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I'm an American who lived in the UK for a couple of years. They have many roundabouts there, and I love them. But now I live in an American town with a few, and
by sam_bishop 2y ago
I'm an American who lived in the UK for a couple of years. They have many roundabouts there, and I love them. But now I live in an American town with a few, and I've realized that there's a reason that they are less safe in the US than in the UK--besides the fact that American drivers are less familiar with them. It's a solvable problem, but not one I've heard people talk about. (Though to be clear, I'm not a traffic engineer.)
Most American drivers are familiar with slip lanes, which allow drivers to make a right-hand turns without necessarily coming to a stop. (Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slip_lane https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slip_lane. Note that the diagram shows an example from a country where they drive on the left side of the road.) They're convenient for drivers, but dangerous for anyone on foot or a bike. This is because a driver in a slip lane is looking for an opening in traffic in the direction opposite of the direction they're traveling.
A roundabout is basically an intersection made up of nothing but slip lanes. So they're fundamentally dangerous to pedestrians in the same way that a slip lane is, but the fact that vehicles are moving slower means that they're still safer than typical American intersections.
However, if I remember correctly (it's been over 20 years ago), in the UK they don't mix roundabouts and crosswalks. They'd put crosswalks (called "Zebra crossings": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zebra_crossing https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zebra_crossing) between intersections, where drivers aren't distracted by other things. I think we need to do that in the US as well if we're going to adopt roundabouts.
- leapingdog 2y agoThis kind of roundabout is awful for pedestrians and drivers: https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@54.5737159,-5.9326045,127m/data=!3m1!1e3?entry=ttu https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@54.5737159,-5.9326045,127m/da... Surprise! I'm going to walk in front of you.
- memen 2y agoIt's funny how the Run Coaching is placed in the middle of the roundabout!
- RoyalHenOil 2y agoRoundabouts are also common in Australia, and crosswalks are placed some distance from them. However, in my experience, pedestrians still cross at them all the time because an intersection (whether it's a roundabout, red lights, etc.) is always going to be the most convenient place to cross if you are trying to walk down a road for several blocks. I have been living in a rural area of Australia now for over 10 years, and while I do think roundabouts are great, they should not be used where there are a lot of pedestrians. They get WAY overused in small rural towns here, leading to a high rate of rural pedestrian deaths.
- memen 2y agoIn the Netherlands it is very common to have both crosswalks and bike priority lanes on the roundabout, especially in busy city environments. This actually improves safety, as the 'vulnerable' road users cross when drivers are driving slow and alert. Also, the access to the roundabout is slowed down by the crosswalks and bike lane, which improves safety for the drivers as well.
- Doxin 2y agoNote that it does require the design of the roundabout to be made with this in mind. Leaving any dutch roundabout involves a fairly tight 90 degree curve, forcing cars to slow down before encountering cyclists or pedestrians.