When it's right to forget the left

Driving on the wrong side of the road in France is easily done.

"Remember to drive on the right." We've all smirked in a superior sort of way at this sort of sign as we've driven off the ferry at Le Havre, Calais or St Malo, wondering exactly which species of motoring moron needs such a reminder.

But that smirk can quickly evaporate a few hours later when you're pulling out of the hypermarché with the kids screaming in the back, or doing a U-turn in the middle of nowhere because someone's misread the map. At these moments, when the stress levels are high and the energy levels are low, it is easy to revert to old habits and set off on the left – and the consequences can be extremely serious.

The chances of being involved in a fatal road accident in France are twice as high as in Britain. The statistic is given on the Institute of Advanced Motorists website which, to someone about to set off to France on holiday, proved a sobering read. The IAM has just launched a new handbook, Driving Abroad, which covers everything the British motorist needs to get safely there and back. As it points out, the rules of safe driving are the same anywhere in the world. It's just that in a strange situation, you may like to think harder about adhering to them.

IAM spokesman Vince Yearley knows from rueful experience how even the most responsible driver can slip up when he or she is tired. "I remember stopping at a restaurant in a small French town. We'd been out for the day, so though I hadn't been drinking, I was quite tired. When we left, I drove off on the wrong side of the road. It took me a while to work out what I'd done as there were two sets of headlights coming towards me, one on each side of the road. I ended up in the ditch."

Mr Yearley's disorientation had been compounded by the French predilection for ruthless overtaking, and it is not uncommon to hear British drivers moaning about the French habit of tailgating. Having said that, the French do observe their own sort of motorway discipline. The outside lane is very much the overtaking lane, not somewhere to pootle along at 60mph. So once you have overtaken, pull in again as soon as it is safe to do so or you will find Monsieur Machismo uncomfortably close behind you.

I'm always surprised by how many British drivers prefer to use French routes nationales (equivalent to our A-roads) on a long journey rather than the péage. Yes, the péage costs more, yes, it may be boring but you won't have to sit behind some filthy great camion for most of the way and neither will you have to dodge M. Machismo overtaking another filthy great camion coming in the opposite direction.

Besides, if you travel on the wrong day (a public holiday, for example), all those quaint auberges on the back roads will be shut, whereas on the péage, there is a regular supply of motorway service stations and rest areas. Concentration is the key to safe driving, says the IAM, and you cannot concentrate if you are tired.

I'm always touched by the efforts that the French highway authorities make to enliven the péage journey: notices naming each river and signs with stylised depictions of the landmarks and points of interest of nearby towns. You can learn a lot about France from the péage. And you don't have to remember which side of the road you're on, either.

One potential problem, though: last weekend, some tollbooth staff on the A6, from Paris to the south, staged industrial action, causing havoc. If it is repeated at the start of the great exodus from the capital on 28-29 July, the congestion does not bear thinking about.

For advice on safe driving abroad, go to the Institute of Advance Motorists website at www.iam.org.uk/news/. The Institute's handbook, 'Driving Abroad', by Robert Davies, £12.99, is published by Haynes Publishing. A free fact sheet, also called Driving Abroad, is available from the IAM on 020-8994 4403