Quote:
Originally Posted by Byte1
This is getting funny. Apparently, if you are entering the circle to go straight and you are in the right lane, if a car already in the circle that might wish to make a right turn right after you enter, may do so and you are wrong if you hit him crossing in front of you. What crazy thinking came up with that kind of idea? ANyone crossing in front of me from the left lane to make a right turn and causes an accident better be able to explain that in court, because common sense says that you do not cross in front of anyone that's going straight in order for you to turn. I do not care what diagram is posted on a sign, that's just not common sense. Take the circle out and make it a four way stop. Right lane will go straight or turn right and left lane will go straight or turn left, period. I said we should have one lane in circles but folks thought that would make it too difficult to maneuver with two lanes entering and exiting the circle. No one is ever going to agree on how the circles must be traversed, so just get rid of them. Common sense says that the car in the right lane should always have the right of way when making a right turn. Going straight is still making a right turn from a circle and going in the left direction is still making a right turn from the circle. If you do not think so, try using your left turn signal when leaving the circle and see what happens. The only/ONLY way to make a left turn from these circles is if you traversed the circle going the wrong way (counter-clockwise). If you think you are right and attempt to make a turn in front of the car in the right lane that is going past your turn, then be prepared to visit the body shop (if you are lucky).
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So wrong in so many ways, almost as if you are intentionally trying to misunderstand.
When you are at a four way stop and intend go go straight across do you proceed when there is someone already in the intersection? Of course not, that would cause a crash and you would be at fault. The same goes for the circle. If you are entering from the outside (right) lane you can't shoot right in, you yield to the traffic already in the circle. Do that and no one will be crossing in front of you to turn right from the inside lane.
When I am driving north on Morse and I encounter a circle what direction do I need to go to stay on Morse? Silly question of course, I go straight. If this is the circle with Pinellas and I want to take Pinellas then which way do I go? Obviously, I turn left since turning right would put me in front of the fire station on Moyer Loop. Left, right, and straight make perfect sense at a circle unless you are intentionally trying to be confused.
Having never seen an accident in a circle I can't begin to come up with the percentage of drivers who navigate them successfully. I've seen far more accidents at stop lights so perhaps we need to replace some lights with circles to improve safety.