Before dawn on 26 May 1968, Iceland’s roads were prepared for a shift that had taken years to consider. Known as H-dagurinn (literally “The Right Day”) or Hægri dagurinn, this event marked Iceland’s transition to driving on the right side of the road. At precisely 6:00 am, drivers across the country began following a new fundamental rule of the road.
Despite its past under Danish rule, Denmark itself having chosen right-hand driving as early as the 18th century, Iceland had continued with left-side traffic. Early plans to make the change were delayed, especially during the 1940s when the British military presence and wartime conditions made a transition impractical.
Interest in synchronising with mainland European and Nordic road systems increased in the 1960s. Sweden, for example, adjusted its road rules in 1967. Iceland’s parliament, Alþingi, addressed the issue in May 1964, encouraging the government to develop a strategy for switching sides. A law soon followed, setting the changeover for spring 1968.
The scale of preparation was unlike anything previously attempted in the country’s transport history. The Traffic Commission, or Umferðarnefnd, coordinated the logistics. Buses required extensive adjustment, costing more than 33 million kronur, while changes to infrastructure such as signs took another 12 million. Thousands of road signs had to be moved or swapped. In total, 1,662 signs were changed overnight, and 5,727 across the entire country.
A day of careful caution
The transition itself went smoothly for nearly all concerned. Only a single accident was recorded: a boy on a bicycle suffered a broken leg. In the following days, accident rates fell for a short time as drivers became hyper-aware of the unfamiliar arrangement. Over time, as the change settled into daily routines, accident statistics resumed their previous pattern.
Iceland’s decision to coordinate with its Nordic neighbours, and its rising contact with visitors from North America and continental Europe, reflected the country’s growing connections to the wider world. H-dagurinn remains a rare example of an entire nation adapting to fit broader patterns in global transport, carried out through parliamentary debate, national logistics and the collective patience of its people.
Sources
- Wikipedia
- Wikipedia (Icelandic) in Icelandic
