Roundabout grumble about car drivers

[Deleted member 33385]

looks like a table top jump to me

Just add wings, and we'll get gliding cars before we get flying cars.

 

[Deleted member 33385]

Crazy situation. I think the advocates for self driving cars needed to have a look at such as this before making their claims. Little wonder that they are backing down now.
.

The self-driving car fad is an investment scam - investors go short on hyped tech stocks like that, after the inevitable initial post Initial Public Offering stock price overvaluation. There are too many variables for self-driving cars to be made safe, for quite a few years to come. But I could be wrong.

 

[Deleted member 33385]

You think you've got it bad. Have a look at what I have to contend with as I pass my Tesco. It's always very busy. It's actually smaller than it looks in the photo. The mini roundabout is about 6 car lengths from the crossing. Cars don't have time to indicate because they're too busy watching what the other cars are doing. All the cars have to change lanes there. You always have to stop before initiating the crossing, which means you don't have enough speed to get across either half before cars come rushing around without looking. Nearly every time I cross, a car has to do an abrubt stop, and I normally get an apologetic wave from them, though sometimes an angry look as if I've done something wrong.

The orange line is the crossing from cycle path to cycle path. The dot shows the only refuge point
View attachment 41008

I'm amazed that was allowed to be built! But wait... is that a supermarket car park? Silly me - local government decided that bribes and jobs mattered more than the trouble it's worth creating a safer solution.

Nearly every time I cross, a car has to do an abrubt stop

The odds look bad... is it only matter of time till you encounter a driver who doesn't see you? There are lots of almost blind drivers out there. I sometimes take a longer route to avoid nightmare junctions like that - on an ebike, a mile or two extra doesn't matter.

 

[richtea99]

Agreed they're risky on a bicycle. I tend to try and keep my speed up - 15mph is safer than 5mph since it buys you time from the following vehicles, and you're keeping up with the traffic better. The less the speed differential, the safer (assuming you have good brakes!). Main roads and roundabouts are where I occasionally turn the boost up, just to 'keep up' with the flow better.

Also a bit of lateral movement can help you get spotted, so swinging into a roundabout can make you more noticable, but that's not always possible if you have other vehicles close by. On 2+ lane roundabouts I'll take a lane like a car would, if it's not too far round.

On massive roundabouts, it's a question of waiting for a gap, and sticking to the outside so there's only the offside to keep checking. I have a mirror fitted too, but a shoulder check is still vital if you're changing position towards a gap/area that a car could also get into.

 

[mike killay]

This is a Belgian roundabout with cycle lane and give way red markings for motor vehicles.
It is actually the infamous 'Hellfire Corner' of First World War renown.

 

[Scorpio]

A friend knocked a cyclist off a few years ago. Cyclist was coming across a roundabout, my friend (a ex-motorcyclist and very vocal about car drivers who don't look for bikes) approched the roundabout - looked but didn't see the cyclist - and pulled onto the roundabout where the cyclist went over his bonnet.

Friend says forward visability in his car is terrible and made worse by odd "style statement" front windows with large rear-view mirrors. The police who took statements agreed and said the police used the same cars and they were notorious for it. I normally drive a vintage car and forward visability is excellent. Modern cars have thick roof pillars for strength & airbags etc, my car has slim pillars which don't reduce visability. The result is you are more likely to cause a crash in a modern car but will be better protected when you do.

Ride / drive definsively, it's the only way to be safe on the roads these days

 

[Chrisg149]

You'll often see broken lamp lens lying on a round-about from a minor car prang. However, on a bike there is no such thing as a "minor prang"! Any contact is potentially lethal! Therefore, I always get off and cross as a pedestrian and I'm still here to tell the tale!

 

[Deleted member 33385]

You'll often see broken lamp lens lying on a round-about from a minor car prang. However, on a bike there is no such thing as a "minor prang"! Any contact is potentially lethal! Therefore, I always get off and cross as a pedestrian and I'm still here to tell the tale!

You know what? I may actually do that! One prang is one too many, and this is a good time to set new healthy habits, to stay healthy.

 

[WheezyRider]

I wonder if there should be a national speed limit for roundabouts to try and slow people down? The whole point of roundabouts in many cases was to slow traffic down. But now people have got used to them and treat them with utter contempt, trying to zip across them as fast as they can. Have you ever been to Milton Keynes? It's like a racetrack but with with roundabouts, where people try to find the racing line...enter at left lane, cut across to right hand lane, then back to the left...all without slowing down.

 

[vfr400]

I wonder if there should be a national speed limit for roundabouts to try and slow people down? The whole point of roundabouts in many cases was to slow traffic down. But now people have got used to them and treat them with utter contempt, trying to zip across them as fast as they can. Have you ever been to Milton Keynes? It's like a racetrack but with with roundabouts, where people try to find the racing line...enter at left lane, cut across to right hand lane, then back to the left...all without slowing down.

Best on a motorbike. You can take the racing line or you can do a complete lap to see how far you can get the bike leant over. The Dartford tunnel roundabout used to be good before they put the traffic lights on it. I had 90mph round it on a TZR250 . Every motorcyclist has their favourite roundabout, but all mine have now been spoilt by unnecessary traffic lights.

 

[montwo]

The whole point of roundabouts in many cases was to slow traffic down.

I'm not sure that's true. Roundabouts are generally designed to keep traffic flowing - ie quicker than stop / give way signs or traffic lights.

 

[WheezyRider]

I'm not sure that's true. Roundabouts are generally designed to keep traffic flowing - ie quicker than stop / give way signs or traffic lights.

Yes, flowing, but moving more slowly.

 

[montwo]

Yes, flowing, but moving more slowly.

Is that written down somewhere?

 

[flecc]

Is that written down somewhere?

Probably only expressed in the fury of drivers held up by them!
.

 

[WheezyRider]

Is that written down somewhere?

Maybe in some DfT documents from the 80s.

I remember watching a documentary about road safety back in the 80s with someone responsible for them explaining that the idea was to slow traffic down. It forced people to slow down and check for traffic coming from side roads, but generally without stopping, while also giving people from side roads the chance to join the main road, due to changed priorities.

 

[flecc]

Is that written down somewhere?

The Americans say both reasons, continuous flow and slowing traffic:

1) Roundabouts promote a continuous flow of traffic. Traffic is not required to stop – only yield – so the intersection can handle more traffic in the same amount of time.

2) A main feature of the modern roundabout is a raised central island. The circular shape is designed to control the direction of traffic and reduce speeds to 15 to 20 mph.

Both from Washington State Department of Transport.
.

 

[WheezyRider]

The Americans say both reasons, continuous flow and slowing traffic:

1) Roundabouts promote a continuous flow of traffic. Traffic is not required to stop – only yield – so the intersection can handle more traffic in the same amount of time.

2) A main feature of the modern roundabout is a raised central island. The circular shape is designed to control the direction of traffic and reduce speeds to 15 to 20 mph.

Both from Washington State Department of Transport.
.

And the Americans have probably copied this from UK documents

 

[flecc]

And the Americans have probably copied this from UK documents

Quite possibly, they've taken our roundabout ideas before, though they call them circles.

But apparently American drivers hate them much more than even we do.
.

 

[sammyc77]

If we ever get back to working from the office I‘ll have the “pleasure” of this bad boy on my daily commute!

 

[Deleted member 33385]

If we ever get back to working from the office I‘ll have the “pleasure” of this bad boy on my daily commute!

View attachment 41053

That's nasty - the islands don't help cyclists, too many lanes.

What do drivers on this forum think about adding speedbumps all around roundabouts, to reduce speed?