Landships II

Hughbearson · General

Russian Driving, 1916.

Rectalgia · Legend

According to Wikipedia:

Driving on the right was introduced in Russia by the edict of Empress Elisaveta Petrovna on 5 February 1752.

Hughbearson · General

Ahh, thankyou.
As I said, the reason for this shall be told soon...(don't get exited though)

elbavaro · Commander in Chief

Maybe on the left side due to the use of a lot of British cars?

Hughbearson · General

Well, the car that I am currently associanting is Russian, so probably not.
Intersting observation though.

elbavaro · Commander in Chief

They used to look at the drawings from the back side?? So they biult it the wrong side?

*lol*

Ivan · Field Marshal

elbavaro wrote:

Maybe on the left side due to the use of a lot of British cars?

�Also�Japane, Indian and Australian cars� biggrin � biggrin � biggrin

P.S Automobile maket of Russian Empire 1914 (befor 1WW)

Total�in All Great, Little and White Russia�18 000 cars (incl. Finland &�Poland), last studio:

Made in Germany 82%
Made in England 5%
Made in France 4 %
Made in Austria 3,5 %
Made in Russia 2,5 %
Made in USA�1,5 %
Made in Italy, Belgium, Swiss, Spain, Sweden 1,5 %

Russian Imperial army (RIA) 01. 06.1914:

Cars: 259
Lorries: 418
Abulance cars: 2
Special automobiles: 32
Motorcycles: 101

In the Tima from August 1914 bis�Februar 1917 was comming in RIA:

Cars: 7 506
Lorries: 13 698
Ambulance cars: 2 173
Tanker-lorries: 569
Cock-automobile: 234
Repair-shop-lorries: 302
Depot-lorries: 45
Light (projectors) automobile: 10
Omnibusse: 51
Armoured vehicles: 650

-- Edited by Ivan on Wednesday 18th of August 2010 10:45:23 PM

-- Edited by Ivan on Thursday 19th of August 2010 05:51:07 PM

kieffer · Commander in Chief

I think Sweden and Italy were driving on the 'wrong' side too. And some delivery vans still have that, making it easier for the co-driver to get out (armoured money-vans) but that's only the steering wheel on the other side of course

-- Edited by kieffer on Thursday 19th of August 2010 09:39:49 AM

elbavaro · Commander in Chief

Also Austria-Hungaria was driving on the left side, but not in the whole country. After the Napoleonic wars they got back to left drining, except some areas like Tirolia.

1915 all AH became left driving (I wonder how they handled it, fighting with their right drining allies), but some (formerly right driven) areas went back to right driving after the war. In 1930 the West of Austria was right driving - the rest on the left side. In 1938 of course German traffic rules went legal for whole Austria.

kieffer · Commander in Chief

Hi Elbavaro,

that's interesting! And now a little of topic..railways..in Belgium left (or right I am not sure). It's not a joke!

elbavaro · Commander in Chief

Well .... funny thing is: there is still both in Austria regarding the railway. Some tracks are left and some are right driven.

Hughbearson · General

Thanks Ivan, thats very intersting. Well, I might as well, say now, because I've made it sound too exiting (I.E "You shall see SOOOOOOOONNNNNN..!) I'm drawing instructions for the
3-wheeled Filatov armoured car, so the question about which driving side I was relating to, was which side (I would've thought the passenger side) would've sported pistol ports, but have now realized that both sides would've probably had them.

Ivan · Field Marshal

Chassis of three-wheels armoured car of workshp of Officer shootung school (project of general-major Philatoff).�Some parts of american cars (Maxwell, Case), the engine o Izhorsky work.

Hughbearson · General

Interesting. Did these have the tendancy to lose balance?

Ivan · Field Marshal

Hughbearson wrote:

Interesting. Did these have the tendancy to lose balance?

Yes, as at all 3-wheel cars. But they were very maneuverable and small, turn radius good. Last such served in Red army till 1926.

�

elbavaro · Commander in Chief

Hughbearson? The answer is ..??

Hughbearson · General

What? Oh, I didin't really write it, did I? XO
Well, I might as well put them on both sides, since, that would've practically been done.

Rectalgia · Legend

Not always easy finding out traffic direction:

http://tv.muxlim.com/video/oQK13UM3YzI/hold-your-plums-wasy-question-about-left-hand-drive/

PS - somewhere in the course of this topic we may introduced some confusion between the traffic flow and the drive "handedness" (side the driver sits) of the vehicles navigating that flow. The Wikipedia article tried to address that.

Vehicles manufactured for use in right-hand traffic areas tend to be left-hand drive and, vice-versa, vehicles manufactured for use in left-hand traffic areas tend to be right-hand drive. The driver is usually on the side closer to the road centre-line. But vehicles mix, left-hand drive vehicles in left-hand traffic areas (the English would see a lot of this) and vice-versa right-hand in right-hand.

Until fairly recently in Australia (left-hand traffic) left-hand drive vehicles were required to carry a sign "Caution Left Hand Drive". Which probably confused some people. Maybe that sign is still required in some states/territories. Nothwithstanding all of which, we lose a lot of tourists, wandering on to the wrong side of the road on empty roads (even though they mostly drive the locally "correct" right-hand drive hire cars). When the road is no longer empty comes the problem.

-- Edited by Rectalgia on Thursday 26th of August 2010 05:06:17 AM

kieffer · Commander in Chief

Rectalgia wrote:

Until fairly recently in Australia (left-hand traffic) left-hand drive vehicles were required to carry a sign "Caution Left Hand Drive".

Same sign on ww2 US army vehicles in the UK.
How it exactly worked I can't tell but I've seen some driving school? vehicles with two steering wheels, one in the old days, a little Ford Anglia and recently a Land Rover, probably an army vehicle.

�

Rectalgia · Legend

The only difference is the driver is on the "wrong" side of the vehicle. My Dad drove captured Vichy French trucks (amongst other things) in Palestine in WW2. He always reckoned it was actually better than being on the "correct" side of the vehicle because the driver had a better view of the near-side road verge when travelling on narrow and poorly-maintained roadways where the verges could be trecherous. I suppose they had to look out for mines as well but that was not a real threat in that place at that time. The only disadvantages were in approaching oncoming traffic at speed (with no marked lanes of course, hard to tell whether there is enough clearance) and in making right turns at intersections (to be sure not to cut the corner too much). These things take just a little learning/getting used to then it all seems "natural" - and has to be unlearned when reverting to the other side drive vehicles.

kieffer · Commander in Chief

yes, and of course traffic behind you or overhauling. Especially lorries, it's a bit uncanny overhauling one with a 'ghost' driver. And people can get confused, seeing a 'driver' without 'hands on the wheel' which is actually a co driver. British cars now have similar looking license plates with Dutch ones, so some puzzled looks in traffic jams or traffic lights..