Pablo Päster calculates the efficiency gains of roundabouts vs. stop signs
Roundabouts... I can honestly say that I've never found myself in one. Living here in Ohio, the traffic congestion is really not all that bad, for the most part. I hear that some cities near Detroit may be getting some roundabouts, though, so perhaps I will drive in one soon enough. Anyway, some people have problems in roundabouts, they get stuck and are not sure how or when to get out of them properly. Most Americans are more familiar with the good old stop sign or traffic light, so that is what we have the most of. Unfortunately, the roundabout is much more efficient at getting traffic flowing, and according to this posting, much more environmentally friendly to boot. This, of course, assumes that drivers can figure them out and don't drive in endless loops, burning off their tank of gas in the process. Hey look kids, there's Big Ben, and there's Parliament.
[Source: Triple Pundit]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Pat 1:27PM (4/24/2007)
I lived in England for 2 years and you'd better beleive roundabouts are more fficient. The great thing is you really never stop moving, you may just slow down to yield to someone. When I went to college back here in the States it used to drive me mad that my drive to school from my apartment took 15 minutes when I only lived 2 miles away - all because of traffic lights & stop signs (Mostly lights)
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Kendall Tawes 3:08PM (4/24/2007)
They have been putting roundabouts here in Virginia recently and I love them. I can zip right through them with ease. Though every now and then I get stuck behind an old woman that is petrified at this new fangled circle of traffic. My only problem is that the state is calling roundabouts traffic circles and that just sounds lame. Anyway they still need more but I'll take what I can get.
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Phil L. 3:08PM (4/24/2007)
I live in suburban Maryland, which has switched many intersections to roundabouts in recent years.
Some of them have been poorly done (either they're local traffic calming devices masquerading as roundabouts, or multi-lane roundabouts that cause confusion).
But one intersection I use on a daily basis was changed to a roundabout several years ago - and has been a big improvement. Traffic flows more smoothly; typical speeds from one of the main feeder roads (which had notable speeding problems) are now much more reasonable. This intersection also was the site of regular T-bone collisions. I've not seen a single accident since the roundabout conversion - and any impacts are more likely to be at safer angles and slower speeds.
All this - plus my average commute is just a little quicker. Done properly, it can work well.
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Karkus 3:42PM (4/24/2007)
I've seen a few pop up around Boulder, Colorado too. I like the concept, but as #3 stated, they aren't always done right. The ones I've seen in (new) shopping area parking lots are usually OK, but the ones they put in old neighborhoods as traffic mitigation devices are too small and too confusing (and dangerous to bikers too).
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will 5:26PM (4/24/2007)
This is something I'd never even thought of. I just assume roundabouts would be found all over the world. No wonder Americans don't have the same need for cars which corner well.
Not only are they better for moving traffic along but there's nothing more satisfying than flipping my MX5's back end out on the small roundabouts at night (usually in the wet) before catching it before my exit :)
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Len 5:44PM (4/24/2007)
This is nothing new in some parts of the U.S. There were several in the Cherry Hill NJ area in the 1960s, one near the Cherry Hill (horse) racetrack and the other near a large shopping center I think ... traffic was heavy enough at one of them that one of the first traffic-control computers in the country was installed in a trailer in the middle of the circle (my dad was a software engineer at the time, so I remember this as being a REALLY big deal).
I'm not sure if either circle still exists.
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kballs 7:48PM (4/24/2007)
We have one in NE Issaquah WA, and it backs up for 2-3 miles in the evening commute. It's only like 60ft wide on the inner edge so people have to slow down quite a bit. Roundabouts have to be a minimum 200-300ft diameter to keep traffic moving, and that's if people don't stop as if it's a 4-way stop (people in the US do this a lot). Also they still give equal traffic priority to all directions (just like a 4-way stop), so they don't scale well between low traffic and rush hour where usually traffic is much heavier on one axis (and would flow better with a smart traffic light that measures traffic load and gives longer green time).
The roundabout in Issaquah was built with the excuse of safety... yet it's 150ft from an intersection with freeway on/off ramps where there are lots of close calls with people making left turns across traffic (it has no traffic light or roundabout).
I really wish these idiots would remove the roundabout, or widen it to 200ft+ like it should have been.
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harryy 5:40PM (4/25/2007)
Hey Ohio person, come to Dublin Ohio. There are a whole slew of them. Some of them are great, some are good, some really suck. The city elders have come to the conclusion that it is the only solution for any traffic situation, and puts them in everywhere. Since they cost over a million apeace, it is overkill. I used to live in New Jersey, and they spent 30 years getting rid of circles. The highest accident rate in the country used to be at the circle at Little Ferry.
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Hank 11:18PM (4/24/2007)
I live in upstate NY where several cities are putting in roundabouts, and I've experience driving in the UK. They are more efficient, but I'm repeatedly astounded by how few NYers seem to grasp the concept and are completely dumbfounded by them.
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Nils 4:58AM (4/25/2007)
You think roundabouts are confusing? Take a look at this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_Roundabout_(Hemel_Hempstead)
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mike 8:24AM (4/25/2007)
I lived in Hilton Head Isl. for a summer and there was one right at the entrance to where I lived. I loved it and my Fiat X1/9 loved it too (when it was running). Now there is one near my current house in NC and I go that way every time I get the chance. Rarely do you have to stop and most times, I get to accelerate!
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Tony Belding 11:06AM (4/25/2007)
When I was small there was a traffic circle in Brownwood Texas -- in fact, it's the only one I ever remember seeing in my travels about Texas (mostly through small towns, admittedly).
The circle in Brownwood was notorious, and it was the subject of much fear. I'm sure the residents of Brownwood were familiar with it and handled it okay, but everyone from out of town was terrified. A lot of people had no idea how to deal with such a strange road feature.
I'm not sure when it was taken out, but it's long gone now. If there is any effort to bring back traffic circles, it would be well not to underestimate the resistance they might face and the amount of education that might be required to sell them.
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Tony Belding 2:16PM (4/25/2007)
I also found this today, it seems relevant. . .
http://xkcd.com/c253.html
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Eleventeen 9:57PM (4/25/2007)
We've got a couple here in Tallahassee, FL. I remember when they first put them in, people were real resistant to the whole concept (southern people can be stubborn in a way that is incomprehensible at times, at least to a northerner like me) but given a couple of years, they've grown on people. An intersection that used to take 15 to 20 minutes to get thru during rush hour while it was still a standard T intersection now takes less than having to see whether the guy in the circle is turning or not. You used to have to come to a full stop, now you can cruise thru, most of the time, at a good 35 mph clip.
Personally, I love em, I don't see how people can't see how well they work.
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Bill 7:13AM (4/30/2007)
People rarely get lost in roundabouts, the Simpsons thing was a joke (just like most Simpsons things are a joke, including the farcical take on monorails). Roundabouts are easy to navigate, especially with good signage, and give drivers a second chance if they do miss their turn.
Roundabouts are superior to stop sign intersections because they allow traffic to continue to move (higher throughput, higher fuel efficiency). They are also superior to traffic light intersections for the same reasons as well as reducing speed through the intersection.
Roundabouts also provide no problems for large vehicles like buses or fire vehicles, even when they're built on the small side.
There's a difference between roundabouts and traffic circles.
- Roundabouts have yield signs for traffic entering the circular roadway (CR). Roundabouts are typically the same size as a standard intersection.
- Traffic circles are typically larger and allow higher speeds within the CR but have traffic controls to stop traffic in the CR.
More info:
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roundabout
- http://www.k-state.edu/roundabouts/
- http://roundabout.kittelson.com/
- Do a Google search for "roundabouts" or "modern roundabout"
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