Here’s WHY Driving in Europe is BETTER than America | An American’s Perspective!

Update 2023-12-12 I cannot believe this video has hit over 1M views! Be sure to check out other videos on my channel where I dive into more detailed topics and differences between driving in The Netherlands and Europe versus America!

"driving while eating, reading a book, checking your emails" As a German, that sounds insane. A car weighing at multiple tons moving at 100km/h is a weapon, not your living room's couch.

Complaining about Belgian roads, you have integrated nicely in to the Netherlands sir!

UK guy here. As I walked out the door to my first driving lesson, my dear old mum said “be careful with cars, you’ll kill someone if you don’t drive properly”. As I sat down in the car, the first thing the driving instructor said to me was “it’s a privilege to drive not a right. They’re like a loaded gun waiting to go off and if you kill someone that will stay with you for the rest of your life.” I think the overall safety culture in Europe is more considered which helps. Sure we all complain about ridiculous health and safety rules, but also husbands and fathers aren’t dying by their thousands annually in awful industrial accidents.

My absolute favorite is when you get on a highway and you see the cars already on the highway moving to the left so you can easily get on. Just tells you that they saw the upcoming situation and decided to make it easier for you. Always nice.

Funfact: It takes about the same time to get a drivers license in Germany, as it takes to finish police academy in America.

I just got a culture shock when you said american drivers are taught driving by their parents.

Most dutch start cycling when they are about 4 years old. Going to school, friends, the countryside, exploring town, and later on going to pubs, parties or shopping. Once you start taking driving lessons you're well accustomed to the rules of the road. Almost every driver started out a cyclist which make interactions between different road users happen pretty intuitive :-)

US driver here. You make solid points, and I admire the skill of the drivers in your video. I am a retired professional driver (UPS) with a spotless driving record and the one thing which helped me the most in becoming a skilled, safe driver is to control my emotions. Easier said than done. It took me a good 15 years or so, but you have to just let other's stupidity just go on by. Someone is tailgating you, forget it, a driver approaches with their bright lights on, don't get upset, someone pulls out in front of you forcing you to brake, just let it go. That requires self-discipline, which is what I am seeing in your video - self discipline.

You need to know that 95% of European people learn to drive in a manual car.

When playing the grand theft auto games, I always thought the programmers did a terrible job on the npc drivers, "nobody drives like that" I always thought. So when I visited the states for the first time I was very surprised the drivers in the game where actually pretty realistic for the setting. 😂

After driving in Europe I couldn't believe how slowly an intersection took to clear in the US. It's like Americans are asleep behind the wheel!

I think part of this is, strangely, that here in The Netherlands youths are allowed to drink alcohol first and learn to drive second. Most people I know refuse to drive when inebriated because they know how awful the last drunk trip on their bike/scooter went. So you first become a responsible drinker, then a responsible driver. While in the US the 15-year olds start driving, get overconfident and then start drinking. Making them less aware if the risks. Not too sure how true this is, but it's something I've noticed over the years. Thanks for the video! It's great to hear a clear opinion of an expat living here. :)

"They're not on their phone, they are not eating, they are not reading a book" I'm sorry, "reading a book"?

I tell people all the time: "If getting a drivers license had the same standards as in the EU, 90% of drivers in California would not have one."

I'm from Germany and I'm doing my driver’s license right now. To get approved to the theoretical exam you first have to fill out a form (a request to make your drivers license) and send it to the district office. You'll also have to do a first aid class, which is 7,5h long, and get a conformation from an optometrist or eye specialist that you see well enough. The district office usually takes weeks to process your request. In the meantime you do your 14 theory lessons, one lesson is at least one hour long, at least mine. My driving school only lets you begin with real driving lessons after you passed your theory exam AND after you've done the driving simulator for a few hours, but not every school has these simulators. Then there are several different driving lessons, driving in the dark, on the autobahn, on the Landstraße and then the usual test. After that you get your license.

A thing you missed in the roads section is that the highways in europe have stricter design regulations and standards that make sure the drivers are safer on the roads. One of the most important differences in my opinion is that in europe highway entrances and exits can only be on the right side of the road unlike in America where sometimes you have to go through bypass lanes and speed up when the exit is on the left side of the road making it more dangerous.

As a Belgian, I'm pleased to see that everyone finds our roads very uhm.. particular 🤣

I thought drivers were bad in Poland until I drove in Florida. A 300km straight road and I have never seen some many accidents in such a short time span.... ON A STRAIGHT ROAD! IN FLORIDA!

And, in the USA are reading the billboards next to the road, being such a money orientated country. Notice in this video there's not one billboard.