British roundabout conquering the US

[mczerone]

Roundabouts work well if the traffic pattern fits the profile. If the traffic pattern is too high, you'll increase time for 1 street and decrease time for the other..usually in great proportions.

All the more reason to have varied, competing road companies.

There are safety concerns behind the rise in roundabouts, but I think the bigger driving factor is for union make-work programs. There have been many intersections transformed in Michigan recently, and some were legitimately dangerous or cumbersome, but the lure of tearing out a piece of road and replacing it with a higher cost building project was too great for local municipalities to ignore, especially by those getting federal reimbursements for infrastructure improvements.

If the state hadn't already been manipulating the road market, those intersections that truly need roundabouts probably would have already had them, and those which need 4-way stops or timed/programmed lights wouldn't be getting them. But hey, who cares if the govt does something that is hurtful to our well being, private companies can't build roads, right?

 

[dannno]

I like them. Statistically, they're safer and faster than ordinary intersections.

Agreed.

 

[dannno]

The roundabouts here all have stop signs before you enter the roundabouts. So kind of pointless.
So from a complete stop you have to floor it to 30 so you don't get smacked by the cars on the roundabout.
I really don't like them.

Ya they're supposed to be yield signs..

 

[zadrock]

Been living (and driving) in London for almost a year now. The roundabouts are awesome. But just about everything else about driving in Britain sucks big time.