to wonder why we don't yet have an established 'side of the path' to walk on?

[Girlwhowearsglasses]

Because I've just taken my DF in his wheelchair to a large hospital with pre-covid-designed paths (not wide enough for social distancing) and played 'dance from side to side' repeatedley all the way down the pavement and into the hospital corridors as nobody seems to know which side to walk - even the HCPs. Ditto the corridors in said hospital. Ditto most places without explicit instrucions in stickers on the floor.

Given that when walking on a road you shoudl walk on the right hand side so as to be able to see traffic coming towards you (although you probably only know this if you live in an area with narrow roads without pavements) - Perhaps we should walk on the right on a path, corridor or pavement? Or are there other factors to consider?

Why don't we have a convention yet/ever?

Nobody pays any attention even when there are stickers on the floors and signs!

You walk on the right if you're walking in the road for safety reasons, which aren't really relevant if you're on a pavement unless you're expecting cars to be on the pavement with you.

Surely logically you'd walk on the left in any other circumstance as that is the hard-wired flow of traffic?

It was drummed into me at high school to walk on the left in all situations. It has become apparent recently that this is quite a hard to break habit! It confuses me when I come face to face with someone who isn't walking on their left 😂

You walk on the left. I would say about 90% of people appear to know this on our local Sustrans route. We were made to walk on the left ini corridors at school too.

Also taught to walk on the left at school. Wish everyone had been!

I always walk on the left and have found that shops and pathways have added 'keep left' signs. Other than in the road, when you should face oncoming traffic, I've never known people to be encouraged to walk on the right.

Righto! I shall experiment with assuming we are all walking on the left then, should I ever get to go out and walk a busy pavement again...

I'm am trying to remember which side our head teacher used to shout that we walk on at school, but I fear it was mostly 'DON'T RUN!'

I always walk on the left. I would only walk the right side of the road in the actual road, so as to see cars driving towards me.

Walk on the right side of the road* ^ that should say

Left-side walker here too.

It does seem odd that we don't have more 'one way' walking systems too; my local shopping centre has introduced this and whilst the route is too circular (only 1 crossing point!) it's created a lot more harmony.

I changed schools and was astonished that my new school functioned without constant reminders to walk on the left. People were going up and down stairs willy nilly! No accidents.

I always walk on the left too.

No one seems to pay attention to the giant stickers on the floor of our local shopping centre.

I tend to keep left and assume others mostly do as it seems to work 90% of the time. Throws me when someone goes right though.
Exceptions are passing people with pushchairs/children or people who are potentially unsteady/using a stick when I will make sure they are on the safe side (as in not closest to the road).

You should walk & pass others on your left on the pavement so that the person closest to the road can see oncoming cars.

During lockdown #1, I was genuinely perplexed there wasn’t some simple public education about walking on the left to go with 2m distancing guidelines.

I think that it is one of those cultural things for us oldies that has been lost over time. When I grew up it was dinned in to us as basic good manners that you walked on the left, (other than on a road with no pavement) never more than 2 abreast, lady on the inside and gentleman on the outside, and always stepped into single file if someone was coming the other way. I realise that I am showing my age here but it is something that I really do miss when I see people ambling along 3 or 4 abreast getting in everyone's way.

The British have terrible pavement discipline compared to the Dutch and Germans. The government should tell people to walk single file and keep left on pavements during covid - hopefully the left hand side thing would stick!

Sometimes I have to stop and force the issue (usually with a man) but generally if I make it clear I am keeping right into the left the person coming towards me gets the message and keeps left too.

Totally agree OP. I noticed when we were out and about a lot more in the summer that the one way systems weren't consistent. Sometimes it was keep left , other times keep right . No wonder people find them confusing !

I was never taught to walk on one side or the other. It has always thrown me that there doesn't seem to be an established side to walk on. I am quite socially awkward and can feel quite stressed about it! My strategy has been to generally aim for the left but watch the other persons trajectory carefully so I can adjust if necessary. I tend to avoid crowded places because my brain can't handle lots of people going in different directions! I had always assumed that I am a bit weird and everyone else knew what to do by instinct.

Your OP gave me a shudder because although i'm well versed in walking facing oncoming traffic if out hiking and needing to do a bit of road, I would ALWAYS walk on the left on a footway and cycle on the left on a shared path except when overtaking.

Our canal path seems to work to this pattern 90% of the time which is pretty amazing considering it's near the uni and has many European and US students on it.

Basic etiquette is to walk on the left. It was shouted at us on their stairs at school. Drives me batty when people don't, it's very widely accepted

Ps I find this thread very reassuring!

@ThatBitch

It was drummed into me at high school to walk on the left in all situations. It has become apparent recently that this is quite a hard to break habit! It confuses me when I come face to face with someone who isn't walking on their left 😂

Same!!!! As far as I can see, this is the way places like shopping centres and supermarkets work on the whole. The only place I go that they have you enter on the right is TK Maxx, and I just don't know why they do it. In the one I go to most often, you walk in and almost straight ahead of you are the escalators, so if you're wanting to go upstairs you have to cross paths with those going down and out. It's bizarre.

My town's big shopping centre has massive signs on all the walls and big standing signs saying 'Keep to the Left'. There is tape on the floor, little markers outside the shops to show where to wait. Seems pretty clear to me.

I am amazed at the number of people in this pretty large town who are not able to read. And then stare gormlessly into my eyes when I am walking into their path, on the correct side.

I do have the tolerance of... something with little tolerance, though, so maybe I am expecting too much!

We have arrows on the pavement in my town, showing us to walk on the left. A lot of people don’t seem to take any notice though.

I alwasys walk on the left on pavements, stairs etc, obviously its the other way round on the tube.

Its phone zombies that annoy me, if you don’t move they just walk into you.