I know I've made comments about driving in Kuwait. This is written by the author of the site Kuwait,Kuwait. I enjoy his (her?) perspective. Although I've got my eyes on a beautiful Blue BMW to purchase next year (only $3750 says the owner!) I doubt we will drive. It's just WAAAYY too much of an adventure. However, never say never...
Getting Around:
Driving (always) and navigating (at first) can be quite dispiriting and the kamikaze nature of Kuwaiti driving standards should never be underestimated. The good, wide roads look deceptively easy to the novice until he has his first near miss (within five minutes of taking the wheel) and his first crunch (probably within his first month).
Most British expats find that driving on the "wrong" side of the road is the least of their problems (it’s a strange day when you don’t see the aftermath of at least one accident). Road signs are in Arabic but most have English subtitles, however most of these do tend to be located at turn offs, rather than just before them, making last minute maneuver an everyday occurrence.
The "slow" lane on a three-lane road is the middle one, also making for interesting negotiations as traffic merging from the right immediately crosses two lanes of faster moving traffic. Unlike Saudi, women are granted the privilege of mobility but they still value lives very lowly and regular sightings of children on the dashboard are the norm (we call them "interactive airbags").
Seat belts are compulsory, though few locals wear them as can be seen by the huge number of wrecks along the major roads with holes in the windscreen. All cars here are air conditioned, most with automatic transmission, rental cars tending to be Japanese compacts or American tanks, the only exception apparently being Avis who offer Opel Vectras.
There is no restriction on purchasing your own vehicle, new or second hand, and prices are extremely cheap but remember to get fully comprehensive insurance. Cars over three years old require an MOT which an absolute farce.
As in most middle eastern countries there is a pecking order when it comes to apportioning the blame of an accident, i.e., A Kuwaiti is never to blame, even if he/she rear ends you! However if a westerner runs into the rear of say, an Indian, then the Indian is at fault - totally unfair, but true.
Petrol stations are open 24 hours to provide the local boy racers all night entertainment. The price of petrol without UK duty etc. is a laughable 60/65 fils per litre (12p ish). NOTE: this is about 60 cents per gallon!
The road system is fairly Americanized, being based around blocks and it is difficult to get lost with the exception of Ahmedi - an oil town that looks like American suburbia. The motorways are numbered in intervals of 5s, radiating South from the city centre, which is on a Northerly point on the coast, and are intersected by ring roads, of which there are seven (the fourth should be avoided in rush hour). Areas bounded by these main roads are subdivided numerically with major streets being named and smaller ones numbered, thus a residential address might be "Salwa, Block 4, Street 3, Building 987, Floor 3, Apartment 6".
Speed camera housings are in abundance, however the cameras and film are not, so you will often see cameras moved around each week, sometimes turned on without film, so they flash, but do not take a picture - beware of "Traffic Week" though - this is usually announced the week the film arrives! A new idea has just arrived in Kuwait - mobile speed cameras. These are mounted in the back of small Suzuki Jeeps, pointing out of the rear window. The advantage of these over fixed cameras, is that the driver stays with the camera to ensure it is not shot at (I kid you not - the locals don't like them one bit).
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