Signalling on roundabouts

[Steve Austin]

I ride as if i'm a small car and take up as much space as possible. centre of the lane i need to be in.

The route round the outside of the roaundabout is just dangerous. car drivers will (rightly) think you are taking the next exit and have no idea you are going across the exit. Its possibly the most dangerous way to get round a roundabout other than going round one anti-clockwise!!

 

[purplepolly]

The route round the outside of the roaundabout is just dangerous

+1 I used to approach the rouandabout on my way home from a steep hill and leave at the second exit. Due to my lack of speed and the volume of the traffic it was impossible to get into primary. After about a week of drivers cutting me up when overtaking and pulling out in front, I rerouted so I joined the roundabout at an earlier entrance and took the right hand lane in primary. I've had no problems since.

And as for walking round... that's just plain daft, it takes forever and a day to cross the road at roundabout junctions.

 

[ufkacbln]

It is amazing how things change.....

When I was a youngster.......

There used to be a set way of approaching. Left hand lane for turning left, right hand lane for straight ahead or right (3 lanes - centre for straight ahead, and right for right), you signalled left for left, right for right and nothing for straight ahead. Then as you passed the junction before yours, al the internal traffic had gone, you signalled left and went.

Then it was changed to " any appropriate lane", but has now come back to the above.

I think it is the confusion about poor lane discipline that causes the problem.

Properly driven vehicles on roundabouts should not cause any problem for cyclists...... if only that were the case!

 

[purplepolly]

Properly driven vehicles on roundabouts should not cause any problem for cyclists...... if only that were the case!

If only, but the design doesn't exactly help.

Roundabouts are designed to keep traffic flowing and to reduce the angle of impact to motor vehicles - a collision at a normal junction would typically be at 90 degrees, at roudabouts this is much less and so causes less damage to motor vehicles. Unfortunately no-one thought about cyclists when designing them and the speed, constant flow and angles all conspire to make things worse for cyclists, particularly as drivers have a lot more things to concentrate on and look out for than at other types of junctions. This is fine for good, careful drivers, but many aren't and a lot will be fairly new to driving.

Best thing to do ignore whichever helpful motorist wrote the advice for cyclists.

 

[BIGSESAL]

I have recently passed my driving test. I think that new drivers aren't fully trained about how to deal with cyclists. There is a small bit in the theory test but that is it. Most people have never seen a cyclist on a roundabout when they learn, so the first time they get in the situation they don't know what to do.

I give cyclist loads of room because I am a cyclist and I know how it feels when a car almost runs you off the road. I doubt that most people my age are the same.