How streets, roads, and avenues are different

I thought I knew most of these, such as avenues having trees. I was not aware that the American Beltway is what in England would be called a Circular Road (like the North Circular).

North and South Circular
In London, as you drive around the North Circular, it disappears and you are on the South Circular, same road. This once confused me, when somebody said they lived on the North Circular, and they were actually a few streets into the South Circular, but hadn't thought to tell me that the street changes names and carry on until you reach their house.

Oxford Street
Americans should watch out for the fact that you must use the word street after a street name. In London one of the main streets is called Oxford Street. Why? Because it eventually goes to Oxford - at least it used to do so. However, if you are looking for Oxford Street, and you ask for Oxford, you may get sent to the nearest railway station instead.

Parkway
In America a Parkway has nothing to do with parking. It was originally or is still a road with a park or green garden-like area alongside.

Median (Strip)
What the Americans call a median strip, in England I would call a central reservation.

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.

My Road Traffic Accident Survival

After a road traffic accident my car went from the slow lane and ended up hitting the central reservation and spinning to a stop. Debris from two vehicles was in the road. Traffic behind us stopped. Somebody ran over to ask if I was OK and help me out. I could not move. I could open the windows but the door on my side was jammed shut. I kept saying, 'Call the police, stop the traffic before another vehicle hits us.'

The driver of a lorry assured me, 'Somebody is phoning the police.'

He ran back to his vehicle. He had parked it diagonally across the motorway blocking all three lanes so nothing could hit the debris or the two stationary vehicles in the outside two lanes or us vulnerable pedestrians.

I've discussed this with other people several times since.

My first shock was the jolt and bang as my car was hit. The second was realising my car was out of control shooting into the fast lane. The third shock was hitting the central barrier. The fourth was rotating to a stop and realising I was stuck in the fast lane where fast moving vehicles would hit my car.

The next was realising that when I got out I would be stuck on the central reservation unable to cross to the hard shoulder. While waiting to be rescued, I had nothing wider than a kerbstone to stand on. Then last shock was realising I could not get out of the car door.

A lorry driver has a responsible job. He does many hours driving for a living. He has seen accidents before. He would either have had the initiative to think what to do. And/or he knew from experience of being jammed in narrow roads that when his vehicle is diagonally across a road nobody else can pass.

The helper suggested I get out of the passenger side so I did not have the steering wheel in the way. Then he realised I could move my seat back away from the wheel. I did that and made a huge space in front of the two front seats. He told me to turn the engine on and off to see if the car doors would operate. Somebody got the front passenger seat open. Then the man on my side got the back door on my side open. Then I pushed and the door my side opened. He helped me stand up. I was shaken and nervous but uninjured with not a scratch.

Then the driver of the other car appeared with blood on her face, asking anxiously was I all right. I thought that was very nice of her, as she was bloody and I wasn't. Of course she being in the car behind had seen my car shoot across the road. I had not seen her car at all.

It was not until we were escorted back to the hard shoulder that I saw the damage to her car a few yards behind mine.

My son, Anthony, said if she had braked I would have heard a squeal of brakes and seen skid marks on the road.

My car was steered to the hard shoulder to clear the road.
I said, "Let's take photos as evidence first."

We took photos.

By now the Road Traffic police has appeared and the traffic could be seen backing up for as far as I could see.