MilesheetWhat a British driver notices in America
Right on red, four-way stops, undertaking as standard, and roads built on an entirely different assumption.
Driving in the United States is easier than most British drivers expect and strange in ways they do not anticipate. The wrong side of the road stops being the hard part after about an hour. Everything below takes longer.
Turning right on a red light
In most states you may turn right at a red light after stopping, unless a sign forbids it. There is no British equivalent and it feels illegal for about a week.
The corollary is that traffic behind you expects it. Sitting at a red waiting for green when the way is clear will produce a horn.
Four-way stops
An intersection where every approach has a stop sign. Priority goes to whoever arrived first; simultaneous arrivals yield to the right. It works on a shared understanding rather than signage, and it works remarkably well until a British driver arrives and waits to be waved through.
Undertaking is normal
On a multi-lane freeway, passing on either side is generally permitted and universally practised. Lane discipline of the British "keep left unless overtaking" kind largely does not exist.
This is the single biggest adjustment. You must check both sides before changing lanes, every time, because someone will be there.
The speeds are lower than you think
Interstate limits are commonly 65–75 mph, higher in parts of the west. Enforcement varies enormously by state and by county, and radar is genuinely everywhere in some places.
Distances, though, are on another scale entirely. A drive that would cross England is an afternoon between two cities in Texas.
Fuel is cheap and the cars drink it
Petrol — gasoline — is a fraction of the UK price, largely because the tax component is far smaller. That funds a fleet that is bigger and thirstier, and it makes MPG a much less emotive subject than it is here.
Note that US gallons are smaller than imperial ones: a US MPG figure is about 83% of the UK equivalent for the same car. A "30 mpg" American car is roughly 36 mpg in British terms.
The differences that catch people
| UK | US | |
|---|---|---|
| Turning right on red | Never | Usually permitted after stopping |
| Overtaking | Offside only, keep left | Either side, normal practice |
| Lane discipline | Keep left unless overtaking | Largely absent |
| Unsignalled crossroads | Rare | Four-way stops, first to arrive goes |
| Motorway limits | 70 mph | 65–75, higher in parts of the west |
| Junction numbering | Sequential | By milepost |
| Fuel price | High, mostly tax | A fraction of UK prices |
| Gallon | Imperial, 4.546 L | US, 3.785 L |
Converting the MPG figures
A US gallon is smaller, so US MPG figures understate by about 17% in British terms:
| US MPG | Equivalent UK MPG |
|---|---|
| 20 | 24 |
| 25 | 30 |
| 30 | 36 |
| 40 | 48 |
The roads themselves are a different philosophy
The Interstate system was built to a consistent national standard, largely in open country, with long distances between exits and generous geometry. British motorways were retro-fitted into a small, densely populated island where the land was already spoken for.
That explains a great deal about both networks: why American exits are numbered by milepost and ours are numbered sequentially, why their junctions are enormous and ours are tight, and why we run smart motorways to add capacity where they would simply have added lanes.
If any of it is business travel
If you drive abroad on business in your own vehicle, the mileage is claimable at the same UK approved rates — a business mile is a business mile wherever it was driven. Hire cars are a different matter, as the cost of the hire is the expense rather than a per-mile rate.
Sources
- FHWA — The Interstate Highway System
- IRS — Standard mileage rates
- HMRC — Travel, mileage and fuel rates and allowances
- The Highway Code
General information. Traffic law in the US varies by state: check the rules where you are driving.