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>While at Thule, it’s recommended that you walk on the left side of the road facing oncoming traffic. Although contrary to stateside standards, this will enable

>While at Thule, it’s recommended that you walk on the left side of the road facing oncoming traffic. Although contrary to stateside standards, this will enable you to watch for vehicles and to get out of the way should they not see you. I have always found this to make extremely good sense, but I see quite few doing it besides me.

nosianu 5y ago
As a German, I learned this as a rule. Outside of towns when there is no sidewalk, always walk on the left side, against oncoming traffic. From the StVO, the law, the road traffic regulations, §25 section 1, first paragraph (German): https://www.stvo.de/strassenverkehrsordnung/108-25-fussgaenger https://www.stvo.de/strassenverkehrsordnung/108-25-fussgaeng... > außerhalb geschlossener Ortschaften muss am linken Fahrbahnrand gegangen werden "Outside of towns pedestrians have to walk on the left side" Just an aside, while looking at that website, the banner image at the top looks clearly seems to be of an American road. On a German website about German road laws.
- ngcazz 5y ago
  In Portugal there used to be road signs on the right side lane telling pedestrians to cross over to the left so they’d face oncoming traffic. Haven’t seen one in ages but they probably still exist.
bouchard 5y ago
I'm pretty sure that's what is recommended here in Québec, Canada when there's no sidewalk. Seems weird that it wouldn't also be the case in the US.
- Jtsummers 5y ago
  It is the case in the US (or has been since I was a child in the 80s) so I find the quote weird. You are supposed to walk opposite traffic for the reason described. It is standard guidance every I have lived (a large chunk of the US).
  - wk_end 5y ago
    FWIW - growing up in Ontario, Canada I was always told to walk in the direction of traffic. It seemed odd to me to turn my back to danger, but that’s what they taught us.
    - Ekaros 5y ago
      In Finland it depends, with sidewalk and in populated areas the normal right side traffic is to be followed. At highways it is recommended to use left side specially during dark.
  - ImprovedSilence 5y ago
    Yeah, in the US I learned walk/run opposing traffic, and ride your bike with traffic.
  - themadturk 5y ago
    I learned to walk on the left as a child in the 1960s (from my mom and dad, who learned as children in the 1930s).
- Rebelgecko 5y ago
  It's what I was taught in the US as well, if you're on foot you should be going opposite traffic
alksjdalkj 5y ago
I grew up in the states and was always taught to walk against traffic. Not sure where they're teaching people the opposite.
- aaaaaaaaata 5y ago
  Places where people think being right/having the right of way triumphs being alive.
- core-utility 5y ago
  FWIW, I knew a guy who was riding his bicycle on the sidewalk, technically going the "wrong" direction. He crossed a commercial business park driveway and got hit by a car who didn't see him, and got a lot of hassle from insurance because he was going the "wrong" way for that side of the street. Looking back, that may have been the insurance company looking to skirt responsibility.
  - throwthere 5y ago
    I think they're talking about walking. Riding a bike is different-- for one, it's illegal in a lot of places to ride on the sidewalk in a business district. For another, the transfer of momentum is appreciably less in a same-direction collision between a car/bike compared to head-on.
  - alksjdalkj 5y ago
    I was talking about walking - for biking, I was taught to ride with traffic.
  - SyzygistSix 5y ago
    The sidewalks on either side are a bad place for cyclists for this reason. They are banned from sidewalks in many places for the safety of the cyclist, not so much the pedestrians.
- bradknowles 5y ago
  That's what I was taught in the Boy Scouts, over 40 years ago.
rtkwe 5y ago
I think maybe the military standard is walking on the right by their wording. I was mostly taught if there wasn't a sidewalk to walk against traffic and to cycle with traffic. edit: dug a little bit and found [0] which says DoD personnel are supposed to walk against traffic too so no idea. [0] https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodi/605504p.pdf https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/do... p.13 3.4.a.2

nosianu 5y ago

As a German, I learned this as a rule. Outside of towns when there is no sidewalk, always walk on the left side, against oncoming traffic. From the StVO, the law, the road traffic regulations, §25 section 1, first paragraph (German): https://www.stvo.de/strassenverkehrsordnung/108-25-fussgaenger https://www.stvo.de/strassenverkehrsordnung/108-25-fussgaeng... > außerhalb geschlossener Ortschaften muss am linken Fahrbahnrand gegangen werden "Outside of towns pedestrians have to walk on the left side" Just an aside, while looking at that website, the banner image at the top looks clearly seems to be of an American road. On a German website about German road laws.

ngcazz 5y ago
In Portugal there used to be road signs on the right side lane telling pedestrians to cross over to the left so they’d face oncoming traffic. Haven’t seen one in ages but they probably still exist.

bouchard 5y ago

I'm pretty sure that's what is recommended here in Québec, Canada when there's no sidewalk. Seems weird that it wouldn't also be the case in the US.

Jtsummers 5y ago
It is the case in the US (or has been since I was a child in the 80s) so I find the quote weird. You are supposed to walk opposite traffic for the reason described. It is standard guidance every I have lived (a large chunk of the US).
- wk_end 5y ago
  FWIW - growing up in Ontario, Canada I was always told to walk in the direction of traffic. It seemed odd to me to turn my back to danger, but that’s what they taught us.
  - Ekaros 5y ago
    In Finland it depends, with sidewalk and in populated areas the normal right side traffic is to be followed. At highways it is recommended to use left side specially during dark.
- ImprovedSilence 5y ago
  Yeah, in the US I learned walk/run opposing traffic, and ride your bike with traffic.
- themadturk 5y ago
  I learned to walk on the left as a child in the 1960s (from my mom and dad, who learned as children in the 1930s).
Rebelgecko 5y ago
It's what I was taught in the US as well, if you're on foot you should be going opposite traffic

alksjdalkj 5y ago

I grew up in the states and was always taught to walk against traffic. Not sure where they're teaching people the opposite.

aaaaaaaaata 5y ago
Places where people think being right/having the right of way triumphs being alive.
core-utility 5y ago
FWIW, I knew a guy who was riding his bicycle on the sidewalk, technically going the "wrong" direction. He crossed a commercial business park driveway and got hit by a car who didn't see him, and got a lot of hassle from insurance because he was going the "wrong" way for that side of the street. Looking back, that may have been the insurance company looking to skirt responsibility.
- throwthere 5y ago
  I think they're talking about walking. Riding a bike is different-- for one, it's illegal in a lot of places to ride on the sidewalk in a business district. For another, the transfer of momentum is appreciably less in a same-direction collision between a car/bike compared to head-on.
- alksjdalkj 5y ago
  I was talking about walking - for biking, I was taught to ride with traffic.
- SyzygistSix 5y ago
  The sidewalks on either side are a bad place for cyclists for this reason. They are banned from sidewalks in many places for the safety of the cyclist, not so much the pedestrians.
bradknowles 5y ago
That's what I was taught in the Boy Scouts, over 40 years ago.

rtkwe 5y ago

I think maybe the military standard is walking on the right by their wording. I was mostly taught if there wasn't a sidewalk to walk against traffic and to cycle with traffic. edit: dug a little bit and found [0] which says DoD personnel are supposed to walk against traffic too so no idea. [0] https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodi/605504p.pdf https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/do... p.13 3.4.a.2