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This may be a stupid question, but I always assumed that if entering a roadside petrol station on the left (in UK) you should go in the first turning and leave at the second.
Likewise a car coming from the opposite direction (ie the petrol station on their right) would have to pass the exit and go to the entrance (ie the second turning).
Am I right?
Is the entrance always on the left?
I normally don't care about such trivialities, but I just had a frail old man actually try and fight me because he thought I had gone in the wrong way!
(This was in Hicksville, Wales)
Clearly the correct answer is Yes, if there is a sign telling you which way is correct..
OR
you are turning into it from a dual carriageway 😆
It depends on the road, the petrol station and how much you need a wee, yorkiie bar or ginsters pastie.
Thread over.
I'd be careful of old men in Wales, they're rarely as frail as they look 😉
But yes, as a UK driver and Welshman I can confirm the usually agreed way to enter a petrol station is left / first entrance if it's on your side of the road therefore having the same flow of traffic as the road it's on.
But... In Wales, especially middle-of-no-where places there's sometimes a "local system" completely at odds with the rest of the world and usually common sense adopted eons ago for reasons unknown and locals seem unable to accept that it's either wrong, or that people from 'other places' shouldn't know of it and follow it, despite it being completely unwritten, oh and this go way beyond mere petrol stations. For example in the Co-op local to my office no one uses the self-service tills - because (probably correctly) the staff think it's a conspiracy to reduce staff levels and many tuts will come your way of you use it and "a member of staff are on their way" is a lie.
Most of the ones I use are one direction to stop you getting in each others way mainly.
I would always enter on the entrance you would first reach on that side of the road if I cross a road.
I dont think there is an actual law or rule on this personally.
This was in Hicksville, Wales
lol, was he driving a Metro by chance?
If so, you did well to get away without a slap
Anyway, in theory the most efficient way would be the opposite to what you suggest.
Really it should be enter at the second left for those with the station to the left (ie. an anti-clockwise loop). In your example (clockwise loop) people leaving by turning right across traffic would then end up stuck behind another car waiting to turn right across traffic at the entrance.
lol, was he driving a Metro by chance?
It was an old Ka as it happens.
Long time ago, a friend had an incident with another driver in West Wales. Other driver turned right without indication or consideration. In the subsequent conversation matey was told 'Everyone knows I turn right here, I live here'.
I normally don't care about such trivialities, but I just had a frail old man actually try and fight me because he thought I had gone in the wrong way!
(This was in Hicksville, Wales)
You should have read the signs, it was probably clearly written in Hicksville Welsh.
There were no signs, which was why I wondering if there was an unwritten rule everyone but me knows about.
Where was this petrol station that has no signage? All the ones I know are full of signs.
The OP is correct but there will always be wrong people around to make an arse of it, so you just have to deal with what's in front of you.
Am I right?
I'd say so as a rule of thumb, but it depends on signage and the individual station / road. Some are laid out inordinately oddly.
I suspect the main issue is that everyone enters through the same entrance, thereby ensuring that everyone passes through the pumps in the same direction (assuming the universal pump layout® planning scenario has been followed*). Otherwise there's potential to have a 'head-on' incident.
* pump lanes parallel to roadway
Most of em have IN and Out signs don't they?
The one where a stupid woman nearly knocked me off my bike did (well, I jumped off). She signalled to go in the IN, didn't go in, then turned in the OUT without indicating. Brain dead, I tell ya.
Cobblers. There is no unwritten rule. Its down to what works at each station.
You are often best driving in to the entry that is nearest your approach. Unless its signposted other wise.
Much better to cross the traffic when moving than to try and u turn in then turn sharp when pulling away to carry on with your journey. .
one near us the entrance/ exit are on two roads, with a roundabout between, people go in and out of both. I've been in there where i was pointing the same way as everyone but by the time i'd paid, the tide had changed.
It works until your the pump at the back, but the 'front pump' is pointing towards you!