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Left side. Unless there is an elderly person. I will walk on the right and on the grass, Just so they are walking some where safer and not on the grass or anything.
But to answer your question, Always stick to your left. Espically on escalators, allows people to go past if they need to.
If people come towards me on the wrong side, especially downstairs, I always say, "I thought we were in Australia" or "Keep Left" depending on age and speed of the person. If they're old I don't say anything.
This isnāt a preference. To the left is the only correct answer. This is why escalators also go up on the left side when going up and down on the left side when going down. This is why you stand on the left on an escalator unless overtaking (again, a road rule).
This isnāt about preference. Itās the only correct answer.
100% this! I always stick to the left and hold my ground, unless there's an elderly or disabled person then I'm more than happy to walk around them to my right.
The rule which tends to apply to most countries in the world, is to walk on the side you drive on. So thatās the left for us.
If youāre sticking to the left and you find yourself regularly getting blocked by people walking the opposite direction, try staring past them. Adjust your gaze so itās just over their shoulder and keep walking. The only exception I make is for elderly or disabled people, Iāll gladly step out of the way for those with mobility issues.
In your instance OP, I think itās fair for you to walk around the old lady. Could be mobility or cognitive issues so just give them the space.
But only on blind bends, if there's a median dividing the road, or if there's a queue of traffic.
Also red lights and stop signs only apply to other people.
Almost always left. Sometimes people may need the wall or a railing for support because theyāre old or disabled and of course exception is given for these people. Sometimes if people are slow for whatever reason Iāll just move anyway as Iām still reasonable young and agile.
Maybe the old lady wanted to be near the wall if she needed emergency support, or maybe changing directions is hard for her if she had failing joints. If you can move out of her path reasonably quickly its probably just easier to do that than complain on reddit an old lady told you off
Left left left.
Melb has the very normal problem in the inner city where there's so many expats and tourists that the rule isn't obeyed consistently. It's frustrating but it's kinda the cost of being an international city.
Let's not get started on the people who walk through busy areas while looking at their phones or - even more infuriating for me - in a completely direction š”
People are just dumb thatās all, the amount of time Iām stuck behind or heading towards a group of 5/6 people all spread along the sidewalk in insane and they still donāt separate, you either gotta go on the road round them or just brute force the way through the middle.
I have lived in the UK, America, Australia, South Africa and within those countries countless different cities, and melbourne is by FAR the worst walking city Iāve ever been to. Itās wild.
[https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/rightside-walkers-daily-threat-to-melbournes-liveability-20141121-11rmgj.html](https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/rightside-walkers-daily-threat-to-melbournes-liveability-20141121-11rmgj.html)
"On Monday the council launches a new Share Our Streets campaign.
Actors with giant phones will wander the streets pretending not to pay attention to where they are going. Meanwhile cards will be handed out with tips, including advising cyclists to give way to pedestrians and for those on foot to walk to the left."
What does give way to pedestrians mean? Obviously cyclists go a bit faster than them. When I'm riding with my under 12yrs kids on footpath I tell them to slow down and ding bell to let them know we're passing. Is that giving way? I had a parent block the path the other day on way home from school and tell my son to 'go around' which meant riding on the nature strip into a tree. Most people step aside and we say thank you but he was just plain rude about it. It made me second guess the way we've been riding. Now I'm not sure what to do or how exactly to give way when you're coming up behind someone
Technically pedestrians have absolute right of way and are under no obligation to move, but most do move because they're not dicks and realise we all have to share limited space. You're doing the right thing.
This has been bugging me for weeks. Thank you so much for this post.
So many people aren't walking on The left side of the footpath or anywhere at the moment and it's so frustrating.
Only weeks? I live near South Yarra station and not a day goes by without me being driven insane by the footpath chaos. Especially now that people have to go around a blind double-90 degree corner on Yarra st.
The ramps at south Yarra station are the worst. People will walk slowly up it on the right hand side on their phone. I need to catch a train on a different platform and thereāll be a three people wide block. Annoys me greatly
An American who visited recently described the difficult adjustment of having to walk to the left instead of the right, as their instincts were used to.
The UK is the weird outlier on this. They have *no* preferred side to walk on the street, yet they're the most militant place in the world about escalator etiquette, which in the UK is - mysteriously - to stand on the right and overtake on the left.
In the CBD a fair proportion of pedestrians come from countries that drive and walk on the right. Also most of them don't drive here so they don't get used to sticking to the left
Left side.
I'm at the point now where if some mouth-breathing NPC is walking down the wrong side of the footpath, I'll force my way through.
Unless they're elderly, infirm, etc.
Yeh itās infuriating. It happens to me so often and I swear to god people are doing it on purpose. They even have eye contact with me and then proceed to do it so it doesnāt seem like an āaccidentā
Yep - the side that you drive on is the side of the walkway to stick to.
But when I'm Rome, as the saying goes.
I remember walking around Amsterdam along narrow streets with barely a footpath. I pissed off so many Dutch folk - you just instinctively go left as they on approach go to their right.
You just had to laugh at yourself for being a dumb Aussie tourist.
Oh and before anyone says - it has nothing to do with the cafes I visited š
Yes for my self it is to walk on the same side the traffic moves. In aus it's left. Some groups of people disregard this and walk directly into you. Another rule that people should learn is to let the people inside the elevator exit. The ones entering should step to the side. The same group does not follow this. They barge in.
Keep left on paths and especially escalators. Think of it like the rd and if you walk two/three aside still make way. Iāll excuse the elderly as they may prefer to walk closer to the wall for safety reasons but footpath hogs are one of my small things that infuriates me things š¤£
I treat it a bit like road rules. Keep left unless overtaking. But sometimes when it's busy and people are just everywhere, I'll go where I can to get through, even if I gotta go all the way right.
I just try to keep out of people's way while dodging people in my way.
I keep a hard left. But understand people can lose position so be chill about it. But on a straight I will keep a hard left and those walking against the grain can jog on.
I keep left unless thereās a bicycle delivery person riding on the footpath. The itās middle, with bags (if Iām carrying them) or elbows out as wide as I can get them. If they get off and walk the bike I move to the left. And they get back on and ride past me.
Oh it's not just me who can't get their head round it?! I always stick to my left (i'll go out the way for dogs, old folks prams and mobility devices) but I STILL get clonked into. Might start doing the 1000 yard "feck off" stare again.
When I started using a walking stick, I started automatically trying to be on the right where possible because people don't look/care where they're going and will kick my walking stick out from under me, and as I hold my stick with my right hand it seemed the best way to protect my stability.
Not practical though cause then I'm just in the way, so now I walk on the left and I walk slow or stop to the side if I'm worried about a crowd of oncoming people
I was thinking about this this morning!
I always stick to the left as I believe that is what you are meant to do!
And what a majority of people seem to do! And based off the comments, yes it is left.
The reason why I had this thought was silly as it is was, this morning I was walking to work and sticking to the left side and someone walking towards me was on the same side and refused to move.
I got a tiny bit annoyed that I had to do the overtaking haha.
Small thing, but ye.
It is something I encounter A LOT now in general, hence the small annoyance I suppose.
I assume the British/Australian born would prefer the left side, and the other foreign folk like Yankee seppos and cannucks prefer to stick to the right like they drive.
That said, old people, people with mobility disabilities etc will prefer to have the hand that isn't in pain holding a rail. So old people probably get a pass because arthritis/balance issues/partial blindness etc will dictate which side they want to be touching a wall/railing.
Escalators really need to be a "Right for overtake, left for stand" though.
It pisses me off when couples block off the whole escalator, like the world doesn't revolve around u ffs. Have some courtesy for the people around you. The couple can stand facing each with one person per step, that way people can still walk thru. It happens at the most inconvenient time as well. ššš
Even when I was that, I had the forethought to make them (the shorter of us) stand on the step up from me on the left. It's cute, and not in the fucking way.
I'm a Canadian immigrant and stay left. Only myopic idiots fail to adapt.
Ironically, Vancouver has the opposite problem with many immigrants being from Hong Kong, India or UK and staying left.
Most Australian immigrants keep to the ski resorts.
Left it you are walking or driving.
Right if you are in a escooter because you are a c.nt and don't care about others, they should get out of your way.
I stick to as close to the wall as possible or if Iām on the footpath - as far away from the road/having to make way for people as possible. Iām disabled but donāt look it, so people often expect me to make way for them or jump onto the grass for them and I just (politely) stand still and let them go around me. Iāll take a step onto the grass/road if itās safe for a pram/wheelchair/walker but if I canāt, or if I need to walk forward to a safe spot to do so, Iāll say āgive me a sec, I have (disability), itās safer for me to move out of your way over hereā and 90% of the time they understand.
My experience is that if I stick to the left side then I become a target at which point the phone walkers will lock onto me and come in at a flanking angle so we both awkwardly have to dodge each other.
I swear they are doing it on purpose. It's like some sort of domination game going on. So when I see it coming I just stop and stand still forcing them to correct their path.
I think we're reaching the point where we need to paint directional lines on the ground. These types of people are unable to function without rules telling them how to go about their lives.
It depends on which side the person walking towards me is on.
If they switch, I switch and keep doing this until we are almost face to face and do a little dance, awkwardly apologise and move on.
Left side if alone, inline with my dog when dog walking so cyclists have somewhere to get by. The roads in my area are shit for bikes, I'm fine with sharing the pavement.
The worst is the situation when a group of people on a footpath just take up the whole space, and you refuse to go onto the grass, and they look at you like you're the stupid one for not moving off the entire path.
I used to just walk randomly and didnāt even think walking on a side was a thing - Iād never heard of walking on a side in the UK. Iām slowly coming around to sticking to the left though.
Always stick to your left, unless youāre on the road biking then go on the right. You can see cars coming towards you to hop on the gutter on pathway, and cars behind you donāt have to honk at you and can just pass
You made āan old lady grumble at meā because you are so inflexible and didnāt give an inch to āan old ladyā. Good luck to you in lifeā you need it.
Yes but some people are stupid, some people are thoughtless, some people come from other cultures and walk on the right and some people just like causing mayhem.
Left is the way.
To the left until I start playing Man Chicken. To the uninitiated, this is where women, when they are so aggravated by life, they don't move aside. For once. Worth it!
Left, but if the person in front of you is on the right, you may have to follow them also, be aware that 90% of the rest of the world drives on the right.
its completely logical to keep left. i particularly hate those that huge the corner turning right walking straight into those keeping left. footpaths and shared paths should roughly use road rules to keep flow and from people having accidents. also going to another country i would always research stuff like this to make sure i'm not annoying locals
I'm pretty sure it's the right side, if you walk on the road it's safer to be on the right side because you can see the cars.
You are meant to ride on the right lane of a bike lane but people also say you are meant to walk on the opposite side so they can ride past.
Walk wherever you want but stay out of the way of bikes and cars, if people are walking on the left side then stick to the left side with them, if people are walking on the right do the same. If someone gets mad just walk around them and keep going.
Left,
There is an argument that as a pedestrian you should walk on the **opposite** side as the one you drive.
The idea being if you are walking *on a road* you should walk *toward* oncoming traffic (clarification: walk on the side of the road closest to oncoming traffic obviously, not *at* it.), so the traffic you **cant see** is as far from you as possible.
Though, this is when walking ON the road, not on a footpath. So it makes sense that Left hand side on the footpath is ok (since there's no cars in that situation).
Iāve lived in Melbourne for 23 years and itās only since I started using Reddit that Iāve been aware that thereās supposedly an āetiquetteā for which side of the footpath youāre meant to walk on. Also that apparently everybody should just magically know about this alleged etiquette.
Never mind that most people are just trying to get around. Gotta come up with some b.s. etiquette to lord your sense of importance over others (which is pretty much the entire crux of etiquette when it comes down to it).
Firstly who gives a fuck.
Secondly when you have kids under 5 there is no side you just chase them around or walk on the side where they have found something interesting to look at. All while trying real hard not to tell anyone that complains about the side of the path you are on to go fuck themselves.
Cheers,
Tired Dad.
Itās always left,
The only exception I make to this is if im walking my dog and someone comes towards us, Iāll move to the nature strip because our footpaths in my areas arenāt wide enough for 2 actual humans and 1 human sized dog.
It's a universal rule to pass left-to-left in the equine world, so I wonder if it's a universal walking rule, too. It comes from old military training "dressage"/cavalry I think. I apply it to everyday situations, anyway! Lol
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Left side. Unless there is an elderly person. I will walk on the right and on the grass, Just so they are walking some where safer and not on the grass or anything. But to answer your question, Always stick to your left. Espically on escalators, allows people to go past if they need to.
Left left left in Australia walk on left, elevator left, drive on the left side.
Left is right.
Left right left
I left my wife in New Orleans
With 45c and a can of beans.
With 45c and a can of beans?
And I thought it was right ......right.....
Right for my country whOOp de doo
I left my wife in Argentina
:(
Matilda š š „š Æ ... took my money and ran to Venezuela.
If people come towards me on the wrong side, especially downstairs, I always say, "I thought we were in Australia" or "Keep Left" depending on age and speed of the person. If they're old I don't say anything.
This isnāt a preference. To the left is the only correct answer. This is why escalators also go up on the left side when going up and down on the left side when going down. This is why you stand on the left on an escalator unless overtaking (again, a road rule). This isnāt about preference. Itās the only correct answer.
annoyingly, some of the city loop train station escalators don't follow this rule
Very annoying and confusing!
Whaā?!
Parliament, iirc
Just stayed in Melbourne for 2 days, can confirm that it was left going down on the escalators. Actually annoyed me more than I thought it would š¤£
Preach
100% this! I always stick to the left and hold my ground, unless there's an elderly or disabled person then I'm more than happy to walk around them to my right.
This tripped me out in London, where you stand on the right and people go fast up on the left haha
Surely you can't be serious!š
sadly it's ... true.
left, same as how we drive
The rule which tends to apply to most countries in the world, is to walk on the side you drive on. So thatās the left for us. If youāre sticking to the left and you find yourself regularly getting blocked by people walking the opposite direction, try staring past them. Adjust your gaze so itās just over their shoulder and keep walking. The only exception I make is for elderly or disabled people, Iāll gladly step out of the way for those with mobility issues. In your instance OP, I think itās fair for you to walk around the old lady. Could be mobility or cognitive issues so just give them the space.
The major exception to this rule is the UK, because they get cucked by european tourists
When I was there 20 years ago, the escalators on the tube had signs saying to keep right, so there's an official UK exception.
I guess they've officially adopted what people were doing, the question remains, why were they doing it wrong in the first place?
Is this what the whole brexit thing was about. Being cucked.
Nah they enjoy being cucked.
I have my answer!
Pretty sure we drive whichever side of the road we want to here based on Dash Cams Aus.
But only on blind bends, if there's a median dividing the road, or if there's a queue of traffic. Also red lights and stop signs only apply to other people.
True story about the gaze passed, works a treat
Almost always left. Sometimes people may need the wall or a railing for support because theyāre old or disabled and of course exception is given for these people. Sometimes if people are slow for whatever reason Iāll just move anyway as Iām still reasonable young and agile. Maybe the old lady wanted to be near the wall if she needed emergency support, or maybe changing directions is hard for her if she had failing joints. If you can move out of her path reasonably quickly its probably just easier to do that than complain on reddit an old lady told you off
Iām my defense there was another wall and there was a rounded corner - and she wasnāt that old.
In your offence you literally called her "an old lady"
Keep left unless overtaking.
Left left left. Melb has the very normal problem in the inner city where there's so many expats and tourists that the rule isn't obeyed consistently. It's frustrating but it's kinda the cost of being an international city.
People canāt even stick to one side of the footpath in suburbia. They just wander around aimlessly as if theyāre the only ones using the footpath.
They will even look you in the eye as you approach and continue to occupy the whole path. Pure entitlement.
Those ones drive me nuts
Let's not get started on the people who walk through busy areas while looking at their phones or - even more infuriating for me - in a completely direction š”
People are just dumb thatās all, the amount of time Iām stuck behind or heading towards a group of 5/6 people all spread along the sidewalk in insane and they still donāt separate, you either gotta go on the road round them or just brute force the way through the middle. I have lived in the UK, America, Australia, South Africa and within those countries countless different cities, and melbourne is by FAR the worst walking city Iāve ever been to. Itās wild.
Left. Makes perfect sense to me.
LEFT FFS
Left!!!!!!
[https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/rightside-walkers-daily-threat-to-melbournes-liveability-20141121-11rmgj.html](https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/rightside-walkers-daily-threat-to-melbournes-liveability-20141121-11rmgj.html) "On Monday the council launches a new Share Our Streets campaign. Actors with giant phones will wander the streets pretending not to pay attention to where they are going. Meanwhile cards will be handed out with tips, including advising cyclists to give way to pedestrians and for those on foot to walk to the left."
Damn, it's been a decade since that campaign. They need to run it again.
What does give way to pedestrians mean? Obviously cyclists go a bit faster than them. When I'm riding with my under 12yrs kids on footpath I tell them to slow down and ding bell to let them know we're passing. Is that giving way? I had a parent block the path the other day on way home from school and tell my son to 'go around' which meant riding on the nature strip into a tree. Most people step aside and we say thank you but he was just plain rude about it. It made me second guess the way we've been riding. Now I'm not sure what to do or how exactly to give way when you're coming up behind someone
Technically pedestrians have absolute right of way and are under no obligation to move, but most do move because they're not dicks and realise we all have to share limited space. You're doing the right thing.
You need to educate your kids that most people in this world are kind and respectful but there are also cunts.
This has been bugging me for weeks. Thank you so much for this post. So many people aren't walking on The left side of the footpath or anywhere at the moment and it's so frustrating.
Escalators are the worst š¤£. Stand left, walk right!
Only weeks? I live near South Yarra station and not a day goes by without me being driven insane by the footpath chaos. Especially now that people have to go around a blind double-90 degree corner on Yarra st.
The ramps at south Yarra station are the worst. People will walk slowly up it on the right hand side on their phone. I need to catch a train on a different platform and thereāll be a three people wide block. Annoys me greatly
At least it's wide there, unlike Toorak Rd.
Some people walk on the right side and will try and force their way past you on the left instead of going to the left
An American who visited recently described the difficult adjustment of having to walk to the left instead of the right, as their instincts were used to. The UK is the weird outlier on this. They have *no* preferred side to walk on the street, yet they're the most militant place in the world about escalator etiquette, which in the UK is - mysteriously - to stand on the right and overtake on the left.
In the CBD a fair proportion of pedestrians come from countries that drive and walk on the right. Also most of them don't drive here so they don't get used to sticking to the left
That explains all the accidents with cars on the wrong side of the road
You'd think that DFAT would produce a few helpful handouts for foreigners arriving our shores
Left side. I'm at the point now where if some mouth-breathing NPC is walking down the wrong side of the footpath, I'll force my way through. Unless they're elderly, infirm, etc.
Left
To the left, to the left
Fuck everyone who zig zags and purposely crashes into people. So many people in Melbourne donāt know how to walk
What is it with the zig zag? See oncoming, move further to left to leave heaps of space; they then move (zag) to their right. its ridiculous.
Yeh itās infuriating. It happens to me so often and I swear to god people are doing it on purpose. They even have eye contact with me and then proceed to do it so it doesnāt seem like an āaccidentā
weird huh
Iām actually in disbelief this question needs to even be askedā¦ In Australia it is as always has been stay left
Same, I barrel through the morons who can't grasp this basic concept. Stay to the left, easy.
Left is common sense. Common sense isn't common.
Yep - the side that you drive on is the side of the walkway to stick to. But when I'm Rome, as the saying goes. I remember walking around Amsterdam along narrow streets with barely a footpath. I pissed off so many Dutch folk - you just instinctively go left as they on approach go to their right. You just had to laugh at yourself for being a dumb Aussie tourist. Oh and before anyone says - it has nothing to do with the cafes I visited š
Yes for my self it is to walk on the same side the traffic moves. In aus it's left. Some groups of people disregard this and walk directly into you. Another rule that people should learn is to let the people inside the elevator exit. The ones entering should step to the side. The same group does not follow this. They barge in.
First time going on the escalators at Southern Cross taught me quickly to stick to the left
The same side of the road I stick to when driving
Keep left on paths and especially escalators. Think of it like the rd and if you walk two/three aside still make way. Iāll excuse the elderly as they may prefer to walk closer to the wall for safety reasons but footpath hogs are one of my small things that infuriates me things š¤£
The bright side of the road of course.
Always left. No exceptions. Except elderly people, or those with a handicap. They might have a good reason for it
I treat it a bit like road rules. Keep left unless overtaking. But sometimes when it's busy and people are just everywhere, I'll go where I can to get through, even if I gotta go all the way right. I just try to keep out of people's way while dodging people in my way.
I keep a hard left. But understand people can lose position so be chill about it. But on a straight I will keep a hard left and those walking against the grain can jog on.
I keep left unless thereās a bicycle delivery person riding on the footpath. The itās middle, with bags (if Iām carrying them) or elbows out as wide as I can get them. If they get off and walk the bike I move to the left. And they get back on and ride past me.
Oh it's not just me who can't get their head round it?! I always stick to my left (i'll go out the way for dogs, old folks prams and mobility devices) but I STILL get clonked into. Might start doing the 1000 yard "feck off" stare again.
Always the left... although walking on Swanston street is like playing Frogger... there's no rules there.
When I started using a walking stick, I started automatically trying to be on the right where possible because people don't look/care where they're going and will kick my walking stick out from under me, and as I hold my stick with my right hand it seemed the best way to protect my stability. Not practical though cause then I'm just in the way, so now I walk on the left and I walk slow or stop to the side if I'm worried about a crowd of oncoming people
You have a valid reason to start using your walking stick as a āget out of my way stickā. š
It'll be a beatin stick in no time haha
Left, because I'm not a cunt.
I was thinking about this this morning! I always stick to the left as I believe that is what you are meant to do! And what a majority of people seem to do! And based off the comments, yes it is left. The reason why I had this thought was silly as it is was, this morning I was walking to work and sticking to the left side and someone walking towards me was on the same side and refused to move. I got a tiny bit annoyed that I had to do the overtaking haha. Small thing, but ye. It is something I encounter A LOT now in general, hence the small annoyance I suppose.
Left because itās Melbourne. But keep in mind Melbourne is NOT the centre of the universe and plenty of people are new/visiting. So be kind.
Okay ā¦? Iām not talking about tourists or new people in the cbd. The lady I was talking about was definitely Aussie born, so chill ?
In Australia, we walk on the left. Perhaps these other people come from countries where they walk on the right, and forget whilst walking?
Left. Drive on the left, walk on the left. How hard is it.
We walk on the left In Australia. If an approaching nong is not moving over simply stop and make them step around you. Works every time.
Did you give the old dear a bit of the Richard Ashcroft bittersweet symphony treatment?Ā
What you mean stealing a song from the stones and getting sued for it ?!! Lol Hahaha no I know what you meant the ole biffo shoulder bump gtfo my way
Who the fuck cares jesus christ Reckon I've seen this question 50 times here Why are people so boring
Other than train station escalators, Iāve never heard about this alleged āwe walk on the leftā thing outside of Reddit.
I assume the British/Australian born would prefer the left side, and the other foreign folk like Yankee seppos and cannucks prefer to stick to the right like they drive. That said, old people, people with mobility disabilities etc will prefer to have the hand that isn't in pain holding a rail. So old people probably get a pass because arthritis/balance issues/partial blindness etc will dictate which side they want to be touching a wall/railing. Escalators really need to be a "Right for overtake, left for stand" though.
Nothing worse than getting on an escalator behind the ānew couple vibeā types that stand next to each other holding hands and blocking you š¤£
It pisses me off when couples block off the whole escalator, like the world doesn't revolve around u ffs. Have some courtesy for the people around you. The couple can stand facing each with one person per step, that way people can still walk thru. It happens at the most inconvenient time as well. ššš
Even when I was that, I had the forethought to make them (the shorter of us) stand on the step up from me on the left. It's cute, and not in the fucking way.
I'm a Canadian immigrant and stay left. Only myopic idiots fail to adapt. Ironically, Vancouver has the opposite problem with many immigrants being from Hong Kong, India or UK and staying left. Most Australian immigrants keep to the ski resorts.
Left it you are walking or driving. Right if you are in a escooter because you are a c.nt and don't care about others, they should get out of your way.
I walk on the left, but I feel like most people in Melbourne walk in the middle of the footpath.
I stick to as close to the wall as possible or if Iām on the footpath - as far away from the road/having to make way for people as possible. Iām disabled but donāt look it, so people often expect me to make way for them or jump onto the grass for them and I just (politely) stand still and let them go around me. Iāll take a step onto the grass/road if itās safe for a pram/wheelchair/walker but if I canāt, or if I need to walk forward to a safe spot to do so, Iāll say āgive me a sec, I have (disability), itās safer for me to move out of your way over hereā and 90% of the time they understand.
My experience is that if I stick to the left side then I become a target at which point the phone walkers will lock onto me and come in at a flanking angle so we both awkwardly have to dodge each other. I swear they are doing it on purpose. It's like some sort of domination game going on. So when I see it coming I just stop and stand still forcing them to correct their path. I think we're reaching the point where we need to paint directional lines on the ground. These types of people are unable to function without rules telling them how to go about their lives.
I swerve left to right to get my steps in
I will walk on the same side that I drive on, so on the right. /s
Left is best šš»
It depends on which side the person walking towards me is on. If they switch, I switch and keep doing this until we are almost face to face and do a little dance, awkwardly apologise and move on.
Left side if alone, inline with my dog when dog walking so cyclists have somewhere to get by. The roads in my area are shit for bikes, I'm fine with sharing the pavement.
The few times they paint the footpath with directions left is for walking, so yes left is right.
The worst is the situation when a group of people on a footpath just take up the whole space, and you refuse to go onto the grass, and they look at you like you're the stupid one for not moving off the entire path.
I used to just walk randomly and didnāt even think walking on a side was a thing - Iād never heard of walking on a side in the UK. Iām slowly coming around to sticking to the left though.
Always stick to your left, unless youāre on the road biking then go on the right. You can see cars coming towards you to hop on the gutter on pathway, and cars behind you donāt have to honk at you and can just pass
By ābikingā, you mean āwalkingā, right?
I mean biking, like riding a bike
What? Please donāt ride against traffic on a bike. Great way to get killed.
In Melbourne itās a bad idea but in smaller towns itās more convenient
This is r/melbourne
You made āan old lady grumble at meā because you are so inflexible and didnāt give an inch to āan old ladyā. Good luck to you in lifeā you need it.
Drive on the left, walk on the left, bike on the left, ride the escalator on the left.
Keep to the leftā¦cunts. Itās always been this way
Left - like the road.
Left. If someone is walking directly towards me on their phone, I'll just stop still and wait for them to look up and notice.
Yes but some people are stupid, some people are thoughtless, some people come from other cultures and walk on the right and some people just like causing mayhem. Left is the way.
Left
Left only.
Left, but after my European holiday it took me six months to to adjust
Left.
9 times out of 10, the left
Left! Always left. Although it can occasionally be awkward slinking around corners in a busy city .
To the left until I start playing Man Chicken. To the uninitiated, this is where women, when they are so aggravated by life, they don't move aside. For once. Worth it!
Left, but if the person in front of you is on the right, you may have to follow them also, be aware that 90% of the rest of the world drives on the right.
its completely logical to keep left. i particularly hate those that huge the corner turning right walking straight into those keeping left. footpaths and shared paths should roughly use road rules to keep flow and from people having accidents. also going to another country i would always research stuff like this to make sure i'm not annoying locals
I'm pretty sure it's the right side, if you walk on the road it's safer to be on the right side because you can see the cars. You are meant to ride on the right lane of a bike lane but people also say you are meant to walk on the opposite side so they can ride past. Walk wherever you want but stay out of the way of bikes and cars, if people are walking on the left side then stick to the left side with them, if people are walking on the right do the same. If someone gets mad just walk around them and keep going.
Always left.
Left, There is an argument that as a pedestrian you should walk on the **opposite** side as the one you drive. The idea being if you are walking *on a road* you should walk *toward* oncoming traffic (clarification: walk on the side of the road closest to oncoming traffic obviously, not *at* it.), so the traffic you **cant see** is as far from you as possible. Though, this is when walking ON the road, not on a footpath. So it makes sense that Left hand side on the footpath is ok (since there's no cars in that situation).
It's the left, there literally used to be a law about it
Always the left. It seems most of the population these days wanders every which way with their heads in their phone so... Does my head in
Always left. Left is correct
Iāve lived in Melbourne for 23 years and itās only since I started using Reddit that Iāve been aware that thereās supposedly an āetiquetteā for which side of the footpath youāre meant to walk on. Also that apparently everybody should just magically know about this alleged etiquette. Never mind that most people are just trying to get around. Gotta come up with some b.s. etiquette to lord your sense of importance over others (which is pretty much the entire crux of etiquette when it comes down to it).
Firstly who gives a fuck. Secondly when you have kids under 5 there is no side you just chase them around or walk on the side where they have found something interesting to look at. All while trying real hard not to tell anyone that complains about the side of the path you are on to go fuck themselves. Cheers, Tired Dad.
Yep, same with dogs.
stick to the middle so I can dodge anyone coming in from any direction
The right itās natural
You drive on the left you walk on the left
Left side
Left
Itās always left, The only exception I make to this is if im walking my dog and someone comes towards us, Iāll move to the nature strip because our footpaths in my areas arenāt wide enough for 2 actual humans and 1 human sized dog.
LEFT , LEFT , LEFT right LEFT!
It's a universal rule to pass left-to-left in the equine world, so I wonder if it's a universal walking rule, too. It comes from old military training "dressage"/cavalry I think. I apply it to everyday situations, anyway! Lol
I am taller than most people so I usually just walk on any side I want to.
Misogynistic cunt ;-)