So prior to the trip I had been checking out videos on you-tube of riding in Russia. In general they show horrific driving and terrible crashes. Yet (apart from mad city traffic) drivers in Russia are very considerate, will pull over to the verge to help you pass, signal when the police are ahead and are super polite - so why the difference?
Well as I got closer to Irkutsk I noticed quite a few cars have their lights on all the time and also a lot of boxy mini minibuses. These are cars that have been imported from Japan. (The boxy minibus types are specifically designed to get maximum value out of a prescribed parking space in Tokyo).
Of course these cars are right hand drive (as in the UK) whereas left hand drive would be more appropriate given which side they drive on. Therefore to overtake they swerve to the inside lane (right hand side) to be able to look beyond the car they are overtaking, then if they guess it is clear ahead, they violently swerve to the left to overtake. I would say at least 50% of cars are right hand drive. (In Vladivostok that rises to about 90%).
Therefore when a car looks like it is pulling over to the side to let you though, it is actually more likely to be attempting one of these heroic overtaking manoeuvres. Not too bad in summer, but during a Siberian winter it could be quite alarming.
A rather filthy bike finally makes it to the Vladivostok (and the Sea of Japan behind).
Comments