Traveling in the UK is always a pleasant experience. The people are generally courteous, which makes travelers fall in love with the Brits. But did you know that the Scots are more courteous than the Welsh? Let’s dive into a recent study by Lease Car which tries to bring the truth about British road etiquettes to the fore.
Scots take the lead
In the survey, Edinburgh in Scotland turns out to be the city with the most courteous drivers. A whopping 42.30% of people like to maintain their good manners on the road. In Glasgow, 35.50% of drivers are courteous. The Northern Irish city of Belfast has 38.97% courteous drivers. Bristol has 39.93%, courteous drivers.
When it comes to regions, Scotland again ranks the highest with 38.73% courteous drivers overall. Northern Ireland comes second with 38.47% courteous drivers. However, North West lands at the very end of the list with only 29.87% courtesy on roads. However, the survey also reveals that 93% of UK drivers believe they are courteous on roads. Talk about a mismatch!
What about hitchhiking?
Only 1 in 5 drivers in the UK admitted to having picked up a hitchhiker from the road. In this case, women were less likely to give a ride to a hitchhiker. Only 8.7% of women admitted to having given a ride while 30.7% of men did the same. If you are thinking about a hitchhiking trip across the UK, keep these facts in mind.
Does this mean UK drivers are losing their manners on the road? Statistics suggest that 1 in 10 Brits find driving to be a stressful experience. Over 70% of the survey respondents suggested that UK roads have become less courteous over the years. However, when it comes to treating women well, Brits are still doing well. About 32% of the drivers are better-behaved in front of women than men. This is not all; male drivers are also twice as likely to stop on the road and help someone. About 38.8% of all drivers have stopped on the road to help someone.
While a tighter schedule and increasing number of cars on the road may be causing the Britons some stress and they are less courteous than a decade ago; they are still doing good. The idea is not to let the downward trends continue over the future. If you are a traveler in the UK, hitchhiking or public transport could be your way of getting around.
However, if you don’t mind driving, get a Kia contract hire. If you avoid peak office hours and follow the traffic rules, you will find yourself engaging in a rather pleasant driving experience on the beautiful British roads. Trust us; nothing is better than the UK when it comes to enjoying the sun and the greens.