Some reflections on driving in the UK

I had been a bit nervous about what it would be like to drive in a different country, though thankfully on the left hand side of the road. I was relieved to find that although there were a few nuances, overall it wasn't too different. Sienna was a great navigator as well which really helped!

There are loads of roundabouts everywhere, from big multi-lane roundabouts with traffic lights in them, to tiny roundabouts painted on the road. The large ones are fairly structured so are surprisingly easy to navigate, and if you miss your exit, you can go around again and ease into the correct lane. I thought of Chevy Chase's catchcry "Look kids, there's Big Ben... again" many times 

Dealing with miles instead of kilometres wasn't a problem but it did make things feel like they took longer. Knowing the next turn off is 10 miles away feels like it must be close, but that extra 6km does make a difference!

Highway driving was generally really good, with a speed limit of 70 miles per hour most of the time. The trucks sat in the left lane except when overtaking which helped keet the traffic flowing. On our first day we jumped in the deep end and drove the London Orbital Motorway which is a big ring road around London - this was the closest we came to driving in London which was close enough! 

We experienced quite a few bank ups on our journey and one traffic jam that literally lasted for hours due to a truck accident. Three lanes of cars stretched for miles on one side of the motorway, many with motors off due to the extended waiting time. We were lucky to be near an off-ramp so could gradually manouvere our way out as other motorists started to leave, however when we exited we found ourselves in more traffic jams due to others doing the same thing. Sometimes there is just no quick way!

A national speed limit applies across the UK so the limit is determined depending on the kind of road (ie. dual carriageway, single carriageway, whether a road is in a built-up area, etc.). This took a bit of getting used to as there didn't seem to be as many speed limit signs as there are in Australia, so full concentration was needed at all times. I was very grateful for the GPS to keep track of the limit on the dashboard.  

Some areas, especially Cornwall, the Cotwolds and Bath, had quite a lot of very narrow roads, including single lane hedge roads, which are challenging for someone who does not have brilliant reversing skills. Luckily the car had sophisticated cameras - this made all the difference!

We also discovered that a lot of larger towns and cities had a 'Park and Ride' service which consisted of a large carpark on the outskirts of town, with frequent buses into the city centre so you could explore on foot. This was much easier than driving, as a lot of the CBDs had really narrow roads which would be congested for hours, plus extremely limited parking. I guess they weren't developed with cars in mind!

Peak hour seemed to start at 3pm and finish at about 6.30pm every day, everywhere. That, and the narrow roads and congestion, could make it tricky to estimate the time to get places, so we didn't always get to see everything in as much detail as we had hoped, and we had to skip some planned destinations which we have noted to visit next time.