Please visitors to NZ! Stay safely on the left side of the road!

**Conquiztador** · 12th February 2013, 11:07

Heart breaking!

http://news.msn.co.nz/nationalnews/8...ving-wrong-way

**willytheekid** · 12th February 2013, 11:18

...and his wife was on the following motorcycle

...thats just frikin terrible.

poor bugger

...sadly, just one mistake is all it takes.

...Ride safe KBers

**Scuba_Steve** · 12th February 2013, 11:21

Don't worry the Govt will soon have a fix.
They increased class 1 weight limits for visitors, we returned to the retarded Give-Way rule for visitors, soon we'll swap sides for them too.

**merv** · 12th February 2013, 11:50

Sweden did the change a few decades back to drive on the other side so why not. In the meantime at least our improved Give Way rules are really helping the general NZ public if not the foreigners.

**steve_t** · 12th February 2013, 11:56

When I went to the US last year, I pulled out of a car park on to the wrong side of the road (the left) and then at some traffic lights I nearly did the same. Breaking your 'automatic' habit even though trying hard to make a conscious effort is way more difficult than I thought. It was fine once I was out on the highway but I still had to keep my wits about me. The sooner the entire world travel on the same side of the road, the better

**oneofsix** · 12th February 2013, 12:07

automatic swerve reflex.

Poor bugger didn't even get time to think about which side of the road. Something not clear in the article but how come the road works didn't put him on the correct side of the road as he exited? Was there some signige or something missing there or is there an improvement needed or possible in regards to roadworks?

**nadroj** · 12th February 2013, 12:32

On the same road but further north - about 10km heading south from Taumaranui on Waitangi day, I passed a truck at the bottom of a hill. At the top of the hill is a left hand bend just before a lookout from where a "suspected tourist" emerged & headed towards Taumaranui directly in my path. After braking heavily I managed to get passed the offender on his correct side of the road, probably only because the momentum from the corner made it easier . I composed myself & seriously thought about returning to confront them, but decided not to as the truck may make it futile & I may not have been able to contain myself!
Ride safe folks & good luck......

**Conquiztador** · 12th February 2013, 12:52

Originally Posted by merv

Sweden did the change a few decades back to drive on the other side so why not. In the meantime at least our improved Give Way rules are really helping the general NZ public if not the foreigners.

Sweden had Norway on one side and Finland on the other who both used (and use) the r/h side. Before Australia and Japan change to r/h side NZ will never do it. And if someone would be brave enough to suggest it, the automobile industry would be up in arms. I mean, what is a few tourists lives (and the kiwis that get killed by them being on the wrong side) compared to profit from sales!

**Akzle** · 12th February 2013, 14:03

you're all fucking silly. the entire vehicle fleet it right hand drive. the problem is not which side of the road we drive on, it's the fact that a) we let the light-skinned folk into the country b) the crackers let other folk into the country and c) 95% of people on the road are fucking idiots. unfortunately, there is no way around this.

**merv** · 12th February 2013, 16:46

Lol and the Maori main means of transport, besides feet, I guess was the waka. Wonder if they had any rules of the sea back then - pass port to port or whatever, or do you think there might have been a few crashes too when foreign folk from places other than Hawaiiki came down here into the bays and went head on into a local?

**ducatilover** · 12th February 2013, 16:57

Originally Posted by Akzle

you're all fucking silly. the entire vehicle fleet it right hand drive. the problem is not which side of the road we drive on, it's the fact that a) we let the light-skinned folk into the country b) the crackers let other folk into the country and c) 95% of people on the road are fucking idiots. unfortunately, there is no way around this.

This is totally, there were zero motorvehicle accident before we got here. You cunts probably ate them, like you ate everything else

**jellywrestler** · 12th February 2013, 17:19

the paper said Victim, if he'd hit someone else and killed them THEY would have been the victim methinks. I saw this bunch of riders less than an hours ride from where the crash was, they'd learn't nout from the crash as they were still travelling in a pack with a couple of bike lengths between them in a strange land with beautiful and distracting scenary, won't be surprised if they have a multiple pile up next time

**Hitcher** · 12th February 2013, 17:34

Originally Posted by Conquiztador

Sweden had Norway on one side and Finland on the other who both used (and use) the r/h side. Before Australia and Japan change to r/h side NZ will never do it. And if someone would be brave enough to suggest it, the automobile industry would be up in arms. I mean, what is a few tourists lives (and the kiwis that get killed by them being on the wrong side) compared to profit from sales!

Given the MMP world we live in, any transition in New Zealand would have to be phased: motorcycles on 1 March, cars on 1 April, SUVs and other mummymobiles on 1 May, heavy vehicles on 1 June.