Spanish driving standards better than those in the UK.

TROLL

It’s a little bit old, maybe it’s all the expats in Spain bringing the numbers down??

😆 How can I take your opinion on driving seriously now? I was sat on the motorway at 120 yesterday and had two people pull out in front of me while they were going significantly slower 80-90, forcing me to brake.
People pull onto the motorways from the slip roads without looking!!! 😯
Indicators are 1005 optional. Manoeuvre. Signal (maybe). Mirror (pah!).
Park wherever you want.
Tailgate if you want to pass someone.
etc…

😆

Statistics are like miniskirts they show you a lot but hide the good bits.

But my mate in Madrid may not be the best benchmark given the pieces of scooter in-bedded in his saab

I used to describe the driving in Madrid as everyone driving fast, but no-one in a rush. Driving down the Castellana at peak time when 4 lanes disappear into 3 for no obvious reason is bally good fun, both in a car and on a motorbike…

Surrounded By Zulus – Member

You are not the only one in this discussion to have driven all over europe. Mine is a considered opinion. I think the french and italians in particular are great drivers.
I would agree that many of them are good at “making progress” and probably can handle a car better but that wasn’t really what I was getting at.
On the runs down to Barcelona we would expect to see 3 or 4 fatal accidents and even on Rhine tours we had 1 or 2 “don’t look to the left” moments.
I think that could be due to lower traffic levels so perhaps its easier to get complacent that there will be nothing coming?
TBH I’m not surprised about the expats though as most of them were probably the “been driving 40years & never had an accident” brigade

djglover – Member

I can drive with my phone between my shoulder and ear and skin up at the same time.

That’s easy with kingsize but a bit more difficult to build a five sheeter.

To be fair the driving standards in spain and most other places in europe are a lot higher than they are here.

You are joking, right? My enduring memory of french drivers every time I’ve visited is that they are great at lane discipline, but that’s about it. I’ve been over and undertaken on country roads with oncoming traffic so many times it’s scary (and apparently I drive like a twonk according to some on here due to my low tyre life). I remember peugeot 205 gti’s overtaking lines of traffic several cars at a time, massively outside the limits, and forcing their way into spaces. I saw more accidents in France on my last drive through to the alps than I’ve seen all year in the UK.

Wales is fun, you just need to be aware of the dangers and not exceed your stopping ability. I did it once when 18 in mid wales, and found myself in a field 10ft below the road with a snapped back axle and totalled front suspension – I learned from that!

Spanish driving standards better than those in the UK. You can spot the expats a mile off though. It’s a total lack of awareness that makes standards in the uk so low.

I blame the instructors

I can put my hands up to driving like a t**t in my youth, everyone I knew who lived between Brecon Llangorse Talgarth Crickhowell all had massively modded minis escorts etc and wrung there necks all day long. My mates dad was a Welsh Tarmac champion and he would fly around in a Landrover. Was it stupid? Yes but no point in slagging someone now for what they did in their youth.

This may sound contencious but thrashing my 1340 Min at 2 in the morning across Llangynidr Moor is not the crime of the century.

Good to see the moral compass being well provided on here.

Well, arrived in Shrewsbury a coupla hrs ago, the roads were truly inspiring again especially the half hr section up through the hills after devils bridge. I could happily turn round and go back for another go. Sure it won’t be this much fun when we return in the summer, when it’s clogged with caravans and police camera vans, but we’ll give it a go. Thankyou Wales!!

And the drive from Shrewsbury to Belper was truly boring!!

For the life of me I can’t imagine how driving in Spain can be better than anywhere when the rules are so difficult to follow, this is a one way street! 😯 And yes I was driving and taking a picture. 🙄

IMG00013-20110103-1723 by simoncarter.es, on Flickr

wrightyson, you need to try the road from Bala to Dolgellau via Traws, or for tight and twisty from Talsarnau to Harlech, but don’t enjoy it too much, don’t cross the white lines, don’t speed. 😆

EDIT: I’m an attention whore so the tags just feed my ego, thanks. 😉

“between Brecon Llangorse Talgarth Crickhowell”

Last time I was there, I had to take a different route due to a car crash and fire near Bwlch – sad for those involved.

This may sound contencious but thrashing my 1340 Min at 2 in the morning across Llangynidr Moor is not the crime of the century.

😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯 😯
I give you 3 minutes before you are shot down in flames by the self righteous amongst us.

I couldn’t agree more, it’s ‘contentious‘. 🙄

Sure it won’t be this much fun when we return in the summer, when it’s clogged with caravans and police camera vans

It won’t be clogged. It doesn’t get busy in Mid Wales 🙂

With regards French drivers, seems to me that most folk are just fine, but there’s a significant minority of raving suicidial nutters that cause the trouble. All the near death experiences I can remember were as a result of some lunatic driving like he’s trying to evade the police, rather than just poor driving in general.

Is that genuine mgrips or a touch of the stw sarcasm, I never can tell on here?? I’ve never been over that way in summer and the thought of those roads combined with lines of traffic stuck behind caravans was genuinely putting me off!! Hence I’d never go to Bournemouth or places of similar popularity coz we love just going out and exploring quiet beaches etc, where you’ve not gotta have your eyes glued on the kids permanently!!

No, not sarcasm. Some places near the coast get busy like Barmouth and Dolgellau but in proper Mid Wales there’s very few people around all year. A few more in the summer but really it’s not bad. West Wales can also be a bit busy.

It’s certainly nothing like Cornwall which is frigging insane. However, note that I’ve not been to these places in summer for a while 🙂

That’s just what we’re after!! We stayed in a place called
Tregaron last week which is about 30 mins east of the north part of Cardigan bay, which I assume looking at it gets busy in the summer. Where abouts are those “cheeky beaches” on the pics, look perfect for setting up the grilletto and chilling out whilst the kids tire themselves out!!

First time driving for a while this weekend. Got in the groove tho and gave the aygo I had on hire a nice thrashing down some highland twisties. 🙂

Good car for a thrash I have to say willing little engine but I enjoyed thrashing it at realistic speeds. don’t think I topped 85

And that ^ is why I’d never buy an ex hire or lease motor! Poor little aygo!! 😀

My father in law has a thing for small British cars, so when he came over he hired an Aygo (yes, I know). I did tell him he’d enjoy a Fiesta more, but he insisted. Some 400 miles later he came back saying it wasn’t that great, complaining about the tyres skidding about a bit. I can’t imagine how tf he was driving to be honest.

Wrighty, those are panaramio pics of the beach between Borth and Twyn. If you go on Google earth you can see many many miles of empty beaches with nothing but dunes and fields behind them. Loads of it in Mid and North Wales. Bournemouth it ain’t.