[Bizdoc]

On the way to the Christmas parade, encountered three Tour de France re-enacters who had decided to stop and have a pleasant conversation in the traffic circle! (no, not in the grass - in the actual paved part of the traffic circle). Not a good idea guys.

[CFrance]

I can top that. My husband encountered a driver who stopped in the traffic circle at Buena Vista and St. Charles to look at her phone--texting? answering? using the gps function? Who knew!

[Madelaine Amee]

I too, was in a traffic circle this week when an out of State car came to a dead stop in front of me. I completely understand that they had no idea where they were or what to do, but their dead stop almost killed me! Just keep moving guys, I really don't care where, just keep moving.

[billethkid]

fortunately these folks are in the minority that either do not have situation awareness and that other more numerous group that just don't care about others or rules/etc.

btk

[kittygilchrist]

Just back from Italy, where drivers of buses, cars, trucks, and a zillion scooters and motorcycles COLLABORATE to share tiny streets in cities and the crazy curves on mountains.
It is a thing of beauty, a symphony. Where there are no crosswalks or signals, which is almost everywhere in the cities, pedestrians simply step boldly into the traffic and all the vehicles stop to let those on foot cross. Drivers expect to have at least a few inches of distance between vehicles and can all parallel park in impossibly small spots.

Here in the USA, we want to be first and hog space and make everybody else drive like we want them to and be out of patience with anybody not following the rules and how dare they pause in my way and stay the hell several feet from my car. and I am first to admit I am describing myself before I saw a different culture and philosophy of how to drive.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by Madelaine Amee

I too, was in a traffic circle this week when an out of State car came to a dead stop in front of me. I completely understand that they had no idea where they were or what to do, but their dead stop almost killed me! Just keep moving guys, I really don't care where, just keep moving.

Happened to us yesterday. Thank goodness we could stop behind them. They stopped to let someone IN.


Be careful. ALL. The congestion and the bad driving will be rampant soon.

[jnieman]

This past week I was driving in the inner lane of the circle and standing right in front of me in the blind area were three workers who were there to plant flowers. There were no cones no warning at all and they were standing in the street chatting. I slammed on my brakes, they hopped up on the curb. Scared the crap out of me.

[jmarkohio]

A couple of years ago my wife watched someone stop in a circle and theN BACK UP!

[DaleMN]

Originally Posted by jnieman

This past week I was driving in the inner lane of the circle and standing right in front of me in the blind area were three workers who were there to plant flowers. There were no cones no warning at all and they were standing in the street chatting. I slammed on my brakes, they hopped up on the curb. Scared the crap out of me.

Figuratively speaking......

[manaboutown]

Originally Posted by jmarkohio

A couple of years ago my wife watched someone stop in a circle and theN BACK UP!

They must have had a death wish!

[CFrance]

Originally Posted by kittygilchrist

Just back from Italy, where drivers of buses, cars, trucks, and a zillion scooters and motorcycles COLLABORATE to share tiny streets in cities and the crazy curves on mountains.
It is a thing of beauty, a symphony. Where there are no crosswalks or signals, which is almost everywhere in the cities, pedestrians simply step boldly into the traffic and all the vehicles stop to let those on foot cross. Drivers expect to have at least a few inches of distance between vehicles and can all parallel park in impossibly small spots.

Here in the USA, we want to be first and hog space and make everybody else drive like we want them to and be out of patience with anybody not following the rules and how dare they pause in my way and stay the hell several feet from my car. and I am first to admit I am describing myself before I saw a different culture and philosophy of how to drive.

I agree with you to some extent, but this traffic circle thing is a real safety issue. And we in the States have a different manner of driving than those in other countries--not right or wrong, in my opinion, just differrent.

It's a different mindset in each country. For instance, in his book The Titanic Awards, about the world's worst traffic mishaps, Doug Lansky says about driving in Naples, Italy:

"When I rented a car in Napoli, the manager at the Hertz office told me 'Driving here is like a video game. You just have to relax, stop thinking, and feel it in your stomach' The traffic signals were especially tricky as the red, yellow and green colored lights were obeyed no more than Christmas decorations. Red lights were run as a matter of decent driving."

Yet we found driving in Italy to be fairly easy, but we were not driving in the big cities. Driving in Paris was a nightmare. Their traffic circles--each has a different set of rules, mostly made up by the natives. There are driving schools geared teaching you how to navigate each circle.

[rubicon]

Originally Posted by kittygilchrist

Just back from Italy, where drivers of buses, cars, trucks, and a zillion scooters and motorcycles COLLABORATE to share tiny streets in cities and the crazy curves on mountains.
It is a thing of beauty, a symphony. Where there are no crosswalks or signals, which is almost everywhere in the cities, pedestrians simply step boldly into the traffic and all the vehicles stop to let those on foot cross. Drivers expect to have at least a few inches of distance between vehicles and can all parallel park in impossibly small spots.

Here in the USA, we want to be first and hog space and make everybody else drive like we want them to and be out of patience with anybody not following the rules and how dare they pause in my way and stay the hell several feet from my car. and I am first to admit I am describing myself before I saw a different culture and philosophy of how to drive.

Kittygillchrist" You didn't have to go to Italy to see that display of beauty just to NYC

[RedChariot]

Yesterday we were driving on Pinellas towards Brownwood and a car from Maine was driving in the golf cart lane. Did he think this was the shoulder of the road? Finally he made a right turn. How do you explain that with the obvious painted signs on the pavement of the golf cart lane?

[clod]

Stopping inappropriately is not peculiar to round- abouts. Stopping anyplace where there is no stop sign (gate crossing, tunnel) is not expected and is dangerous. Also, placing one wheel on the grass does not constitute pulling off of the road.

[jnieman]

Originally Posted by RedChariot

Yesterday we were driving on Pinellas towards Brownwood and a car from Maine was driving in the golf cart lane. Did he think this was the shoulder of the road? Finally he made a right turn. How do you explain that with the obvious painted signs on the pavement of the golf cart lane?

Possibly he was making sure that no golf cart passed him on the right when he was making his right turn. I've seen this done before.