In the News » Samoa Changes Right of Way
(Page last updated 7 September 2009)
A week before a planned shift of the right of way, some Samoans continue to air their grievances:
- Shifting the Right of Way to the Left Leaves Some Samoans Feeling Wronged
- Bus drivers threaten to set fleet alight (Brisbane Times article)
- Samoa drive switch campaign sabotaged
- No legal avenue left to stop Samoa's driving switch
- CIA The World Factbook: Western Samoa
During his first inaugural address, President Franklin D. Roosevelt attempted to calm an anxious nation with the words "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself". Interestingly enough, the prime minister of Samoa, Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, used that same phrase to calm Samoans' fears about switching from driving on the right side of the road to the left side of the road. It's a controversial switch, and it is due to take place in the country on September 7th. Other countries have certainly changed the side of the road on which they drive, but the last major nation to do so was Ghana in 1974. The prime minister was behind this plan, and claims that by driving on the left side of the road, poor Samoans will be able to obtain and use cheaper second-hand cars from Samoans living relatively close by in New Zealand and Australia. Opponents of the plan have called it foolish, and have also said that drivers will become confused and there could be a dramatic spike in automobile accidents. Other critics have included bus owners and operators, who will be required to effectively carve out new doors into their transport vehicles. As of this week, the prime minister remained adamant that the change would take place regardless of such criticisms, and he even went so far as to refer to one of his detractors as an "avaava" fish. This particular denizen of shallow waters happens to eat garbage, so the reference was less than complimentary. [KMG]
The first link will take visitors to a Wall Street Journal article from last Monday that contains comments on the proposed switch from the prime minister and the plan's critics. Moving on, the second link leads to a news piece from the Brisbane Times that states that bus drivers in Samoa would "rather set fire to their fleet" than switch to driving on the left side of the road. The third link leads to a piece from Radio New Zealand International on a bit of creative sabotage by those who are not in favor of this plan. The fourth link, also from RNZI, gives the latest on legal challenges to the change.
The fifth link will whisk users away to the CIA Factbook's entry on Samoa.
Here visitors can learn about the country's economy, political system, and primary exports. [KMG]
(From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2009.)
The official New Zealand road code is available in our libraries and online.
There is information about which side of the road people drive on around the world and some reasons why, here.
