Walking Disaster

We are fortunate to live in a rural area and are able to enjoy a variety of pleasant walks, starting and finishing at the house, without encountering too many others similarly engaged.  Keeping one’s distance, the recommended, “2 metres (6ft) away from other people,” is generally easy but there have been a few occasions where infringements could have occurred.  On narrow or converging tracks, without care, it could be possible to get too close to fellow walkers and contravene Government advice. 

I don’t suppose this problem would occur in Germany where there would a rule for right of way which everyone would obey, naturlich.  When we first arrived in Germany on posting to Allied Air Forces Central Europe, we needed to pass the “tick test” on how to drive on German roads before a British Forces Germany licence plate could be issued and we were let loose on the autobahns and, more importantly, draw petrol coupons.  One of novelties of the German equivalent of the Highway Code were the right of way rules, right before left, and other priority rules.  Imagine a 4-way unsigned junction which you have just joined in your right-hand drive car to find the other three entries occupied by, respectively, a lorry, a motorcycle and a horse drawn cart, all arriving simultaneously.  Who has right of way and who moves first?  Amazingly, there was a rule that covered just such an eventuality so no one should be in any doubt and someone would be to blame if there was a mishap.  I expect “volkswanderung” are banned during the present emergency but it is easy to imagine how an ordered society could adapt the priority rules of the road to ensure that casual walkers did not infringe respective safe spaces.  Such certainty would certainly deal with the hesitancy I have encountered whilst taking my daily exercise recently.  Silly impasses have been created with both parties stopping and waving the other through a narrowing path or people approaching have veered both left and right, uncertain as to which way the confliction was turning.

I expect, now that we have left the EU, that there would be little appetite for importing any Continental laws to the UK statute but something must be done if safe space infringements are to be minimised.  Fortunately, the ICAO Rules Of The Air have some simple helpful suggestions which I have adapted to immediate use:

• When two walkers are approaching head-on (approximately) so there is a danger of infringement of safe space, both walkers shall alter heading to the right

•  When two walkers are converging, the walker that has the other on his or her right shall give way except:

• Walkers without sticks shall give way to walkers using walking aids
• Walkers under 71 years of age shall give way to walkers over 71
• Walkers with dogs shall always give way.

 I do hope that the Government will look favourably at my proposals and provide some overdue “certainty” to this potentially confusing situation?