OT- I was only going 20 he said...

Don-Wi · Dec 26, 2009

On our way home last night, we came upon a car that lost it in the roundabout that was iced up, and a bunch of other passer-by's had stopped to lend a hand. I figured since it was Christmas I'd stop as well to see if one more guy would be able to get it out of the snow.

We tried, but that car wasn't going anywhere. Seemed like once he planted it in the snow, he put it in reverse and tried to punch it, instead of stopping then and there to start digging out. That's when he said wat kinda ruined my whole good will to help him.

" I was only going about 20 MPH..." To me that says that he was going way to fast in the roundabout in the first place, as you're only supposed to do about 15 on a clear day. Seemed like he had more money than common sense. He got back in his car, called up a friend who he thought owed him a favor. His friend said no and gave him a number for a wrecker. I gave him another number I had on my phone for a guy I use, and went on my way as the wind was picking up and it was getting pretty bad out. The whole time the guy was b!tching up a storm about the roundabouts too. I kinda like them as they're really easy to use and traffic actually flows pretty well in them.

I know there was probably more I could have done, but when he said how fast he was going, it just kinda put me off and made me want to get home. On a much gentler corner on our way I noticed I was slowed down to about 15 for that one, (a mini-van was lanched into the bank on that one too) and I could still feel it wanted to let go. I think I did about 10 MPH in that roundabout.....

Donovan from Wisconsin

Goose · Dec 26, 2009

One time I was creeping along about 15 with a 2wd pickup on glare ice on a blacktop highway. Some idiot came flying up behind me. When he tried to switch lanes to pass me, he lost it and actually passed me in the left lane going backwards.

He hit the left ditch backwards in a shower of snow. I just kept poking along for another half mile till I could turn off onto gravel where there was some traction. I might have stopped, but I figured anyone that dumb probably wouldn't even appreciate it.

Michael Soldan · Dec 26, 2009

I'm with you Goose, everytime some dumb azz passes me on treacherous roads, I make up my mind that I won't be helping them when I find them down the road in the ditch, I don't even slow down for them..and its actually happened a couple of times..if I'm driving slowly, I am driving as fast as the road conditions allow and apparently there are "citiots" that don't understand that, we rural folk do.

sd pete · Dec 26, 2009

What is a round a bout? I never heard of them before.

msb · Dec 26, 2009

Place a circle over an intersection and erase what is inside the circle is the easiest way to describe a roundabout. Everybody do-si-do to the right. Just don't get caught if a car on the left is already out in the circle.Once you enter the circle, you have the right of way. They are putting them in around here like there is no tommorow here in central In.

john in la · Dec 26, 2009

Some roundabouts also have a threw way made of bridges so if you are not changing directions you do not need to enter the roundabout.

MasseyTodd · Dec 26, 2009

I agreee with everyone on here. No longer a Town Justice, but when I was, only a few years back, a man was arrested for DWI, and Property damage. He went around a sharp wintery corner, the rear of his truck hit the guardrail, damaged the truck and guardrail. He not only wanted the charges dropped, but for the Town to pay to repair his truck. No Go!!! - except to County Jail.

JMS/.MN · Dec 26, 2009

Same here...interesting concept is that usually, the driver to the right has the right-of-way. Not so in a traffic circle, or now called round-about. Driver in the circle (left) has the right of way. First one I encountered was at Ft. Bragg, NC, 1965- then saw no more until recently here, Metro and non-metro areas. Can ease traffic flow, but takes some getting used to- especially the ROW concept.

Leroy · Dec 26, 2009

Talking about putting them in a town 20 mile from here, never heard them called that. There is one in a town about 50 mile away that we called a traffic circle and it is absoutely dangerous, if I can I will bypass it as it is that bad.

Dick L · Dec 26, 2009

Angola Indiana has one. We always just called it the mound.
Being close to Angola and it being my parents main shopping town when I started driving the (mound) was not a mystery and never has ever gave me a single problem. Fastest way to move traffic thru a busy intersection. The only thing that slows it down are the people that do not understand what a yield sign means. What yield does not mean is soon everything will come to a stop every where and then I will be able to go or I have seen five cars go thru it must be my turn and drive into someone. It means when an opening appears get your car moving into that opening and stay moving until you exit the circle.
Angola did complicate the traffic flow when they passed a law that you must stop and let people cross that are standing at the curb when exiting the circle. (pedestrian right away)
I still like it better than the four way stops. A great number of people can not get how the four way stop is suppose to work. (It is on the drivers test.)
You do see from time to time out of state cars that think it works like a four way stop.

RN · Dec 26, 2009

Roundabout sometimes refferred to as traffic circle -or from Britain a traffic circus. British term appropriate for the funny traffic incidents but woudln"t be term a politician would like to use. Was common in England(Pickadilly Circus) and Europe in places with a spiderweb street layout (like Paris) instead of square grid pattern. Square grid intersections got "circle/circus" to improve traffic flow as alternative to stop and go, they seem to work most of the time after people get used to them. Madison , Wi has a few more planned to use some federal stimulas money, Mt.Horeb has had some a couple years now, does eliminate stop signs on Trollway (<-that is not misspelling, is reference to tourist strip of Norski craft shops, restaurants with carved trolls and gnomes on signs). RN

fixerupper · Dec 26, 2009

I had my experience with a roundabout while driving a truck in Idaho Falls. Some of you probably know where it's at in the eastern part of town. I was hauling wheat to an elevator and was making three to four trips a day for ten days or so.

I had to go straight through but in order to go around the circle I had to swing out into the right turn lane so that my trailer wheels wouldn't go up over the curb around the circle. If I went over into the right turn lane too soon a car would sneak up on my left and would get squeezed by the left side of my trailer. If I stayed in the left too soon before getting into the right lane, a right turning car would sneak up on my right. Then a car coming across from the right or left would gun it to try to get across before I came through with the big slow truck and I would have to hit the brakes to avoid them. I finally turned into a bully and just rolled through whether anyone was coming or not, which is not the kind of guy I normally am.

I didn't realize how many women are fluent with the one finger salute until I drove that route for a few days. The scuttlebut was that a trucker has never been charged yet in a car-truck accident in that location.

When I was driving a pickup through the circle I didn't think it was such a bad setup. Jim

haymaker421 · Dec 26, 2009

Lucky!

CCer · Dec 26, 2009

One time there was a Hearse, carring a body, going west on Rt.30 in a nearby town, Came to the traffic circle, and got into the inside lane. The traffic was moving pretty good, and the Hearse was trapped there, and moving at a pretty good speed. Then the Hearse hit a manhole cover, the back door sprung open and the Coffin came out, and went sliding down the street. Somehow all the vehicles managed to avoid the box as it slid on down the street. Then it clipped a parking meter pole, and turned 90 degrees, went thru the doors of the Walgreens Drug Store, slid on down the center aisle. When it got to the back of the store, it hit the Pharmacy counter, the lid popped open, the Corpse sat up and asked "DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO STOP THIS COFFIN?"

e · Dec 26, 2009

HA! Look at that, folks are actually supposed to use their blinkers on a round about! What a concept! No one does that around here so you end up stopping and waiting to see where the idiot darts off. It's a little frustrating to be sitting 4-5 cars deep waiting to go into a round about since you no idea where the folks in the round about are headed.

Anonymous-0 · Dec 26, 2009

What's a roundabout?

Vito · Dec 26, 2009

rotary.

Vito

Anonymous-0 · Dec 26, 2009

Small towns in south Ontario are getting traffic circles now too.I think that the local municipal government like to put in features to mark their time as mayor ,reeve or chairman ,it is their legacy.

Riverslim · Dec 26, 2009

Highland, IL has two now, I like them.

Dblair · Dec 26, 2009

take a look at a map of Washington DC and you will see the traffic circles designed in the 18th century by a Frenchman .

Anonymous-0 · Dec 26, 2009

best thing since white bread. love em wish we had more of them went trought the one your talking about 2 times today love the new one after the bridge on the ave.the one on 55 and KK is nice safest thing they ever did

Spook · Dec 26, 2009

Lots of local folks around here hate roundabouts. Of course they hate pretty much anything that is new, like say, post 1900. I think they are a good idea.

Leroy · Dec 26, 2009

The one that is 50 mile away has stop lights in it and there are just so many cars at any time it is hard to see all of them.

Anonymous-0 · Dec 26, 2009

First of all, roudabouts are as old as 100 yrs or more. When I was a kid (30"s) they were called traffic circles and in the years after the war WWII they were done away with as dangerous. Now thry are back and still dangerous as mmost people on the road drive like mad fools and bullies. IMHO Henry

Bill(Wis) · Dec 26, 2009

Wisconsinites have pretty much gone ga-ga over round-a-bouts. It's like they never saw one before. The ones I've seen and used are way too small assuming any traffic ever comes along. Given the state of the economy that may never happen so all might be well. If any volume of traffic ever does show up they simply won't work. New Jersey was famous for traffic circles. I think the first one ever was built there in the 30s. They've been removing them as fast as they can. Why?? Ask any cop. Every police officer in the state attended at least one class entitled "How to unlock a circle".

buickanddeere · Dec 26, 2009

Talking about the roundy round between Waterloo and Elmira?

buickanddeere · Dec 26, 2009

Anybody ever tried driving around the Square in Goderich Ontario?It's on google maps.
It has to be a 1/4 mile around with the County Courthouse and flower gardens in the middle. Parallel parking around the inside lane against the gardens.Four lanes wide of traffic without lane lines. Then angle parking around the permiter to serve the stores on the outside of the Square.
The Square is reasonably round with eight streets in total with traffic entering and leaving.
Used to cruise around there on Halloween tossing eggs and firecrackers.

Walt Davies · Dec 26, 2009

The road geniuses out here decided to get rid of the Stop Light on 99W and 22 so they built this mess.
Want to go north on 99W from Dallas you have to go south into Rickreall then turn north at the light. Want to go north from 22e then go under 99W and cross it back to go north. Wonder why they left out that simple right turn exit off 22.
OH want to west on 22 from south on 99W your guess is as good as mine I have never figured it out.

So to make it all work they put in a light on 99W 1/2 mile south of 22 in Rickreall.
So now you are lost well so is anyone who tries to navigate this mess.
Walt

RayP(MI) · Dec 26, 2009

They're fun to teach driver ed students to navigate! Whoever came up with them should be tarred, feathred and run out of town on a rail.

Mel in SW Iowa · Dec 26, 2009

Xlnt dynamic diagram. Can you add a pickup pulling a 24' gooseneck and a 290 inch wheelbase
Kenworth pulling a 53'x 102" trailer to the diagram or are they allowed in traffic circles?

Don-Wi · Dec 26, 2009

Hey Marlowe-

If you've been on the one on 55 & KK you've been pretty close to my home farm. Our is just North of that intersection towards Kaukauna. Was a PITA when they were constructing it (both times) and we had to cut a trail through our fields to get to some land up KK a couple miles. The guy was stuck on the one on 55 & 10 that they just put in last year. Not a bit of the car was left in the round-about either.

When they were putting the circle in non of our family was convinced that it would work, but all in all I kinda like it now. It sure beats having to look around our neighbors bunker silo to try seeing the traffic coming from the south around the corner though. To many lives had been lost there and something had to be done. Even if there are more accidents there(which there isn't) they're at a much slower speed and therefore much less likelyhood of being fatal.

I even got filmed driving our 1855 w/ plow on it for some traffic safety video put out by a company in Minnesota. Not sure the title or what ever came of it, since I haven't heard from the guy since the day of filming. Maybe one day it'll show up on youtube....

Donovan from Wisconsin

Ken Macfarlane · Dec 27, 2009

Yeah I was there a couple of summers ago! Fun place when you have no idea driving into it!

Ken Macfarlane · Dec 27, 2009

Over here they are proving much safer than intersections. Cuts the number of accidents and people killed by a huge amount.

The worst problem with them here is listening to the old ladies complain because they never learned how to merge into traffic.

scot in pa · Dec 27, 2009

I've been around the mound many a time. Used to haul groceries out of Walmart in Auburn.

Roundabouts are rather easy if you just pay some attention. When I get into someplace where I know cars are going to try squeezing through like they can in some of these things I just center myself in the lanes I need.

Don-Wi · Dec 27, 2009

Sitting here watching the Packers game reminds me of all the crap the city of Green Bay got when they wanted to put in a bunch of them near Lambeau Feild. Don't know whatever happened there, but those people were so afraid of them that I think most if not all of the proposed locations got the ax.

Like I've said before at first I wasn't convinced either, but with how many lives have been saved at the intersection near our farm it has been proven to be a pretty good system of moving cars. Even in heavy traffic, like when the races let out every Thursday night , or when the track has their Eve of Destruction in late September (last event of the year).

I'm convinced.

blinwmiaol.com · Dec 27, 2009

yea, the biggest problem with that round about is all the pedestrian traffic. It doesn't seem so bad on the south and east side but it seems like there is always people wanting to walk infront of you on the north and west side. One other goofy thing about that round about is the parking on the NE corner. You can just pull out of the circle and there are a few parking spots between the circle and the business there. Kind of confuses some people to see cars pulling in or out of that parking area.

OT- I was only going 20 he said...

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