On Sat, Feb 08, 2003 at 08:55:15PM +0000, Pigeon wrote: > In Bedford there is a rather daft roundabout laid out like this: > > | | Ashburnham Rd > | | > ___/ \__________ > __ / > Car __ O <- the roundabout > park \___________________ > Midland Rd > > People turning right from Midland Rd into Ashburnham Rd occasionally > do what you describe, but only ever in the middle of the night when > there are no other cars on the roads. I have never seen it done under > normal traffic conditions, nor have I seen it done on roundabouts > whose layout doesn't incite it so blatantly as the above example. I That's a typical modern American roundabout you describe above. Older ones are much larger (like the size of the inner ring of the Magic Roundabout previously mentioned). > think your British idiot must have been suffering from the usual > British problem of forgetting to drive on the other side of the road > when abroad. That's what I figured and let it slide. > The usual reaction of Bedford drivers to a roundabout is bafflement, > hesitation and indecision - faults of which a single instance would be > enough to make them fail their driving test - even when the roundabout > is one they encounter every day and should be thoroughly familiar > with. Same here. Vehicles obviously from rural Oregon or out of state are usually good to lay back a few extra meters from, because they either can't or won't sort out a traffic pattern that has a sign describing the maneuver in a simple diagram approaching the roundabout warning you of the traffic change, and another one on the roundabout itself describing the only legal movement around the damn thing. Your average Oregonian roundabout-ahead sign... http://www.mrtraffic.com/circleadvsign.jpg The sign telling you the only legal way of taking the circle (white signs are must-dos) http://www.trans.ci.portland.or.us/trafficcalming/images/pictures/circlesign5500.GIF Your average (small) Portland roundabout (larger ones do not have stop signs) http://www.mrtraffic.com/circleport1.jpg And apparently Delaware's department of transportation is either stupid or insane or both... http://www.state.de.us/research/register/september2000/signing and marking.revised---V-1-12.gif > One roundabout was replaced with temporary traffic lights due to > roadworks. The effect of this on the traffic flow was such that when > the roadworks were finished, instead of reinstating the roundabout, > the temporary traffic lights were made permanent. Roundabouts are handy in areas that don't have reliable eletricity or the cost of maintaining a light isn't worth it and get enough traffic where a stop sign is a problem. -- .''`. Baloo <baloo@ursine.dyndns.org> : :' : proud Debian admin and user `. `'` `- Debian - when you have better things to do than to fix a system
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