Comments by "Helmuth Schultes" (@helmuthschultes9243) on "American Reacts to Aussie Dashcam Bad Drivers, Road Rage, Close calls" video.

  1. You actually adjust relatively quickly once in the correct left or right hand vehicle. If you are a driver lacking general driving confidence the stress does play a big role. Hard is driving in your normal type car but on opposite side, so left hand drive on left side (UK,Australia, India, Japan with US, European car) or Right hand drive on right side ( US, European, Korea, Chinese in UK, Australia car) . I have some 25 years in Fuel injection calibration and testing, having driven all combinations of left/right drive and road driving side, covering what must exceed 100 K miles/ 160 K km. Yes there is a short adaption time the first few drives, and going correct at intersections is initially a extreme caution demand. A easy mistake is when choosing to turn onto a major highway / freeway. Taking an entry only to realise that you are now travelling to wrong direction from the intended, while safely in correct with the vehicle flow is easily done. To end up wrong, in counter flow needs very bad attention as that is normally very well sign posted as wrong way. You must avoid all distractions, phone, excessive attention to radio, music and conversations with passengers, fully concentrate on driving task. Once you are comfortable, just do not get to relaxed. At no time drive while very tired and while adjusting avoid, at least minimise night time driving. Hardest is driving your normal Left or Right hand drive, but now on the opposite road side to your normal. The extra effort for lane changes avoiding traffic in adjacent lanes is difficult. Make absolutely sure for best mirror adjustment. In most countries passing another car in slower lane, ie on right side for lefthand drive, is illegal, thus passing in a left side road driving easily leads to trying to pass on left in your lefthand drive car, ILLEGAL, yet counter intuitive that you now must pass on right side of other traffic. Yet also difficult is in some places passing either side is legal, and these drivers are quickly caught out on roads in places where wrong side passing is illegal. In Germany it is so extreme that though you are well placed i the exit lane and not obstructed inyour exit, if the highway you just started exiting happens to slow its traffic say due to traffic entering ahead a short distance, be sure to slow likewise or you may just be fined for breach of passing on the wrong side. As these exits are also often camera monitored you may well not be aware a fine is just being sent by mail. Another hard case is for example crossing UK to/from Europe, by ferry and switch sides in the one car, sometimes even tired after many hours already driving, with only an hour or two break on the ferry, hopefully not having had some dutyfree alcohol. After many trips in various Left/right conditions and combinations in many different vehicles it is almost natural in any combination. I have driven in Japan, Korea, China, Taiwan (yes I see it as another country), Indonesia, Malasia, Italy, Spain, France, Austria, Germany, Sweden, UK, USA (Hawaii), and of course in Australia my home land, where I have over 1 million km accumulated in sub compact cars to 1 ton trucks, manual and automatic, petrol, diesel, gas, electric . Personally always owned 4WD, but did borrow mum/dad cars before owning my own. Long trips of 4000km in 3 days on occasion, but mostly travel to 800km with brief stops. Record single trip was 1800km non stop over a 22hr stint, my fellow driver kept going to sleep each time he was due to take over, and i just continued till next time he woke, but again slept while supposedely getting ready to take control.
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  2. A number of idiots goo passing at double solid line which is a no passing marking. Another common error still happening is that now a single solid line is also do not change lanrs. A common bad case is last second chage to go into or exit back to main road at exit lanes, it is illegal to cross the hatched area separating exit lanes and lanes on the road. Most states do not allow U turn at traffic lights unless specifically signed as permitted. Another frequent bad driver issue is turning contrary to road markings on lane direction.
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  3. White cockatoos at the end. One issue in driving here is differences and local special road laws between states. NSW forbids U Turn at intersections unless specifcally signposted as allowed, while VC allows U Turn at intersections unless specifically disallowed. Causes drivers to get fines when interstate, not even sure what SA,WA, QLD, or TAS have on that. Melbourne catches out onterstate drivers mid coty, as we have trams, so many of those ontersectio s have turn right from left side of the road. You pull towards left side and wait for lights to change tp cross traffic, allowing cleat traffic straight ahead during green cycle This causes fines for unfamiliar country and interstate drivers. Like wise for drivers not familiar with trams, it is not allowed at other intersections to pull onto and stop doing a turn right on the tram tracks, blocking trams progress. Many even local drivers get caught. Another tram issue is that these have regular stops along the way. It is required to NOT drive past a stopped tram, so passengers are free to enter and exit the tram safely. Not all, infact only major stops, have a safety zone, at which it is allowed to safely drive past, caution as many people will exit across the road carelessly, car driver ALWAYS liable if hitting a person. A major driver failing, that is by law forbidden is staying in the right, thus fastest lane on multi, >2, lane roads. It is a keep left unless passing, unless all lanes are filled on heavy traffic. Many drivers will just stay in the fast lane, right, even if no traffic in the other lanes. Will get you fined. Mobile and stationay speed cameras catch many drivers, but on recent time many highways have long interval speed detection, recording travel times over tens, in cases even over 100km to check average speed not exceeded, to prevent drivers speeding, but slowing in known fixed or common mobile speed traps. Cameras are also concealed under over passes and behind over road signs, but there are required road signs near, before these warning of "Safety Camera Used: Radar too is used and recently long and short range cameras detecting drivers on phones etc.old Amphometer, pressure tubes of long ago are seemingly no longer used. Once you could see ahead two black tubes on the road if observant, and lucky to not miss these by traffic ahead. Red light plus speed cameras are common on major and even lesser intersections around cities, even country towns. Random alcohol plus drug test buses and stops get setup, stopping basically all cars, though often to keep overall flow, batches of cars get pulled in, leaving excess traffic flowing. Normally nearby are police patrol, to catch any drivers seening or evidently trying to avoid the stop, using U turn or side streets. Most states now no longer use windscreen registration stickers. Mobile police and specific roadside setups, are constantly detecting and validating registrations. If detected you are stopped and must exit, lock and leave the vehicle there. A fine and points are imposed. Can not drive the vehicle until registration is payed. The parked vehicles must remain in place until released by police showing evidence of payment. Or if towed as sometimes required by location, from impound storage. You must atrend to paying on time, my sister was caught 8 1/2 hours after expiry. She had to walk 2km home, I drove her to a registration office 1hr before closing payed, attended police office, and she was mobile 4 hrs after getting caught. Due to prompt payment and short overdue time police cancelled the fine, which is automatic for driving unregistered. These number plate tests also detect many stolen vehicles and fake number plates . Even cars with missing or obscurred, damaged plates. There is a fine if number plates are in a state, or obscurred by covering plastic/filter sheets, preventing speed/red light cameras catching and reading the plates. This live monotring clears much of such problems. Some may be similar in USA or some states, some may be far different in USA.
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  4. At 4:15 that is a typical 4WD with ram bar and CB/2way radio antenna
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  5. Birds were probably sea gulls or white cockatoos. One aspect of these Australian bad driver videos is that mostly they are just bad driving, less crashes, while the US (and Russian) videos tend to be a series of crashes, less just bad behaviour.
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