[[Category:Rules of the road]]
[[Category:Traffic law]]