Sweden....did they change the side they drive on

[Dom Tuk]

I read somewhere that Sweden changed the side of the road they drive on. How and when did they do this. The task must have been mammoth. What problems did they have with doing it?

[kempie]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rules_of_the_road#Sweden

[dannydingbat]

Did you know that all new roads have to be designed on the basis that we could have to change overnight? Thats why you get such long slip roads on and off motorways.

[kempie]

Would that be to aid the UK's absorption by the EU?

The vast bulk of the UK highway infrastructure, excluding the carriageways themselves, would not lend itself to an "overnight" conversion. Roundabouts and junctions are designed and built in such a way that angles of approach and entry are different to those of exit, nevermind the signage and traffic-light replacement.

Sweden may have managed it in 1967 but present day UK is a different matter.

[CT]

That sort of thing is unlikely to happen in the uk these days due to the number of vehicles now on the roads.

[dotjhawkes]

I do remember this happening and watching it on the news, no idea when it was, maybe late 70's? I have a feeling I was still living at home though. It went very smoothly that I recall from the news item, they just stopped the traffic and they changed sides, or is my memory simplifying it?

[Grunty]

Before that, China changed to driving on the right, about 50 years ago. That was the point when those driving on the correct side of the road began to be outnumbered by the others.

[kaktus]

My mother in law remembers when they changed it (she's Swedish). What amazed her was that some people did not have a clue that it had happened in spite of a MASSIVE campaing with of radio spots, news paper articles, stories in all kinds of magazines etc. Imagine the look on these people's faces when they came out on Sunday morning and everything was wrong :0)

[willowman]

My partner tells the story, and she swears its true because she was there at the time, that Nigeria swapped sides but to ease people into the change they decided that buses and lorries would change sides one day and cars would change the following day!

I somehow find this believable.