Roundabout safety
 

Most vehicle accidents in TV occur in the roundabout in front of the Savannah center. Vehicles traveling South in the right lane, cross the left lane to go on to the Savannah, or Camino Real causing collisions with vehicles travelling South in the left lane. The only way to avoid this is to do what was done in my previous city that had the same problem. Build a concrete barrier that would prevent vehicles from turning into the left lane. If someone gets stuck in the left lane because of the barrier, they just have to continue South on Buena Vista until they can make a u turn.
:BigApplause:

Roundabout rules are so very simple. If folks follow them there should never be an accident. There are only 4 and they work.

1. The car in the circle ALWAYS has the right of way. No matter which lane they are in, you do not enter until they are by you.
2. If going 90 degrees enter from the right lane and exit from the right lane.
3. If going 180 degrees enter from either lane and exit from the lane you entered. Enter right, exit right, enter left, exit left.
4. If going 270 degrees always enter from the left lane and exit from the left lane.

If everyone follows those rules there would be no accidents. There are a couple places where they remove the inside lane and force you into the right lane, but if rule 1 is followed that is not an issue either.

My primary premise: Never travel in a roundabout beside another vehicle. No crashes that way due to someone crossing another vehicle's path.

Bill

Golf Cart Safety
 

I use my blinker when entering and exiting a round-about because there is a % of people who have never used one or will never learn how to use one

Exactly! You should consider the roundabout just like a normal intersection. If you were making a left turn, you wouldn't do it from the right lane (unless you were from some of the cities I have visited!!!). If you were making a right turn, you wouldn't do it from the left lane. If you're going straight through the intersection, you could do it from either lane. This works no matter which road you approach the roundabout on.

The only tricky part is when exiting the roundabout after going 270 degrees around and entering a gate. My habit is to enter the left lane from the roundabout inside lane and then merge to the right to use the resident lane. If someone block me from merging, I just use the visitor lane. No big deal.

But use your turn signals when exiting the roundabout just to eliminate confusion.
:thumbup:

Why is the title of this thread Golf Cart Safety?...........gn

Are there stats to back up this statement?

Two points:

First, unless it is a 'street legal' golf cart, it has no business in a roundabout - stay off the roads and on the multinodal trails.

Second, the 'accidents' mentioned in the original post do not occur on roundabouts. They happen about 100 feet past the roundabout when a car in the right lane tries to make a left turn into the Savahhah Center.

I don't get it. The rules are so simple to understand. Yet, I see as a regular occurrence drivers entering the circle from the right lane cross into the left hand lane of the circle and then back to the right lane to exit the roundabout when they are going 180 degrees straight through.

So what do you do when you have a driver coming at you in the round about, meaning he is going the wrong way. Happened to us the other day at Calumet Round About. Luckily we were in right side of lane and he was coming at us in the left lane. He just kept going and luckily hit no one.

Get the license plate and have "The Three Ladies" track 'em down..........:shocked:

Bill :)

Other roundabout rules
 

Cars should also not change lanes in the roundabouts. And they should stay in one lane or the other. Also, too many people cross the line while driving in the roundabouts, nearly hitting cars next to them. This especially happens coming down Morse towards Sumter Landing when cars are in both lanes. And yes, you can go through either gate. One doesn't have to enter the resident gate....so there is no need to change from the left lane right before the gate. Here is a link I found on this site right after we moved here and it was quite helpful.

Much like the villages brochure on roundabouts:
http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/safety/roundabouts/

Video on driving roundabouts:
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MywmtskFiiI[/ame]

Tee hee.

Kudos to those who said to use your blinker! In all the times we've been to TV, I think I've personally witnessed only one person use a blinker to exit a roundabout. That person is ME.

What's up with so many people not using a turn signal to make a turn?? I don't get it.

I do P.

We do as well....always.

Bill :)

This video should be widely used by TV safety and traffic education entities extensively, it is very good, compared to the brochure.

Last weekend when the Leesburg bike event was going on some ventured over to TV and while I try to be very kind and courteous to others on the roundabouts, I was forced to blow my horn when a bike came straight into the roundabout that I was already in at a high rate of speed. It's been my experience that watching the other guy (or gal) is the paramount consideration. I have traveled extensively in the UK and feel that a six week stint there would be good basic training for all new TV residents.

Not quite
 

While the video above is good, it does not address the horrible danger of TV roundabouts allowing right turns from BOTH the right and left lanes.......a dangerous setup not found in most other multiple lane roundabouts. Here, drivers in the left lane will cut across in front of a driver in the right lane, to turn right from the left lane. This is insanity. Most roundabouts allow right turns from the right lane only, so that drivers who have chosen the right lane to go 180 degrees (straight) and NOT turn at 90 will not be mowed down by somebody on their left side zooming to turn right, in FRONT of them.

Huh! TV does not allow right turns from the left lane in roundabouts. Drivers entering the roundabout in the left lane have to either go straight or 270 to make a left turn. What you may be seeing is a driver who entered in the left lane to go 3/4 of the way around and is exiting at the proper point from the left lane. It is important that other drivers entering the roundabout wait until both lanes are clear before entering, i.e., don't pull into the vacant outside lane when there is a car in the inside lane. You may block them from exiting normally. If you replay the video, you will see they do not enter the roundabout until both lanes are clear.

My Dad always reminded me: "Watch out for the other damned fool on the road!"

Very good advice when I was first driving (in Massachusetts, where "Rotaries" were fairly common), and when I moved to The Villages!

Always, always keep a sharp eye out!

SWR
:beer3:

its all really simple
 

the white lines in the roundabout do show what is allowed and what is not. You ARE allowed to enter in the left lane and go straight, you will notice that the right lane WILL have a SOLID white line so that it MUST exit in the right lane and cannot continue around! like you've all said...watch out for yourselves because maybe 2 or 3 in 10 know what to do in the roundabout

Concrete barriers in the roundabouts, now I've heard everything....gn

Staggering and blinkers are the two most obvious answers!

Not allowed, but people do it anyway.....hazardous
 

Yes, I see from this brochure linked below, that right turns are not allowed from the left lane when the person entered the roundabout at the same time I have, but they do it anyway.

It has happened to me twice, going southbound on Buena Vista, approaching the Belvedere turn to the right. Twice, I entered the circle in the right lane, intending to go straight (180 deg.) as this brochure linked shows is allowed. But as I came near the right turn at 90 deg., a driver who entered the circle in the left lane--at the same time I did--sped up to turn right from the left lane, in front of me as I intended to go straight.

This is the danger I was talking about above. It's not allowed, but some rabid drivers do it anyway. Newbies need to be aware of this hazard and "Watch out for the other guy".

Roundabout Brochure from DistrictGov.org:
http://www.districtgov.org/images/Wh...INAL070908.pdf

SEE "Going Straight Ahead" in the center bottom half of this brochure page.
"1. APPROACHING: You can be in either lane, unless otherwise marked on roadway or posted.
2. CIRCULATING: Stay to the inside of the circulatory roadway if you entered from the left-hand approach lane, or stay to the outside if you entered from the right-hand approach lane. Do not change lanes.
3. When you have passed the last exit before the one you want, use your right-turn signal and continue to use it through your exit.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yikes! I think I'll leave my car in WNY and get a tricycle for transportation in TV. You have me scared to death to drive in those round-abouts.....especially if I have an attack of DBD (Dumb Blond Disease).:icon_wink:

I felt the same way about roundabouts when I started living in TV. I was terrified and didn't go near one for at least three months. I know it isn't the correct way, but I always wait until there is no-one coming and then stay in the outside lane. And I never stop and back up! :D

When you see that tall blond WALKING a lot, you'll know who it is!:D

Perfectly stated. I wish everyone could understand those basic concepts.

Staggering your entrance to make sure you are not side by side is a wise choice.

Yes, "staggering while wearing blinkers" (also referred to by some as blinders) is how some people operate a motor vehicle...............:shocked:

Bill :1rotfl:

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That tricycle is sounding better and better!:laugh:

I am not sure what you mean by staggering. You never do anything but that. Remember rule 1. The person in the roundabout always has the right of way. So if a car is already there, regardless or which lane, you should wait until they pass to enter.

The problem being discussed is two cars approach the roundabout side by side. No one is in the roundabout so both enter. The car in the left lane takes the 90 degree exit. They broke the law. If only going 90 degrees, ALWAYS enter from the right lane.

This is really simple. Think of a roundabout as two four lane roads arriving at a four way stop sign. If you wanted to go right, you would always be in the right lane. If you wanted to go left you would always be in the left lane. And if you wanted to go straight through, either lane would work. And you would never enter the intersection when another car was already there. Treat a roundabout exactly the same way and you should never have a problem.

I always admire your logical mind.:ho:

I took it to mean when two cars can legally enter at the same time perhaps you hold back a little an let the other guy get a car length on you so you can see their intentions (just in case they aren't so logical!).

Is it just my imagination or have we usually put this annual topic to bed by mid April?

:gc:

I hate to say this, but with the number of cars we've experienced, while we entered into the round-about on the right, that were passing us on our left and in a big a** hurry, I'd have to say that unfortunately... "IT AIN'T GONNA HAPPEN!" http://www.gloryofwar.com/forums/pub...o%20smiley.gif

You can talk all day about how everyone should know the roundabout rules and how simple they are but it’s a waste of time. The fact is that TV is one of the worst places to have installed over 30 of these multi-lane roundabouts.

Think about it. Each year, thousands of people from all over the globe migrate here during the winter. Many are first timers and if they aren’t renting in TV, they’re renting in nearby communities and come to TV for a day or two to have a look see. Many of these drivers are from places that either don’t have these roundabouts or have never encountered them. So when the approach a roundabout for the first time, they tend to gravitate to the right lane while they size up the situation. Then they enter the roundabout when the rightmost lane is clear because that’s what they (and most drivers) do when they merge onto a multilane highway that has a yield sign. And that of course sets up the accident when the drive in the left lane attempts to take the next exit.

If you really want a solution that works, make the roundabouts single lane. Then the only rule is to yield the vehicles already in the roundabout.

The next best solution is what Sgvegas suggested. Restrict the right lane to right turn only with the use of barriers. Of course that requires a decision for correct lane selection and there will be the occasional nimrod that attempts to correct their mistake by stopping and backing up.

Well, I personally believe the addition of the roundabouts in TV are a stroke of genius...multi-lane or single...doesn't matter. They keep traffic moving... could you imagine driving up Buena Vista or Morse if the roundabouts were converted to 4-way stops or traffic signals....YIKES! For the thousands of cars that navigate through them daily, there are very few [if any] accidents.


Just saying....

If you look back and check the number of threads and posts on this subject, it should be pretty obvious that there is a problem here. Not sure where or when you travel in TV, but I’ve seen lots of near misses here in roundabouts.

My issue is not with roundabouts per se, but with the multilane ones. And I’m not advocating replacing them with lights or 4 way stops. I’m simply suggesting that they could be made safer given the highly transient nature of the residents and renters in TV, even if it results in a slight reduction in traffic flow.

Yes but are there a lot of accidents or just antidotes from TOTV? I like the roundabouts but I know enough to assume that others don't know how to drive in them so I'm very cautious.

TIP:
All the above OK but if you find yourself in the left lane in the roundabout and want to go right look at the cars tires you are trying to pass before turning right. If the tires are not being turned to right, wait for the car on the right to pass.
inholmdel