Rural driving in England is weird. I feel like cities are relatively safe: cars are typically used to cyclists and look out for them, though they can pass too c

Rural driving in England is weird. I feel like cities are relatively safe: cars are typically used to cyclists and look out for them, though they can pass too close. Cycling is also becoming more common in general. In the countryside (at least the bits I’m used to), driving in general seems pretty dangerous. The roads are old and narrow and windy with tall hedges or walls on either side. The speed limit is usually unrestricted (ie 60mph/do whatever is “safe”) and people tend to drive fast. While it’s obviously bad for a cyclist to surprise a car, it’s also likely for a car to suddenly come across another car coming the other way (and there may not really be enough room to pass) or a horse or a tractor. Hitting any of those would be pretty bad for the car and they aren’t uncommon. It’s somewhat surprising to me that people drive so fast but I guess they are just impatient. Near where I grew up there was a popular hill climb for cycling but the road was narrow and winding and cars would go up fast (to keep their momentum for the steep bits and the corners). Often wide farm tractors or trailers would go up or down which made things tricky. I’m amazed how popular it was with cyclists as it seemed very perilous. Their only advantage is that it was easier for a car to stop in a short distance (going up) on the steep bits and they were fast on the way down. Compare that to driving in the Irish countryside (at least the bits I’m used to) where the roads are similar (perhaps you’re more likely to come across a donkey and cart or a hitchhiker) but everyone drives more slowly and patiently.