TravelGuides

(TGA) - Destination Expert  
We are planning to have a rental car whiel we are in Belgium. I just had a friend who lived in Belgium several years ago tell me about a diving rule in Belgium called the " Rule of the Right" -- or something like that -- where you can be driving down a road and anyone can just pull out in front of you from a street on the right -- they have the right of way -- even tho you are on the main road. This seems crazy to me and very dangerous. Is this rule still in effect -- or have laws changed?
---- Reply -----
"priorite a la droit" (sp?) was a famous traffic rule in France, but I was unaware of it in Belgium, although I've only driven there a couple of times. In France, it was indicated by a clear sign, so you were alerted to the possibility of giving way.
Apologies to the Belgians, but I had understood that there used to be no driving test in Belgium, with the inevitable consequences! So I drove expecting someone to come out of nowhere and try to ram me!
Joking aside,I think you need to find out what the actual, official rules are of the country you are driving in. I'm sure a google search will bring up a government site,or the State Department *US) has good info for each country.
---- Reply -----
Hi,
In Belgium you have to give priority to drivers who come from a street on your right . This doesn't count if you are on highways, or 70 Km/ hours ways and ways which have a " Priority way " sign. So it is valid on smaller roads !
Max
---- Reply -----
The "priority to the right" rule is still in effect, in fact it has been strengthened because it used to be that if the driver coming from the right stopped at all, they lost the priority. However, you would really only notice it at unmarked junctions on country roads or (if not controlled by traffic lights/roundabouts) in towns and cities, since traffic on a highway - priority road marked with yellow diamond sign - always has priority.
It is also true that there used to be no driving test in Belgium but then that is true for all countries! The difference is that while most countries introduced this in the early 20th century (1903 in the UK, although I believe not on a standardized national basis until the 1930s), in Belgium it was only in 1960. Still, that is 50 years ago so there can't be many people left on the roads who have never passed a test...
…angloinfo.com/countries/belgium/driving.asp
alltravelbelgium.com/Belgium/Car_Rental/Driv…
---- Reply -----
I had googled it and found a few websites -- but none as good as the one qaminari supplied. Thanks! The thing I did not see anywhere were pictures of the road signs that indicate "priority" so that we can study up.
It seems as tho the Netherlands has this rule too? Tho less is said about it in any travel book I have read.
This still seems a crazy and dangerous law to me. We thought driving in Ireland was difficult because of the other side of the road thing -- but this might top that!
---- Reply -----
This rule is a relic of Napeolonic times ! Yes, it still exists in Holland, but slowly it is being eliminated by redesigning road junctions. You'll never come across it on main roads, the only place you'll likely to come across it is in built-up areas on side streets, in which case you should be driving slow enough anyway to be able to react to anybody exercising their right of priority. Drivers in Holland are generally wary enough to slow down even when they have priority in this case.
---- Reply -----
I think this rule is stil valid in most continental european countries.
If two 'equal' roads are crossing, then the one coming from the right has priority.
The trend is to have less of these 'equal' junctions.
When you see this sign, you have lower priority, and should wait:
schoolopseef.nl/files/…voorrangsbord.png
With this sign: you have priority:
informatiebord.nl/imgsrc/…b1.png
And with this sign, you no longer have priority anymore, but are on equal terms.
iselinge.nl/scholenplein/…20voorang.gif
And when you see this one you're not in Belgium anymore..
claassens.com.au/motley2/…bull-sign.JPG
---- Reply -----
Casualist -- thanks for the additional info.
Ger_Holland -- This is just what I needed -- actual signs. I have printed them off for reference. Thanks so much. That last one is most helpful :) haha.
---- Reply -----