Scotland by road · By road in Scotland
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By road in Scotland
By road in Scotland
Although Scotland is not a big country, travel can take significantly longer than you may expect depending on where you're from. The country's mountainous topology means that crossing from the East to the West usually involves taking circuitous routes. With the exception of the Central Belt,where there are motorways and dual carriageways where travel is fast and easy, road conditions in Scotland are generally below Western European standards. Beware of defects such as potholes, ruts, cracks and patches in both urban and rural roads. Many rural roads follow old horse trails and have an overabundance of bends and twists. In remote areas many roads are single track. Passing places are provided at intervals. These are marked by diamond shaped white signs labeled "Passing Place". Sometimes these are incorrectly installed as a square sign. On older less used single track roads black and white striped poles may still be used as markers. If faster traffic comes up behind you it is the rule that you should pull into a passing place and allow the other vehicle to pass. When two vehicles approach each other on a single track road, experienced drivers will both adjust their speed so as to reach the passing place at the same time and pass each other slowly, avoiding the need for either vehicle to come to a stop. You should pull in to the passing place on your left or if the passing place is on the right hand side, stop opposite it so that the oncoming car can pull into it. Many of these roads are poorly maintained and lack crash barriers, so drive carefully and never assume that it is clear around the the next bend or over the next hill. You may also find cattle grids (also known as cattle guards or Texas gates). These are used if livestock is loose in the area and should be negotiated very slowly as they can have an adverse effect on your vehicle's steering. In these areas keep your speed down and watch out for livestock such as horses, sheep, cattle and deer.
Visitors from outside Scotland should take special care when driving if they are not used to driving on the left. It is easiest to slip into previous habits on unmarked rural roads. Well marked city streets should give the driver enough information to select the correct lanes. Many by-passes have been built to allow faster travel, but the visitor will miss out on some of the beautiful scenery of Scotland. In some areas road signs will indicate that the road on the next exit will re-join the main route by showing a semi-circular exit and entrance with the destination name in the middle. This allows the driver confidence to take more scenic diversions into small towns or to find a place to stop and have lunch.
See also the Itinerary: Driving tour of Scotland.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Scotland
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Scotland - updated Apr 2024
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Scotland Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.