Single Track Roads
The greater majority of visitors to this area of Wester Ross tend to come here by road, using their own car, camper van or motorbike, or hiring a vehicle from Inverness, having first completed the bulk of their journey by air or rail.
Driving in Wester Ross can be a very rewarding and enjoyable experience as the roads are generally fairly quiet by the standards of the rest of the UK and the scenery is quite magnificent. It's little wonder, therefore, that the whole area is popular with classic car owners and motorcyclists. This is motoring as many feel it should be, harking back to an earlier age when there were no motorways, no fixed speed cameras, fairly minimal parking restrictions, no congestion charges, etc.
The standard of the roads varies quite considerably. Thirty or forty years ago most of the roads around Lochcarron and throughout Wester Ross were single track with passing places but quite a number of these have been upgraded over the years, resulting in long sections of fine double-track road which make for superb driving, especially at quiet times when the road will stretch ahead, often with not another vehicle to be seen.
Sooner or later, however, you will encounter a section of single track road, either on an A-road where funding has not yet permitted upgrading to take place or on an unclassified road. It is perfectly possible to make good progress on a single track road but a different set of driving skills needs to be employed in order to ensure safe travel and the avoidance of unnecessary annoyance and frustration to other motorists.
With this in mind, we have compiled the following list of "Dos" and "Don'ts" for driving on single track roads and we hope you will find them useful. First of all, however, there is a basic rule which sometimes gets forgotten:-
The Rule of the Road throughout the UK is: Drive on the Left
Dos
- Be aware of what is going on around you at all times. Driving on "auto-pilot" is not an option! If you want to look at the scenery, find a safe place to stop and park - but not in a passing place!
- Scan the road ahead for oncoming vehicles and be ready to stop at a passing place if necessary. Passing places are usually designated by a sign.
- If possible, try to adjust your speed to reach the passing place at the same time as the oncoming vehicle, thus minimising the number of times you need to stop altogether. This helps to improve traffic flow and reduces emissions.
- On bends or blind summits keep as far to the left as possible and be prepared to stop if you meet an oncoming vehicle.
- On steep hills it is considered courteous to give priority to the vehicle travelling up the hill.
- There will inevitably be occasions when you will meet another vehicle between passing places so be prepared to reverse if necessary. It is generally regarded that the driver nearest a passing place should be the one who reverses.
- Keep a regular watch on your rear-view mirror for faster vehicles approaching from behind. When this happens, pull in at the next passing place to allow the other driver to overtake. Remember: the other motorist may be a local person on important business or a delivery driver with a tight schedule to maintain.
- Remember the Rule of the Road, especially at passing places where you should always keep to the left, even when the passing place is on the other side of the road. In that case, stop opposite the passing place so that the oncoming motorist can drive through the passing place.
- Be decisive but courteous at all times. It's not compulsory but a wave of the hand as a "thank you" to the other motorist who has pulled in to wait for you is generally considered to be good manners.
- Be aware that long sections of road are unfenced and that sheep and other livestock are allowed to roam - and may well be standing in the middle of the road around the next bend!
- Be especially vigilant for deer on or close to the road. They have little in the way of road sense and an unintentional coming-together with a full-grown stag can have serious consequences for all concerned.
- If travelling in a group with several other vehicles, avoid driving bunched close together and please allow faster traffic to overtake.
- Please observe speed limits - especially in towns and villages!
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There are various types of signs indicating a passing place. |
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Don'ts
- Never park in passing places - you won't be at all popular!
- Don't drive at excessive speed! You should always be able to stop safely within the distance you can see clear ahead - and on bends in the road or brows of hills that is sometimes quite a short distance.
- Don't assume that, just because the road seems quiet, you are the only driver on the road that day. Around the next bend you may quite easily meet a large van or an HGV. Be alert at all times!
- Don't drive along at slow speed with a long queue of frustrated drivers building up behind you. Pull in and let them overtake! You are on holiday - but they may have urgent business to attend to! Remember: it's not a competition to see who can be at the front of the queue!
- Never cross the road to a passing place on the right-hand side. It's the surest way of causing confusion on the part of the other driver, quite possibly leading to a collision. Remember the Rule of the Road! Keep to the left!
- Don't drive past a passing place when you can see that there is an oncoming vehicle approaching. It's the one thing which is almost guaranteed to irritate the other motorist! If you are the one nearest a passing place, it's your responsibility to stop.
- Avoid being over-courteous as that can sometimes be just as annoying to the other motorist as a lack of courtesy. If the other driver has already pulled in to a passing place to wait for you, keep going. Remember: the basic object of the exercise is to keep traffic flowing at a reasonable pace in safety.
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At periodic intervals you will see signs instructing you to allow overtaking. This instruction applies throughout the whole single track road system, not just in the vicinity of the signs! |
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