Thailand ranks fifth in most nerve-racking nations to drive in, survey shows

BANGKOK: A UK-based company asked more than 2,000 motorists to rate the countries in which they would be most afraid to get behind the wheel.

Thailand ranked in fifth position globally among nations where holidaymakers feel nervous about driving, according to a survey by Scrap Car Comparison, a UK-based company that looks at scrap vehicle prices.

As many holidaymakers rent a car while abroad for more freedom to explore a new location, the survey aims to discover which countries people feel most nervous about driving in when planning their travels and the reasons why they feel anxious, the company said.

The survey was conducted among more than 2,000 motorists, who were asked to score between one and 10 how nervous they would be to drive in each country (1 being not nervous at all, and 10 being extremely nervous).

India topped the chart with an average ‘scare score’ of 7.15 out of 10, making it the country in which motorists are most nervous to drive.

Venezuela came in second place with a score of 6.97, followed by Zimbabwe (6.9), Morocco (6.87) and Thailand (6.86).

Interestingly, motorists found China to be slightly less nerve-racking to drive in compared to Thailand, putting the country in 6th place with a score of 6.84.

Tunisia, Brazil, Colombia and Malaysia came in seventh to tenth place, respectively.

At the other end of the scale, the Netherlands scored 4.41 out of 10.

Scrap Car Comparison gave an overview of driving in Thailand as follows:

“Motorists in the country drive on the left, which can be unfamiliar for some drivers, and motorbikes dominate the roads, weaving through traffic and creating potential distractions for nervous drivers. Heavy traffic is common in cities such as Bangkok and Chiang Mai; however more rural areas provide a beautiful backdrop of mountains and beaches for drivers to enjoy.”

The survey found that driving on the opposite side of the road emerged as the most prominent reason for anxiety, with over half (56.2%) of all drivers surveyed stating this as a concern.

The second biggest concern for motorists hitting the roads in a foreign country is the dangerous driving of other motorists, with 55.9% of drivers picking this out as a worry.

52.7% of respondents said they were afraid to accidentally break a traffic law in foreign countries. - The Nation/ANN