Trinidad / Driving/Parking

Driving in Trinidad is on the left. Notionally. Overtaking also frequently occurs on the left – or undertaking as it should be known, because those are the people you’re giving business to if you engage in this dangerous practice. On the highways in and around Port of Spain driving is generally fast and edgy, daunting for the newcomer and any passengers brave enough to keep their eyes open. Hang on tight and breathe deeply is the maxim. Pray to the Lord if you have to! Traffic on the Churchill-Roosevelt Highway out to Piarco Airport is slowed by road construction and multiple light systems but the intervening sections can still be hair-raising, while the road south to San Fernando can sometimes feel like a racetrack.

Basically, as an ingénue, forget driving in urban areas unless it’s absolutely necessary, the one-way systems can be baffling too and guaranteed to raise your temperature. Parking downtown is inadvisable, but a far easier option in suburban districts like Woodbrook and St James.

Travelling at night can be even more fraught, with “one light four wheels”, non-functioning brake lights and full beam driving commonplace rather than the exception. Cars and taxis often brake sharply without warning and keeping your distance is vital, though daytime excursions in the rural areas of the north and east coast can come as welcome light relief, pleasant diversions even from the rigours of the city.

Driving to Maracas on the North Coast Road is always a pleasant experience. It’s smooth, a little narrow perhaps but built to last by the American military in 1944. Like everywhere else, however, other surfaces are sometimes not what they should be, which is ironic given that Port of Spain was the first city in the world to pave a road in 1815. Trinidad boasts the planet’s biggest pitch lake too at La Brea on the south-west coast.

Increased flooding during rainy season is also causing havoc with traffic circulation around the city. Essentially then, constant attention, patience and moderation are the watchwords for safe passage around the country. Drink driving is illegal but attitudes are lax and while speed limits are 80kph on highways and 55kph on roads in built-up areas, these are merely signs on posts, there to ignore. You can drive on a valid international driving licence or one issued in the UK, North America, Germany or The Bahamas for up to 90 days.