Lambie said:

Good (insert your time of day here) folks!

I just have a general driving question I thought I'd ask here. Since driving without my human stabilizer anymore, I seem to have forgotten how roundabouts work (not that I drive over the middle hill like a Range Rover).

In a 4-spoke roundabout, with all 4 spokes having two lanes each side of the road, which lane do you exit in? My normal practice is to indicate right on approach, keep indicating as I go along, and as I'm just passing the second exit I indicate left and start moving over to leave in the left-hand lane. This is apparently the correct way, but I tried it recently and a car came speeding up the left side of me, flashing and beeping me as I moved into the left, which completely confused me. Does anyone think I did something wrong?

And my main interest with this thread, how do you deal with the hearty roundabout? I often see no indicator whatsoever, people driving around roundabouts at 40mph and people indicating right to exit on the left. And what's been the worst violator you have seen on a roundabout?

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Noxide said:

If I'm interpreting it correctly, assuming the roundabout doesn't shift you across with lanes merging and such, I would argue you acted correctly, and the person on your left is a moron. I take each roundabout as it comes though. If you're following the highway code and what you were taught you're probably right. I was told never to cross the dashed lines on roundabouts. They normally have breaks or openings where you're meant to move across.
Just because people do it, doesn't make it correct, and if it's putting their car or yours in danger, they're doing wrong. You probably didn't even do anything close to the car, they probably just had a rough morning and burned their toast or something. Some roundabouts force you across a lane before the 2nd exit, and there's another near me where the exit marked lane crosses two others, which is a nightmare! I always drive overly defensively on roundabouts as I've seen many a crash on them. Back in my day we didn't even have roundabouts. <shakes fist at youths>


Worst/best violator, was a guy in a 3 series beemer who kicked it into a bit of a drift as he left the exit.

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Lambie said:

Sorry yeah should've mentioned it was a regular type roundabout, didn't force lanes and no traffic management such and such. I think as I was going right on the roundabout he was going straight, so he came from the first exit on the roundabout from me in the left lane, and sped up as I was trying to merge into the left, if that makes sense.

EDIT: This is the roundabout I'm talking about! Park Street Roundabout: https://goo.gl/maps/7vQAkLaLY6J2

I often feel those force marked roundabouts would fare better! There's one on my journey to work near the University of Hertfordshire that has forced lanes and I feel comfortable with that one, but unmarked ones seem to be a free-for-all for enraged drivers at rush hour. Except the roundabout signs never seem to co-ordinate with what's written on the ground.

Thanks for your input! I think I should actually approach them a bit slower, but since the aforementioned roundabout connects with two dual carriageways a normal speed entry to the roundabout could be met with a bang from a driver who decided approaching a roundabout at lightspeed is fine. But maybe if I drive slower once on the roundabout I can be more careful with reckless drivers.

That always slips my mind about slipping on roundabouts! I'm surprised not many people don't go flying off the roundabout and into a bush!

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Noxide said:

I would suggest he was probably being a plonker. What car was it? Something german and business like?


I just make sure I brake early enough that the person behind can't possibly miss it. I'd rather be rear-ended by someone going to fast and it be their fault, than dive into traffic fast and make a mistake myself.


Haha, this one was an intentional yobbing around the roundabout I think.




Just FYI, this is how I'd tackle your one. Someone with some actual driving experience will probably come along and say wtf have you done, but hey.





We've got a tiny hump roundabout near us but it's not positioned properly so everyone just drives over it. I'd always be interested what the police would do if they saw someone do it.

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Lambie said:

White car van, I should've known better than to doubt myself!!!!

Blue line is spot on how I tackled the roundabout, albeit I came one anti-clockwise spoke from where you started. Makes me feel better I did it right maybe that's their secret base?

I always worry following the blue line on a roundabout that as I did what I said and merge over to exit, that someone not paying attention will shunt my left-side door as I exit!

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Noxide said:

Haha good, and even if that's wrong, it's at least not just me that does it wrong! Reckon so. Only logical conclusion really!


Haha yeah I know the feeling. I must confess, sometimes I've made some rather decisive moves to block people who are doing silly things like undertaking or coming on across me or something as I exit. They probably think "what a ****" but at least my car is intact. Also for someone to shunt you, they'd either have to be coming faster than you round the outside, from the same place you started, which they shouldn't be, or should be joining and giving you priority.


Besides. I've a white car with black checks up the side. You can't miss the damn thing.

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Focus Owner said:

2 lanes leaving to me means first 2 side lanes unless better marked.

I agree with the picture drawn up

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Lambie said:

At those times they may be annoyed, but I promise everyone else is laughing at them for it! haha always terrifies me though as you're approaching and you can see people edge way over the stop line.

Is that your car in your profile picture? I thought it had door vents rather than black checks! :yum: What car is it?

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Focus Owner said:

2 lanes leaving to me means first 2 side lanes unless better marked.

I agree with the picture drawn up

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Noxide said:

Haha good!




Haha true that. Or when they are stopped and you see the wheels start to crawl!


Haha, I wish that was mine! It's a V10 Audi R8 Spyder! Got to hoon it about for a day! It's just a picture I really love! I've actually got a little white Fiat 500! So pretty close to an R8 really.

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Ziggy122 said:

The picture below - with Red and blue lines

I'd say that image is correct

What you probably find is somebody joined the roundabout and didnt give way properly and jumped on - straight into your blind spot

Obviously - i have studied the road markings - but it appears you may have yes cut him up - because he was pushing when he shouldnt of been
making it not really your fault

Ziggy

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Lambie said:

That really scares the pants out of me, I end up slowing slightly, and they think "oh time for me to go!" and cut me up entirely :bang:

Nice! You just need a CD of V10 engine sounds and blast it out the window! :slayer:

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Noxide said:

Haha debated it! Hell yeah though!

I drove lots of cool cars that day, and a 650bhp GTR was my favourite - couldn't hear the damn radio!


When I get home from work, I'll pop a video showing a horrendous roundabout near me (lanes are awful) and a **** I saw this morning driving badly, and how close he was to being caught!

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Lambie said:

I gotta say I don't like the new headlights of the GTR, almost purely because they removed the black stripe! But I am a fan of the late Skyline, so I am pretty biased.

I noticed my stereo on my Punto has a feature that adjusts the audio with the engine noise, since my 1.2 on the motorway sounds like a banshee. All it seems to do though is play the radio quietly, and then blast max volume out when it's parked like some kind of teen yobbo.

I would love to see that, that could be a thread feature! name and shaming bad roundabouts. When I used to live in Hemel I religiously avoided the Hemel Hempstead roundabout at rush hour. I don't know how that roundabout works, but man it's trouser troubling. Works brilliantly though, as bizarre as it is!

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