It seems light years ago now, but I once had a delightful Swedish friend whose father, reflecting on his distinguished career in public service, told her that the proudest moment of his life was when Sweden switched from driving on the left side of the road to the right and there were no serious traffic accidents.
That was in 1967, and there’s no denying it – it’s damned impressive. Imagine if they tried to introduce a change like that today in Britain, or in other countries that still drive on the left such as India, Japan, Pakistan or South Africa. It would make the chaos on the opening day of Heathrow airport’s Terminal 5 look like a spot of trouble with the signalling on a model train set.
Walking around Stockholm in the extraordinarily warm weather that the Swedish capital is enjoying at the moment, I can see why a Swede would take such pleasure in his nation’s expertise in redirecting traffic flows. The city functions so smoothly that it’s a matter of personal honour to help keep it that way. Anything out of the ordinary, like a car going the wrong way up a street, would seem utterly subversive of the social order.
But you know, Europe’s diversity is something to celebrate. I once had lunch in Rome with the chief executive of one of Italy’s leading state-owned companies. He offered to give me a ride back to my office through the centro storico in his chauffeur-driven car. The chauffeur decided to take a short cut and drove the wrong way up a one-way street. At the end of the street were some concrete pillars blocking his way. Before he could reverse the car, some delivery vans parked behind him. He was totally and utterly stuck, and no one had the slightest intention of extracting him from his predicament.
Now, tell me, would that happen in Sweden?
Across the globe: Gideon Rachman and his FT colleagues debate international affairs on