At an intersection- which is better a round about or stop light?

[fuzzybuddy]

Brits love round-abouts at intersections. They recently installed one near me. For me, it's hard to get used to. American don't use round-abouts much, and we're not that skilled in driving through them.
Which would you rather have at an intersection? A round-about or a stop light? Which do you hate?

I posted this in the wrong forum.

 

[GoneFishin]

I'm not posting because I would be posting in the wrong forum. 2 wrongs don't make a right.

 

[hollydolly]

We have both... and by far the easiest is the Roundabout. The deal is you just give way to the right... nothing more than that. In your case give way to the left...

if there's something coming from your left, you stop at the junction before proceeding.. simple as that.

here in the Uk we have all sorts of roundabouts, which oftne have traffic lights all the way around as well....

..or this one near where I live

this has 6 roundabouts within One roundabout.. and as you can see traffic is going in opposite directions..

It's terrifying the first time you use it.. but you get used to it.. and just have to watch out for drivers who can't negotiate it very well..

Then there's another one down west...in Swindon

 

[Murrmurr]

... American don't use round-abouts much, and we're not that skilled in driving through them.

I wager Americans have keener driving skills than anyone else in the world because they do more driving than anyone else in the world.

Traffic lights are simpler than roundabouts. A light tells you exactly what to do based on its color, and we all know it's ok to turn right on a red when traffic allows...unless we didn't take driver's ed or read the manual.

 

[Aunt Bea]

We have a couple of fast moving roundabouts here and IMO they are dangerous only because people aren’t used to them.

It’s the same with the etiquette of a four way stop. It seems like people look for a little hesitation on the part of other drivers and take a shot.

For me, a traffic light is best.

 

[OneEyedDiva]

If I still drove I'd prefer a traffic light. Some people are so rude they don't want to give the right away. Sometimes people are trying to go at the same time (over politeness can be a problem too). IMO traffic lights are less complicated.

Fuzzbuddy, you wouldn't be the first person to post something in the wrong forum and I'm sure you won't be the last. Lord knows I've done it.

 

[MarkinPhx]

I'm not a fan of the roundabouts. I don't mind navigating them but when the snowbirds flock to the area they can be tricky because many of them are not used to them.

 

[Pinky]

We have roundabouts here .. mostly in more rural areas, and, they are really a no-brainer. Yield to whoever's on your left.

 

[KSav]

I prefer stoplights. My town recently introduced roundabouts and people don't seem to have figured out how to use them properly.

 

[KSav]

I'm not a fan of the roundabouts. I don't mind navigating them but when the snowbirds flock to the area they can be tricky because many of them are not used to them.

That used to be me, @MarkinPhx! My father and his wife used to live in The Villages, Florida, which has a ton of them. It took me a day to get used to them; I'm afraid I rashly entered at least one when it wasn't my turn. Now that my area has several I've gotten more accustomed to them. But my father and his wife used to get very frustrated by visitors who would get confused and not try to figure out the right of way.

 

[squatting dog]

Jug handle. Spent some time in Jersey.

 

[Don M.]

Roundabouts are better in light traffic areas.....IMO. Where/when traffic is heavy, traffic lights are better.

 

[PeppermintPatty]

I prefer the roundabouts. We have both where we live.

 

[GoneFishin]

I prefer traffic lights. Round-abouts make me dizzy

 

[Jules]

Depends if we’re talking about a single or double roundabout.

Single are really easy, if anyone has read or heard the rules. Yield to the cars already in the circle. Signal when leaving so the person waiting to enter doesn’t have to wait to see if you’re proceeding around the roundabout. You wouldn’t know it based on the driving skills or attitudes of some of our drivers.

There can be confusion with the double lanes.

 

[hollydolly]

We have 26,000 roundabouts in the uk... we're pretty used to them... we also have thousands of intersections and 4/5 way crossways with traffic lights, .. we're used to those too

Apparently the British are the best drivers in the world.. because the majority drive manual cars on roads barely wide enough for one car let alone 2, avoiding not only other vehicles coming the opposite direction, but horse and farm animals on many of our roads too.... and navigate roundabouts, cross sections.. traffic to accommodate 70 million people on the roads of an island smaller than Oregon,

 

[OldFeller]

People where I live don't know the proper way to use them. There's a Yield sign where you enter the circle and they treat it like a Stop sign. Very annoying.

 

[dilettante]

They must be just amazing in high-traffic areas when combined with self-driving cars.

 

[hollydolly]

People where I live don't know the proper way to use them. There's a Yield sign where you enter the circle and they treat it like a Stop sign. Very annoying.

R/A's keep traffic flowing by and large, whereas traffic lights and intersections stop the traffic...

rules on how to use a roundabout....

Appendix - roundabouts

 

[Tommy]

Different applications for different situations. I'm also familiar with a third option.

In Detroit (a section of Gratiot Avenue, maybe?) there's a section of divided highway with traffic lights. No left turns are permitted at the lights. Instead, there are long "reverse direction" lanes. To turn left, you actually go through the intersection, reverse direction (heading back to the intersection), then turn right. It actually works very well and, without any left turners, the lights are much more efficient.

 

[jujube]

At my old house, the city installed a roundabout where there was no need. It was a T-intersection and there was never more than a car or two backed up, even during prime time. But our local commissioner or whoever-it-was-in-charge LOVED roundabouts and wanted one for the neighborhood.

It was put in and it was very attractive, with ornamental posts all around the center section. Unfortunately (and I hope the designer got fired), they found out in a matter of hours that the biggest firetrucks could not make the turn without hitting the posts. So, there went the posts. Now what kind of idiot designer/engineer doesn't figure that out?

I really don't like roundabouts or rotaries or whatever they're called in your area. Give me a traffic light any day.

 

[ohioboy]

A light tells you exactly what to do based on its color, and we all know it's ok to turn right on a red when traffic allows...unless we didn't take driver's ed or read the manual.

Same in Ohio, but Municipalities can forbid it if they wish.

 

[dilettante]

Different applications for different situations. I'm also familiar with a third option.

In Detroit (a section of Gratiot Avenue, maybe?) there's a section of divided highway with traffic lights. No left turns are permitted at the lights. Instead, there are long "reverse direction" lanes. To turn left, you actually go through the intersection, reverse direction (heading back to the intersection), then turn right. It actually works very well and, without any left turners, the lights are much more efficient.

They've been all over the State for a long time.

https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/travel/safety/road-users/michigan-lefts

Michigan lefts, also referred to as indirect left turns, are a common type of turn. Intersections that have Michigan lefts do not allow traditional left-turn movements. Instead, to turn left, drivers must continue straight through the intersection or turn right, then make a u-turn at a median crossover.

Michigan lefts have been part of Michigan roadways since the late 1960s.

 

[Tommy]

They've been all over the State for a long time.

Wow! I lived in different parts of Michigan for over forty years and that's the only place I recall ever seeing them! Maybe I just didn't drive in the right places.

 

[againstthegrain]

NY and NJ have opposing entry priority and hilarity ensues when a R/A is located near the states border when the drivers of each state follow their own state's rule in the other state.