Bicycles on rotary question
 

I was driving on Buena Vista going south to Brownwood yesterday. I was in the right lane and planned to stay in that lane to go straight through the rotary. When I approached to first exit to the right in the rotary a bicycle with 2 people on it approached the rotary and seemed like they were going to slow down and wait for me to pass, then a the last moment cut in front of me and across to go another exit in the rotary. I stepped on the brakes and let them through after laying on the horn after my wife was screaming. After the horn went off I think the woman in the back of the bike made so e kind of gesture to me. If I would have not been payig attention it could have been a very messy deal.

My question is, did I do something wrong? Do bikes have some kind right of way that I do not know about or should allow for? Seems to me to be dangerous to slow down to allow anything to enter the rotary. I was under the impression after taking the AARP safe driving class in TV that all vehicles in the rotary have the right of way over any entering the rotary. Just trying to do the right thing and make sure this does not happen again.

What is a rotary? If a bike is on the road they have the same rights as you do and obey the same laws as a car.

If you are in the rotary, all vehicles on road, including bikes, entering the rotary MUST (sure they will!) yield to you!

I use the rule of thumb that they will pull out on me so I proceed with extreme caution!
_

As you describe the situation, you were in the right. The cyclists have the same rights and responsibilities as any other vehicle operators. In the case that you described, I am presuming the cyclists were on a regular 2-wheeled tandem. Sometimes, it seems that 2-wheeled cyclists are willing to take too great risks to maintain their momentum than, perish the thought, stop and put their feet down. For that reason, when I'm driving in roundabouts, I assume that 2-wheeled cyclists I encounter may take the right of way, even if they are not legally entitled to it. I yield, in the interest of safety.

Glad that nobody was injured.

Here's where the problem lies. They should not have the same rights on the road until they are forced to buy a vehicle registration just like everything else that uses our roadways.

How about pedestrians who ALWAYS have the right of way. Should they be registered too??

Did I read you right? You were in the right lane planning on going straight? If they crossed from the left lane ahead of you to exit...then you'd have been in the wrong. Not sure if I got your "word picture" correct or not. Also would pretain if they'd been a motor vehicle. Cars in the right lane are to yield.....

OMG! Nobody's screwing any license plate into my butt!!! :22yikes:
I read it that the bike was entering into the roundabout from the right and not exiting from the left lane! Bike was certainly in the wrong. It's possible that the biker was mistakenly using the general rule on right-of-way in this situation, where the vehicle on the right has the right-of-way at an intersection.

So the 50,000 golf carts in TV need registrations too !!! Not to mention a personal license to cross the street to get my mail.

The 50k golf carts dont drive on the streets. :mad:

As LAshby50 says, the cyclists approached the rotary from the right, they were not in the rotary. The cyclists should have yielded the right of way. But more often than not, as was also stated by Chazz, it is too much of an imposition for many cyclists to stop and have to put their feet down to yield the right of way so they take chances hoping to get away with sneaking in. IMO, LAshby50 did the correct thing by yielding to safety and letting the cyclist get away with it.

They don't???:confused:

I may be ignorant here, but why is a bicycle in a roundabout anyway? Aren't they supposed to stay on the golf cart lanes? Just curious as when I was visiting, the golf cart rental man said that golf carts are never to be in a roundabout, so why wouldn't the bikes stay out of them, too?

I agree! It really doesn't matter who has the right away if someone is killed or hurt. it always pays to act like everyone else on the road is just plain nuts

Legally, a bicycle is not a motor vehicle as are golf carts! Bicyclists can ride their bikes anywhere.

They don't?
Better check the Sumter County local laws. They say a golf cart can be driven on any roadway that has a posted speed limit of 30 MPH or less. That would include about 99 % of the roads in The Villages

I ride with one of the local bike clubs weekly. There is no excuse not granting the right away to the car in the round about.

And I dare say, virtually everyone of the 400 members of the club has a drivers licnese and pay road taxes.

You can't be serious ! !

Then I did read wrong...so my 1st post was also incorrect.

To the lady who stated the folks at the golf cart store said "under NO circumstances should a cart be in the round-about". Well that would be true "IF" the cart isn't street legal. Street Legal carts may go on any roadway where it's posted 35 mph or less. They also may cross any other roadway, but not drive on it (ie 466) according to Nehemiah Wolf (we asked him) at the sherriff's office.

Bicycles belong on the multi-modal trails, period. And helmets should be mandatory. Automobiles always have the right-of-way here, so bicyclists and gold cart drivers need to understand that and not assume that the big car will let them in and that they can do whatever they want to do.

See the problem here is that the woman in the back was annoyed because her view never changes and was just venting :D

Apparently it doesn't matter what Florida's statutes say. People can make up their own rules here in Florida's friendliest home town.

well, travel guy - 50 state legislatures disagree with you.

It sounds like you mean YOU always have the right of way. Well, you'd better hope the next 18-wheeler you encounter lets your puny car in, based on your assumption that automobiles always have the right of way...even when they don't.

Appreciate all the posts. I would still do the same thing in the future. Being right and in an accident is not a place I want to be.

It never fails, that someone wants to always blame a cyclist for something. It does not matter how, when, what or why it always seems that the cars can do no wrong. So why even post about it.
This is a retirement community so I thought after working here for the last 25 years. You would never know by the way people act and drive here. I guess the old lady that was driving thru the cart tunnel under 466 at CR-101 or the Lady driving down the MMP at Brownwood was 100% in the right and all others were are at fault for being in there way. Imagine that.
The only thing I can say is, Well I never.......... :faint:

There are so many people here that do not even have a clue as the rules of the road or even how to drive. That goes for all, Cars, trucks, golf carts, cyclist, scooters,, roller bladers,, and so on..

Retirement: relax slow down at enjoy why you live here. :clap2:

There are so many people here that do not even have a clue as the rules of the road or even how to drive. That goes for all, Cars, trucks, golf carts, cyclist, scooters,, roller bladers,, and so on..
Sad, but SO True!

The only part of your post that makes any sense at all is that helmets should be mandatory.:ohdear:BTW, where can I get one of those "GOLD" carts?:popcorn:

:agree:

Just went thru the Morse gate (going north towards 441); the driver in front of me slammed on his brakes to be 'courteous' and allow a golf cart to cross in front of him; fortunately there was adequate space between us, and the road was not so slick from the rain. Still, he should not have done that as the golf cart was stopped (he had a stop sign). Courtesy is one thing, endangering other drivers is another.

I just tuned in to this thread, Vinny, and note your question has not been answered. I assume you know the answer by now but if not , a rotary is a roundabout here and traffic circle in some areas of the country.

The subject of roundabouts is a hot and popular subject on this forum. It is right up there with dog poop and the IRS/bond issue.

I agree!

Sure they do. They ride on just about every street in TV. One other point to make is why does everyone complain about a few bikes in the wrong when I see folks in cars cutting other cars off on a regular basis and no one seems to complain about that on TOTV. The cyclist are such a small percentage compared to the carts and cars here. We all make bad choices sometimes when we drive cars, carts and bikes. But I think for the most part, everyone tries to do the right thing. We just need to be a little less in a hurry.

If you enter a roundabout planning to go straight through ( to stay on Buena Vista, for example) I think you are supposed to be in the left (inside) lane. The right lane is for vehicles exiting at the first exit. Am I right? if not someone please set me straight.

Green sign at each roundabout has a diagram showing:
Turn left, left lane
Turn right, right lane
Go straight, either lane

It amazes me that people can't follow simple signs. It's not hard, folks, really.

:duck::sigh::spoken:

You're exactly right! Generally, if I'm going straight through, I prefer to be in the right lane. The reason is to avoid the, too often, situation of drivers in the right lane illegally going 3/4 around the roundabout (essentially making a left) and cutting me off, or worse. Of course, staying in the right lane subjects one to the left lane drivers who immediately change into the right lane as soon as they go through the roundabout, without accounting for the cars already in the right lane.

Don't you people understand that it didn't matter to the bike people who had the right of way. They just wanted to be dead right. Lets see! a fee hundred pounds ver's several tons of car. You can say what you will, feel what you want. In the end the accident will happen. Everyone will feel bad and give reason of who was right and wrong. The people that get hurt are on the bike. So do I make a suggestion on how to solve this. Nope, Just hope I don't know the people on the bike that are dead.

Umm.....yes they do. They may not drive on the larger streets that have round abouts, but they drive on many of the streets in The Villages.

No. Go read the hundreds of roundabout posts.