Driving in Britain

For the first time visitor to this fair land, a few words on how the British road system works (or not).

Most importantly we drive on the left! We also have a great many roundabouts, something that US visitors might find confusing. There is a roundabout a few hundred yards from each terminal so you will be introduced to them very quickly. Give way to the right unless a sign says otherwise. We have a very high density of vehicles on our roads. To put it in perspective, in Canada I am told the vehicle density is about 1 vehicle per 10 miles of road - here it is probably 100 vehicles per mile!

We have 3 classifications of road:

(M) Motorway - no learners permitted. No stopping. Except in emergency - a pee is NOT an emergency. Motorways are usually the thick blue lines on the map. They radiate from London, M1, M11, M2, M3, M4, M40 with ‘minor’ motorways between them; M20, M23, M26. Other major Motorways M42, M5, M6, M62, M69 link with these major ones to give a network over the country.

By and large the motorway system is the quickest way to travel, by road, through the country. Generally there are service areas on all motorways at approx. 25 mile intervals. These have toilets, fuel and food. Some have accommodation (these sites are useful for ‘tours’).

In the event of an emergency on a motorway, try to pull over to the hard shoulder (extreme left hand side) and vacate the vehicle - it is dangerous to remain in the vehicle! Climb over the Armco and find somewhere safe to wait. At 1 mile intervals there are Emergency telephones beside the motorway. At 100 yard intervals are small numbered posts with the distance and direction to the nearest emergency telephone. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CROSS THE CARRIAGEWAY! Each Emergency telephone is numbered, lifting the handset will connect you to the Emergency service.

(A) A roads - The thick red lines on the map. The major trunk routes before Motorways were invented. These are the major trunk roads that connect the ‘important’ places with London. I should add that they were important before the arrival of the aeroplane. These also radiate from London (now often superseded by the motorways) A1, (to the North East) A2 (Dover),), A3(Portsmouth), A4(Bristol), A5(North West), between these are the ‘minor’ major trunk roads the number indicating the relative position between the ‘major’ major trunk roads. Hence the A10 is the first one clockwise from the A1, it goes to Cambridge, A11 (to Norwich) A12 (Harwich), A13 (Southend). A20 (Folkstone) etc. until the A45. These ‘major’ trunk roads are connected by ‘minor’ trunk roads and are in turn also serviced by lesser ‘A’ roads.

A simple rule of thumb, if the A road is a single digit it is a big one, 2 digits signifies a ‘minor’ major road, 3 digits generally a cross country road connecting a lot of ‘minor’ majors. AND 4 digits is often an upgraded ‘B’ road due to expansion of the local community.

(B) B roads - The byways of Britain! Often narrow, steeply cambered, high hedged, with ditches. Expect to find tractors and/or cattle on them at various times (in the country). A slow sedate way of exploring the quieter areas of the land. You don’t travel these roads at any speed and should always expect to find something around the next corner.

Another simple rule that might come in useful - If you are on an unmade road (dirt track) you are probably lost.

Maps - There are many maps of the UK in the shops and motorway services. I suggest you buy the one with the largest scale. It will be a big map book but easier to read. If you are only making one or two journeys then visit http://www.multimap.com and use the route planning facility on the site. You will need to know the full address of the start and finish point.

Always allow a lot longer than you would expect for a journey when driving in the UK. A 20 mile journey across London recently took me over 3 hours! Journey times always vary with weather, time of day, time of year and a judicious application of “sods law”.

Getting about in Britain - Car Hire etc.

It should be remembered that in Britain we drive on 'the wrong side'. Smaller engined vehicles are often manual rather than automatic gearboxes, they rarely have air-conditioning (but then it is not often required!) and we have a great deal of traffic on our roads! Driving into the capital is seldom a pleasure and NEVER easy!

For information on visting places in Britain by public transport please check the coach and rail page.

Having put you off <G> let me assure you that once you have got the hang of our roads and our traffic, driving or being driven is the very best way to see this country.

Cabs and Private Hire Vehicles

There are 2 types of 'cabbie' in Britain, the Taxi and the Private Hire car. The official Taxis operating in the Gatwick Airport area may be found at the rank outside both terminals. Taxis may only be hailed in the street, phoned for or picked up at an official taxi rank. The Private Hire car cannot be hailed or picked up from the rank BUT may only be used following an arrangement, a telephone call, fax or e-mail requesting a pick up.

Private hire drivers/vehicles come in many guises. Some are pre-booked taxis while others are liveried chauffeur services. Many offer a ‘Meet & Greet’ service to meet you at the airport and whisk you on to your destination