The section of the N222 between Peso da Régua and Pinhão has just been declared the World Best Driving Road or, in good Portuguese, “the best road in the world”. Razão Automóvel's team: get your stuff straightened out, this weekend we're going north! Let's follow the Observer's example…
There are 27 kilometers and a total of 93 curves for all tastes, interspersed with relatively long straights. It could be just one more, among many other winding roads that exist in our country. But it is not. The N222, on the section that connects Peso da Régua to Pinhão, with the Douro river always as a companion along the entire route, has just been considered the best in the world to drive. The choice, released this Wednesday, was made by car rental company Avis and is based on a formula developed by a theoretical physicist.
The election of the N222 as “the best road in the world” is based on the diversity of that route, and was chosen through an advanced mathematical formula. Avis asked quantum physicist Mark Hadley, from the University of Warwick, in the United Kingdom, to develop a formula that would define the criteria by which the “World Best Driving Road” would be chosen.
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The scientist created the Avis Driving Index which combines an analysis of road geometry, type of driving, average acceleration and lateral acceleration, braking time and distances.” There are four key stages in driving: cornering, acceleration, straight and braking. A great drive depends on the balance between the four stages, allowing you to enjoy speed and acceleration, test your ability to drive along the straights and enjoy the surrounding landscape. With the creation of the ADR, the ideal balance between these components was calculated to scientifically prove the best road in the world to drive”, highlighted the analysis.
The Observer team has already been there. And we are thinking about doing exactly the same. Although in truth, with or without mathematical formulas, we know about another four or five roads capable of facing the N222 as far as driving pleasure is concerned.
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Featured Image: ©Hugo Amaral / Observer