Why are car steering wheels on the right side in Hong Kong?
2 Answers
Hong Kong was originally a British colony and adopted the British driving system. Due to historical conventions, cars in the UK drive on the left side of the road. To facilitate drivers' observation of the road and passenger boarding/alighting, vehicles with right-hand steering wheels are used. Only a few countries like Japan, the UK, and Commonwealth nations follow this driving system, where steering wheels are on the right. Most countries drive on the right side with left-hand steering wheels. Below is more detailed information: 1. There are two vehicle traffic systems worldwide: left-hand traffic and right-hand traffic. Currently, nearly 90% of countries adopt right-hand traffic. The core principle of left-hand traffic is based on human instinctive reactions. Since the human heart is on the left side, when drivers face danger, they naturally lean or steer left to protect the heart, avoiding more severe chain collisions by veering toward the road center in emergencies. A drawback is that gear shifting requires left-hand operation, which may require an adaptation period for body coordination. 2. Currently, China adopts right-hand traffic, which is the opposite of left-hand traffic. Right-hand traffic is more conducive to body coordination in gear operation, allowing more flexible use of various functions on the center console. However, a disadvantage is that human vision is predominantly right-eye dominant. In right-hand traffic, when a vehicle approaches from the left with a preceding car blocking the view, observation and reaction might be slightly slower.
In Hong Kong, the steering wheel is on the right side of the car, which is primarily determined by historical reasons. Hong Kong was occupied as a British colony in the 19th century. In the UK, left-hand traffic rules are followed, so the steering wheel is placed on the right side to allow the driver to better observe the left-side road conditions. The British introduced this system, which was subsequently adopted in Hong Kong's road construction. After the Treaty of Nanjing in 1842, British regulations permeated transportation, with even horse-drawn carriages driving on the left. After Hong Kong's handover to China in 1997, the right-hand steering wheel was not changed because large-scale adjustments to road signs, vehicles, and driver habits would be time-consuming and labor-intensive, and could potentially cause confusion and accidents. Nowadays, we have become accustomed to right-hand drive, which provides a wider field of vision on narrow streets or when turning, reducing the risk of blind spots. Similar to other right-hand drive countries like Australia or Japan, this facilitates international exchange, but driving in mainland China does require some time to adapt. Overall, this is a result of combining tradition with reality, where convenience outweighs the cost of change.
