Roundabouts & lane discipline

[Mad Chemist]

Can someone please help me with a question about roundabouts?

What's going on with roundabout discipline in this country. Please take a look at this set of roundabouts just east of Chelmsord:

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=Boreham+interchang...

I don't understand why so many people think it's fine to use the left lane and take the "easy" route round the outside of this roundabout for the last exit over the main carriageway. I always find impatient people trying this when I enter this roundabout coming from Colchester in the right-hand lane, which leads over the A12 and gives access to Chelmsford.

Thanks,

Mad.

[Panda76]

Lack of trained traffic cops to educate them.Barely see any cops out on the roads these days.Even then the normal bobby in the astra seems to ignore this type driving and only focus on really dangerous driving.

There is a roundabout near to me a bit like this.Left lane is for left turn and straight on supermarket.Right hand lane is for the first offset right just after the supermarket exit and 2nd right.Loads go into the left and supermarket lane and attempt to get off at the offset right.Idiots.Makes it more important to do a look over the left shoulder blind spot check before exiting.

• The lanes approaching the roundabout are clearly marked to tell you which lane to get in,no excuse.

Just idiot chancers.

Not much you can do about it.

[R0G]

Lack of lane markings on the roundabout does not help

Without markings who is to say that another is changing 'lanes'

[Balmoral Green]

Roundabouts & lane discipline

A lost cause I'm afraid, something that we used to do, but not any more. Not just roundabouts, but lane discipline almost anywhere.

Like stopping dead at a roundabout, and only then looking to see if it is clear to proceed, which seems to be the norm nowadays. Whereas years ago, if a roundabout was clear on the approach, one would simply carry on.

[Mad Chemist]

Thanks guys for all your comments.

I guess all we can do is be extra vigilant when these kind of roundabouts crop. As an ex-biker, I always try to use lifesavers when I enter/exit any reasonably sized roundabout - this has kept me out of trouble on several occasions.

Cheers,

Mad.

[jimmy the hat]

Mad Chemist said:

Can someone please help me with a question about roundabouts?

What's going on with roundabout discipline in this country. Please take a look at this set of roundabouts just east of Chelmsord:

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=Boreham+interchang...

I don't understand why so many people think it's fine to use the left lane and take the "easy" route round the outside of this roundabout for the last exit over the main carriageway. I always find impatient people trying this when I enter this roundabout coming from Colchester in the right-hand lane, which leads over the A12 and gives access to Chelmsford.

Thanks,

Mad.

Quite simply, I think it's because anybody coming from that direction that wants to go to Boreham (i.e left for those that don't know) will have turned off at Hatfield Peverel and driven through, rather than drive past and go back on themselves. As a result, pretty much everybody taking that slip-road is turning right (across the A12).

IMHO that is, bar far, the least offensive of the roundabouts in that vicinity. The three lane entrance (coming from Sainsbury) to the two lane roundabout by the BP apparently encourages idiots to get in the left hand lane and take the third exit, cutting across/driving straight into the side of anybody unfortunate enough to find themselves in the middle.

It feels lazy to say so but I think poor roundabout use is almost exclusively a result of poor roundabout design coupled with idiocy. On top of this, there's a growing majority of cretins that genuinely don't care if they're inconveniencing anybody else and some who get off on doing it on purpose.

Bit of a rant that but I hate that roundabout/people. Sorry.

Cheers, Jim

[Mad Chemist]

Hi Jimmy,

Not sure I agree with you on this one mate. I do agree that 3 lanes into 2 is silly, but either of the 2 lanes can be used to take the 3rd exit (12 o'clock exit) which is effectively straight ahead staying on the A130 (I will take this position if I'm heading to Colchester). However, when I wish to exit to then proceed over the A12 to take either the A12 London-bound/or Boreham exits, I will take the right lane at this roundabout and exit into the outside lane for the correct position to enter the next roundabout.


http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=boreham,+chelmsfor...


As far as I'm aware this is correct and safe approach to this roundabout. Moving back to the original roundabout - taking the outside lane to a 3 o'clock exit from Boreham over the A12 is not acceptable IMHO.

Mad.

[davepoth]

Looks like there used to be markings on that roundabout at some point - maybe they did allow users to use the left lane for that exit?

[Hooli]

The roundabout I hate around there is this http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=boreham,+chelmsfor... all the tards coming up the A133 to get on the A12 use the RH lane to go straight across, often then parking on the RH lane for miles because they are too stupid to drive on the left.

I'm so glad I moved away from that area for this reason alone.

[jimmy the hat]

Mad Chemist said:

Hi Jimmy,

Not sure I agree with you on this one mate. I do agree that 3 lanes into 2 is silly, but either of the 2 lanes can be used to take the 3rd exit (12 o'clock exit) which is effectively straight ahead staying on the A130 (I will take this position if I'm heading to Colchester). However, when I wish to exit to then proceed over the A12 to take either the A12 London-bound/or Boreham exits, I will take the right lane at this roundabout and exit into the outside lane for the correct position to enter the next roundabout.


http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=boreham,+chelmsfor...

Maybe some crossed purposes here. I'm pretty sure that you can't be saying that coming from the bottom left towards top right (towards the A12 for Colchester) it's OK to use the leftmost of the three lanes, into the roundabout, to take the third exit. Looking at your maplink, one shouldn't be doing anything other than going to the dump/car auction from that lane, much less traversing 60% of the roundabout.

It's probably the least appropriate media to admit this but, these days, I find that it's easiest to either make sure you're in front of everybody else or wait for them to finish their idiocy before setting wheels on a roundabout. Or sliproad. Or box-junction. Or anywhere other than your driveway.

I don't recognise the other roundabout, looks a bit further north than Boreham.

Cheers, Jim

[R0G]

I have to say that the planners are really dumb in placing 3 lanes on the approach when only 2 are on the roundabout

If 3 set off together then who has which lane?

[jimmy the hat]

Getting back to the original point.

Almost nobody uses the left-hand lane to turn left into Boreham. Apart from Sunday mornings, very few people will turn off into the burger van/car-boot sale entrance. In normal circumstances, you wouldn't expect many to turn off the A12 only to cross the roundabout and go down the sliproad to rejoin it. That only leaves one exit, why not use both lanes for it?

I appreciate that non-locals would not necessarily take any of the above into account and therefore it might invite trouble to go round the outside of them but I imagine that's why most do.

Unless of course, they're simply thinking "bugger joining that queue in the right-hand lane, I'll go round it" in which case the spirit of your original post is spot-on.

Cheers, Jim

[jimmy the hat]

R0G said:

I have to say that the planners are really dumb in placing 3 lanes on the approach when only 2 are on the roundabout

If 3 set off together then who has which lane?

The idea seems to be that the middle lane vanishes as soon as you enter the roundabout, judging by what happens pretty much every time I use this roundabout.

Cheers, Jim

[Jagmanv12]

In some cases I reckon learners are not taught the correct way to negotiate roundabouts.

On a roundabout I used everyday going to work. 3 lanes on approach, left lane for 9 o'clock, middle lane for 12 o'clock and right lane for 3 o'clock. Small centre on roundabout so plenty of room for everybody. I'm in right lane to go round to 3 o'clock, driving school car in left lane. Something made me hang back as driving school car cuts across roundabout to exit at 3 o'clock!!

If the instructor doesn't teach properly then obviously the driver when they have a licence will not know they are doing anything wrong.