Why are roundabouts being used incorrectly so often?

[FiF]

Redgate said:

aeropilot said:

culpz said:

Does anyone else encounter this on a daily basis?

Yes.

Sadly yes. What I find absolutely incredible is people taking the first exit (immediate left) at a roundabout from the right lane.

Yes, one roundabout I use at least 4 times a day has people taking the first exit having entered on the right lane whilst there are also people who enter on the left lane wanting to use the last exit. How there aren't more smacks is a miracle, defensive driving is the only solution, plus keeping calm. Not sure what these drivers use to keep their ears apart.

[willisit]

TwigtheWonderkid said:

Morningside said:

Lets see if I can get this right.

Single lane entry.
1st left - left hand lane, signal left and exit
upto 12 o'clock - left hand lane, no signal, signal left when taking exit.
Past 12 o'clock - right hand lane, signal right, signal left when taking exit.

I thought you signalled left once you'd passed the exit before your exit. So before you get to your exit.

Indeed. When it is too late to take the previous exit, indicate for yours. I'm assuming that's what was meant.

[marcusgrant]

A lot of the time these problems could be solved fairly cheaply with signing and lining.

For example see the below. The exit is wide so people take advantage of this and use both lanes. If this exit was to be hatched on the offside, it would probably put most people off doing it.

The Spruce goose said:

Here
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@52.7670316,-1.93053...

People use the 2nd lane to go straight across, even thou the road is not marked up as such.

Edited by The Spruce goose on Wednesday 7th December 13:20

[culpz]

Moonhawk said:

Some people do it on purpose - just as a way of queue jumping.

That was something i wanted to highlight as well which definitely is the case.

On the first roundabout i highlighted, the right lane is usually busier than the left. You see people pulling out of the right lane and then just indicating right while proceeding to perform a right turn, still in the left lane.

[chopper602]

I have to add, that I *H A T E* the ignorant folk who don't indicate at a roundabout when turning left, especially when I am the motorist on that left waiting to see there move before I stop completely. I've taken to waving enthusiastically at them, seems to end with a puzzled look on their faces. Twunts !

[CraigyMc]

geeks said:

Try living in Milton Keynes!!!

More and more people just don't seem to give a st with roundabout discipline... Some examples but by no means an exclusive list!

1. A normal person such as we would expect to find on PH. Indicates, moves to the right hand lane of the dual carriageway to turn right when appropriate and uses the correct speed. Checks the roundabout is clear before entering it (oh-er) and signals intent and acts in a manner consistent with the highway code.

2. A person who does not indicate, moves to the right hand lane of a dual carriageway to turn right on a roundabout 4 roundabouts away and does 50 MPH and glares when you dare pass them in the left lane. Sometimes the check the roundabout is clear and sometimes does not but never signals.

3. A person who sees you are already on the roundabout approaching there joining route and still goes causing you to take avoiding action (I refer to these people as the "I'm going to go and it is your choice as to whether we have an accident"). These people get extra tosser points for slowing to a stop at the entrance, seeing you, making eye contact with you and then pulling out right in front of you and then get angry when you display your displeasure at there maneuver.

I encounter 2 and 3 almost every trip. 1 is a rare person these days.

Even worse there are a few roundabouts where you can go right in the left hand lane, this causes all manner of fkery and abuse!

There are so many roundabouts in MK that nobody cares how to use them properly. It's a free-for-all.

[ukaskew]

chopper602 said:

I have to add, that I *H A T E* the ignorant folk who don't indicate at a roundabout when turning left, especially when I am the motorist on that left waiting to see there move before I stop completely. I've taken to waving enthusiastically at them, seems to end with a puzzled look on their faces. Twunts !

I gave a disapproving head shake to a guy who did this last week, he gave me the finger! What I really struggle to understand is surely these people must equally be on the receiving end of being stuck at junctions/roundabouts whilst others don't state their intentions correctly. How do they not piece that together? It should be a self-correcting problem.

[SuperchargedVR6]

chopper602 said:

I have to add, that I *H A T E* the ignorant folk who don't indicate at a roundabout when turning left, especially when I am the motorist on that left waiting to see there move before I stop completely. I've taken to waving enthusiastically at them, seems to end with a puzzled look on their faces. Twunts !

Left doesn't bother me, and you don't need to indicate going straight over.

What I don't get are the people who don't indicate going right, but flick the lefts on as they take the exit. Weird.

Surely auto indicating must be possible now with front cameras and sat nav route planners? If people are too stupid, lazy, arrogant or angry to use them, then take the stalk away and let the car do it.

[Toonshorty]

I have the opposite problem at a roundabout near our office.

There are three lanes, the left most lane breaks off and is a filter lane for the first exit (left). The middle lane is marked as straight ahead and right turn. The right lane is then for right turns only.

I've had several instances where people have gone in the right most lane, then tried to exit in the left lane of exit (dual carriageway), almost merging into me or others around me. They are the same people that then usually go guns blazing on the full beams and horn. No doubt I've wound up on some angry blokes dashcam youtube channel, despite being the one that got it right in the first place.

Edited by Toonshorty on Wednesday 7th December 15:12

[Morningside]

willisit said:

TwigtheWonderkid said:

Morningside said:

Lets see if I can get this right.

Single lane entry.
1st left - left hand lane, signal left and exit
upto 12 o'clock - left hand lane, no signal, signal left when taking exit.
Past 12 o'clock - right hand lane, signal right, signal left when taking exit.

I thought you signalled left once you'd passed the exit before your exit. So before you get to your exit.

Indeed. When it is too late to take the previous exit, indicate for yours. I'm assuming that's what was meant.

Well yes...that's what I meant.

[al1991]

geeks said:

2. A person who does not indicate, moves to the right hand lane of a dual carriageway to turn right on a roundabout 4 roundabouts away and does 50 MPH and glares when you dare pass them in the left lane. Sometimes the check the roundabout is clear and sometimes does not but never signals.

This is a big problem near us as they have recently turned a part of a single carriageway A road in to a dual carriageway.

There are 3 roundabouts on the DC section before it becomes single again and people just sit in the right hand lane without overtaking because they are turning right two roundabouts ahead, but the left hand lane is blocked so often you can't even go past on the inside. You can also go straight over the roundabouts in either lane. The best example I had was someone who blocked the right hand lane for miles, then at the last of the 3 roundabouts slipped in to the left hand lane to go straight over at the point where it becomes single carriageway again. Needless, and exactly as you describe looked at me aggressively with her arms flailing when I stared in disbelief.

Incredibly, incredibly frustrating. I avoid the road at all costs now.

[Jasandjules]

Yup happens all the time around here.

[cpjitservices]

What is annoying me lately isnt roundabouts - people just cant be arsed with doing the correct things on a roundabout.

How many of you are seeing people turn left from the right hand lane of a two lane road?, because they are trying to avoid the bus lane. Thats dangerous too. My street is 2 lanes, left for left and straight on and right for right (obviously) except people in the right hand lane turn left cutting across the left hand lane and often without indication.

You can travel (apparently) so many meters in a bus lane if taking a left turn.

Sorry to go off topic.

[ukaskew]

SuperchargedVR6 said:

Left doesn't bother me, and you don't need to indicate going straight over.

How does it not bother you? My estate leads onto a busy roundabout and the number of drivers immediately to my left who turn left without indicating (causing me to sit there unnecessarily) drives me mad.

Also, on point 2, yes you do. You should always be indicating left when exiting a roundabout, regardless of which exit you're taking.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/using...

[mybrainhurts]

I never have these problems.

I go round roundabouts the wrong way. Everybody gets out of my way.

[Terminator X]

One time I was turning right so in right hand lane, person on my left proceeded to circumnavigate the entire r/bout in that lane eventually crashing in to the side of my car as I tried to get off the r/bout as intended! Of course they denied responsibility as most tts seem to do these days

TX.

[Mr2Mike]

ukaskew said:

I gave a disapproving head shake to a guy who did this last week, he gave me the finger! What I really struggle to understand is surely these people must equally be on the receiving end of being stuck at junctions/roundabouts whilst others don't state their intentions correctly. How do they not piece that together? It should be a self-correcting problem.

I think you are underestimating just how thick a lot of people are.

[SuperchargedVR6]

ukaskew said:

SuperchargedVR6 said:

Left doesn't bother me, and you don't need to indicate going straight over.

How does it not bother you? My estate leads onto a busy roundabout and the number of drivers immediately to my left who turn left without indicating (causing me to sit there unnecessarily) drives me mad.

Also, on point 2, yes you do. You should always be indicating left when exiting a roundabout, regardless of which exit you're taking.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/using...

Because hardly anyone indicates at all, let alone left, so it doesn't phase me. And I can usually tell by their speed and steering angles where they're heading. And how many people have done the 'indicate left thing' at the exit a bit too early, and not actually going left at all?

Well this is the problem then, re point 2, it's open to interpretation and initial instruction. My instructor taught me to indicate left when going left, not when going straight over and right when taking the 3rd exit. Seems perfectly logical to me. Why would people not indicate their intention to turn right in the first place, but instead indicate left, long after they've already left me to do some mind reading? Indicating after the fact just doesn't help anyone does it?

[phil4]

Botley interchange Oxford off the A34 is a where I most often fall foul of this. If you're leaving the southbound A34 to turn right onto the A420 (to Swindon), you've two off, two round and two exit lanes.

However due to the smart use of traffic lights on the roundabout, at busy times, ie. 5-7pm, If you get in the right lane at the start, you won't be able to easily get into lane 1 towards the exit, and to add to your problems, due to backing up traffic you may be at a standstill in that right lane for quite some time.

Adding traffic lights has just made it a horrible roundabout for driving round as strangely you can't move lanes while you're stationary, or when there's a queue of stationary traffic where you want to go.

Here you go (and yes it's recently been resurfaced has a box junction for good measure, just one mind!):
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.7566125,-1.29568...

[DJM7691]

phil4 said:

Botley interchange Oxford off the A34 is a where I most often fall foul of this. If you're leaving the southbound A34 to turn right onto the A420 (to Swindon), you've two off, two round and two exit lanes.

However due to the smart use of traffic lights on the roundabout, at busy times, ie. 5-7pm, If you get in the right lane at the start, you won't be able to easily get into lane 1 towards the exit, and to add to your problems, due to backing up traffic you may be at a standstill in that right lane for quite some time.

Adding traffic lights has just made it a horrible roundabout for driving round as strangely you can't move lanes while you're stationary, or when there's a queue of stationary traffic where you want to go.

Here you go (and yes it's recently been resurfaced has a box junction for good measure, just one mind!):
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.7566125,-1.29568...

Yep, I use this roundabout regularly, the same direction of travel. I always use the left hand lane when its slightly busy as it is always quicker. Both lanes go all the way round the roundabout so it's perfectly legitimate. The only thing you have to be careful of is the bit between the first exit and the third exit (A420) when twunts regularly drift across into the left lane without checking their mirrors.