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We're excited about our new roundabout

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Re: We're excited about our new roundabout

#71

Post by ajb »

andreareina wrote: post #50
ajb wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It may be unusual there, but in the UK we have loads. Some are smaller than this: the minimum roundabout is just a paint circle. They aren't a problem Most people here actually prefer roundabouts to traffic lights because you keep moving (although this is partly selection bias- traffic lights are deployed at junctions where a roundabout would fail to evenly arbitrate the different flows )

You guys like roundabouts so much you've gone recursive. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_Roundabout_(Swindon) (To be clear I like roundabouts)

That one is a bit odd, because the central bit looks like a roundabout but is not. To navigate it you need to forget the central bit and focus on the five mini roundabouts

Re: We're excited about our new roundabout

#72

Post by seanmcdirmid »

bfdm wrote: post #56
thepaulmcbride wrote: post #35

I live in the US now, but originally from Ireland. My least favourite part of US road infrastructure is the 4 way stop. They are just not good compared to a roundabout. Half the time the only way you can tell it’s an all way stop is by looking for the back of the stop signs on the perpendicular road. With a roundabout, you only have to look in one direction, and if it’s clear, you don’t even have to stop.

Yep. Canada suburbs here. We're starting to see roundabouts used more often for what would be higher traffic four-ways or inconvenient lights. They're great, both as a driver and as a cyclist. Lower conflict risk, simple rules to proceed. IMO all smaller 4 way stops should become what I've described as trash can roundabouts. Small island to circle around. So much better than stop signs.

In Seattle, we have trash can roundabout (really just round traffic calming islands, we don’t consider them roundabouts) and stop signs at the same intersections.

Re: We're excited about our new roundabout

#73

Post by asteroidburger »

komali2 wrote: post #54

I guess that's somewhere quite remote? I don't see any pedestrian infrastructure and I don't understand how a pedestrian would cross this road safely

https://maps.app.goo.gl/aBMc8ik6B1zZbBPQ7

It's not quite the middle of nowhere, but definitely quite rural. I wouldn't expect to find pedestrians out there.

Re: We're excited about our new roundabout

#74

Post by StuPC2000 »

dave333 wrote: post #53
meowster wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I imagine you're referring to a simple line drawing (with labels)?

For example - Britain's most notorious roundabout https://www.google.com/maps/@51.5622263,-1.7713205,3a,48.7y,...

I grew up in this town, and even had to navigate this Magic Roundabout on my driving test. It's not so bad once you understand how it operates, but you have to pay attention.

Re: We're excited about our new roundabout

#75

Post by AngryData »

nullindividual wrote: post #45
AngryData wrote: post #37

I fail to see how this helps over more traditional designs. Not to mention tight roundabouts always have horrible curbs that trucks have to smash into to try and jump over to make the turns, and they are never gentle bumps, they are always tire and curb damaging trash, especially for heavy loads which are primarily the vehicles that need to jump the curbs. All the roundabouts around me I wish they would just get rid…

There is no room for a traditional roundabout in this location and the gravel trucks from the nearby quarry can hop the very short curbs as needed. This roundabout is perfectly fine in practice.

Gravel trucks are the last trucks that should ever be hopping curbs though, even gentle ones. Gravel trucks already require many roads to be upgraded due to the weight and damage they do just to a flat surface. A truck carrying diapers and crackers won't mind so much, but when you got 50 tons of gravel then even a small 1 inch jump causes significant extra forces on both the road and the truck.

Re: We're excited about our new roundabout

#76

Post by rented_mule »

MostlyStable wrote: post #66
thepaulmcbride wrote: post #35

I live in the US now, but originally from Ireland. My least favourite part of US road infrastructure is the 4 way stop. They are just not good compared to a roundabout. Half the time the only way you can tell it’s an all way stop is by looking for the back of the stop signs on the perpendicular road. With a roundabout, you only have to look in one direction, and if it’s clear, you don’t even have to stop.

Wait until you find one of the distressingly common places where they build a roundabout and put stop signs on some or all of the entrances.

Yep, every time I drive through this one, I curse the idea of 4-way-stop-roundabouts: https://www.google.com/maps/@37.7609857,-121.1244208,3a,75y,...

Too many people remain at the stop sign until the roundabout completely clears, so it becomes an excruciatingly slow 4-way stop. And there's not much traffic there.

A few miles from that one, there's a high traffic roundabout that works very well. The heavily used right turn lanes are divided and don't enter the roundabout. There are very clear markings on the ground. And there are yield signs at the entrances, so people know what to do. Traffic flows great through it, with the heaviest direction of travel naturally getting more throughput.

https://www.google.com/maps/@37.7004641,-120.976448,3a,75y,1...

Re: We're excited about our new roundabout

#77

Post by woleium »

bfdm wrote: post #56
thepaulmcbride wrote: post #35

I live in the US now, but originally from Ireland. My least favourite part of US road infrastructure is the 4 way stop. They are just not good compared to a roundabout. Half the time the only way you can tell it’s an all way stop is by looking for the back of the stop signs on the perpendicular road. With a roundabout, you only have to look in one direction, and if it’s clear, you don’t even have to stop.

Yep. Canada suburbs here. We're starting to see roundabouts used more often for what would be higher traffic four-ways or inconvenient lights. They're great, both as a driver and as a cyclist. Lower conflict risk, simple rules to proceed. IMO all smaller 4 way stops should become what I've described as trash can roundabouts. Small island to circle around. So much better than stop signs.

In the UK they are called mini roundabouts, and are sometimes just painted on: https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mini-roundabout.jp...

Re: We're excited about our new roundabout

#78

Post by lmm »

meowster wrote: post #43
lmm wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd say just the opposite. Indeed, in the UK it's normal for the signs leading up to a roundabout to include an overhead map view, since that's often the easiest way to understand what you need to do to get where you want to.

I imagine you're referring to a simple line drawing (with labels)?

They're schematic but they reflect the shape of the roundabouts to help you follow it. E.g. https://www.youhaventlived.com/qblog/2005/QBlog160705A.html has some examples.

Re: We're excited about our new roundabout

#79

Post by [deleted] »

AngryData wrote: post #75
nullindividual wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is no room for a traditional roundabout in this location and the gravel trucks from the nearby quarry can hop the very short curbs as needed. This roundabout is perfectly fine in practice.

Gravel trucks are the last trucks that should ever be hopping curbs though, even gentle ones. Gravel trucks already require many roads to be upgraded due to the weight and damage they do just to a flat surface. A truck carrying diapers and crackers won't mind so much, but when you got 50 tons of gravel then even a small 1 inch jump causes significant extra forces on both the road and the truck.

[deleted]

Re: We're excited about our new roundabout

#80

Post by nullindividual »

chrisco255 wrote: post #61
buffaloPizzaBoy wrote: post #57

Whats not mentioned in the article is that this particular intersection has a (15mph residential access road - top right) (25 mph farmland road - bottom) (50mph country highway - left and right) Previously, only drivers from the 15mph and 25mph roads had to stop! Visibility coming from the south would also be terrible to check for incoming highway drivers (left is blocked by foliage, right the road curves out of sigh…

They can eminent domain whatever land they need to expand the intersection.

The area borders wetlands and a very steep hillside where one of the roads intersects. And the regular flow of traffic pre-roundabout was more like 60-65 mph.

A roundabout was the correct choice.

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