Overview
Originally, Okinawa drove on the left-hand side of the road, the same as the rest of Japan. However, after the defeat of Japan during World War II, the prefecture went under control of the United States and was made to drive on the right on June 24, 1945. Even after Okinawa was returned to Japanese control in 1972, it still had its traffic driving on the right for six years due to delays in the handover to Japan and delays to the Expo '75. However, in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic that restricts one country to have only one traffic direction, all the traffic in the prefecture was changed back to driving on the left on July 30, 1978. It is one of very few places to have changed from right- to left- traffic in the late twentieth century. The day symbolized Okinawa's return to Japan.
Read more about this topic: 730 (transport)