What is meaning of RHD or Right Hand Drive ? | Teen Ink

What is meaning of RHD or Right Hand Drive ?

June 14, 2010
By Rita Bansal BRONZE, Jaipur, Other
Rita Bansal BRONZE, Jaipur, Other
3 articles 0 photos 0 comments

Vehicles are manufactured in left-hand drive (LHD) and right-hand drive (RHD) configurations, referring to the placement of the driving seat and controls within the vehicle. There are some countries with RHT and mostly RHD vehicles. The terms nearside and offside are equestrian terms meaning left and right respectively, and are used both in LHT countries (e.g., the United Kingdom) and RHT countries (e.g., Denmark). The terms are often used in the British vehicle maintenance industry to mean the left and right hand side of a motor vehicle.

Some instructions for right hand drive traffic:


All traffic is generally required to keep right unless overtaking.

Oncoming traffic is seen coming from the left.

Left-turning traffic must cross oncoming traffic.

A right turn at a red light may be allowed after stopping.

Most traffic signs facing drivers/motorists are on the right side of the road.

Traffic on roundabouts (traffic circles) goes anticlockwise.

Pedestrians crossing a two-way road look first for traffic from their left.

The lane designated for normal driving and turning right is on the right.

Most dual carriageway (divided highway) exits are on the right.

On roads without a footpath pedestrians may be advised to walk on the left.

Other vehicles are generally overtaken (passed) on the left, though in some circumstances overtaking on the right is permitted.


Safety factors :

Research in 1969 by J. J. Leeming showed countries driving on the left have a lower collision rate than countries driving on the right. It has been suggested this is partly because humans are more commonly right-eye dominant than left-eye dominant. In left-hand traffic, the predominantly better-performing right eye is used to monitor oncoming traffic and the driver's wing mirror. In right-hand traffic, oncoming traffic and the driver's wing mirror are handled by the predominantly weaker left eye.

In addition, it has been argued that left sided driving is safer for elderly people given the likelihood of their having visual attention deficits on the left side and the need at intersections to watch out for vehicles approaching on the near-side lane. Furthermore, in a right hand cars, the driver has his right hand on the steering wheel at all times and uses his left hand to change gear.



List of some RHD Countries:
Kenya, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Afghanistan, Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Chile, China, Denmark, Egypt, Germany, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Mongolia, Peru, Saudi Arabia, United States, Vietnam, Switzerland, Burma, South Korea, France
Right Hand Drive in Japan -
Japan does allow both RHD and LHD vehicles on their roads. In some cases the same vehicle is available in both LHD and RHD configurations but most of vehicles are Right Hand Drives. Some time LHD cars are also available drive by foreigners.


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