Roundabout CFery

[PolkaDotMankini]

Yes, there is a diagram.

This is on my commute to work. I join the motorway from a feeder road with three lanes. The first two lanes take you left on the roundabout (the way I want to go). The third lane takes you round a roundabout to join the motorway going in the other direction. There isn't an option to go straight on. Everyone joins from the same direction on the feeder road, which only goes to the motorway.

There are always long rush hour queues in the first two lanes. Some drivers cut the queues by zooming up the right-hand lane, going all the way around the roundabout and cutting into the queuing traffic joining the slip road.

AIBU to think this is CFery and refuse to let them in?

Or they've been going the wrong way up the motorway...

But by blocking them you are still blocking the roundabout.

But that is how roundabouts work, you have no choice but to give way. There must be some people coming from the other side anyway.

I would do the same really.

I think they are CFs and they aren’t helping the situation. Surely they’re causing the massive tailback in the left two lanes, which can’t move because of this dick move (legal or not)?

It must also cause congestion around the roundabout?

If everyone did it, there would be no traffic at all in the first 2 lanes.
Using all 3 lanes, spreads the load a bit?

No, because there are only 2 exit lanes. It's causing an extra merge, which must be slower for the traffic overall than if the people going left were all in two lanes with few cars joining from the roundabout.

It's CFery, but unfortunately legal.

As to people saying 'why should I wait in traffic'... Er, because you're part of the traffic. Unless you've got blue lights you're not more important than other road users.

"There must be some people coming from the other side anyway."

From the diagram, there can't be any people coming from 'the other side' which would cause a gap in the traffic?

I always do that. 😬

Looks like they need to change it to the type of layout where at least one of the left lanes filters left just ahead of the roundabout proper and then there's a merge after.

Unfortunately with perfectly legal road CFy your only option is to join them.

Oh I have the WORST roadrage and this would irk me at first but then I'd probably find I would do it as it's a completely legitimate manoeuvre (not letting them in would be incorrect).

As long as they're not going up the right lane then cutting to turn into the left lane at the queue, they're fine to do it.

you're refusing to concede to traffic to your right on a roundabout because you don't approve of its motives?

If you have an accident I hope that washes with your insurance as they'd throw the book at you!

As others have said its not cricket but its completely legal, you on the other hand are not.

The endpoint of this if everyone things it's fine is that the left lane proceeds sensibly round the corner, everyone else goes in lane 3 and does a pointless loop-the-loop round the roundabout and lane 2 isn't used.

'Merge in turn'
only works if the traffic in the outside lane matches speed to the traffic in the inside lane.
When it does, it reduces traffic in both lanes.
If it doesn't, then it's literally just using 'merge in turn as an excuse to push in and actually creates/worsens the tailback in the inside lane.

This roundabout manoeuvre is similar. There are two lanes available. If you use a third Lane, marked as right turn only, I order to jump the queuing traffic and turn left, then you are worsening the traffic in the two other lanes.

Acceptable if you are avoiding queuing on the motorway, otherwise CF at its finest.

The only reason (other than pushing in) someone would join from the right at the roundabout is if they came off the motorway by accident and wanted to rejoin.

Or if they are changing direction from northbound to southbound. They are entitled to do both those things and not allowing cars joining your lane to feed in is dickish and dangerous, regardless of why they are coming from that direction.

@picklemewalnuts yes but its the people that started queuing at 800m that have caused the problem. Half of them should be in the merge lane. By all queuing in the wrong lane you send the problem much further back. Near me there is chaos at a roundabout way back from the closed lane - stopping people that aren't even going near the closed lane getting around the roundabout. People always look at the queue forward forgetting that it is tailing behind them too.

The endpoint of this if everyone things it's fine is that the left lane proceeds sensibly round the corner, everyone else goes in lane 3 and does a pointless loop-the-loop round the roundabout and lane 2 isn't used.

Well, to be precise it would be the traffic being split into 3 then rejoining into two lanes.

Depending on how much and how long the peak traffic lasts that would either smooth out the flow, allowing all traffic to move faster or have no effect (unless someone is a complete arse and blocks the roundabout).

Right, but if you drive toward the front then match speed and crawl alongside the traffic you will facilitate merging, prevent people behind you exacerbating the problem, and help resolve the blockage.

There are two ways of being a muppet- joining too soon, and queue jumping.
Or you can demonstrate what 'merge in turn' actually means and hope people learn!

The volume of traffic is already causing tailbacks. By going top the right hand lane you're going to eventually increase the amount of traffic on the roundabout. Eventually all those trying to skip out on the queuing are going to add to the queue. So now you're stuck and you're clocking the traffic. It's a dick move, be patient and just fucking queue.

Don’t know what you mean?

People coming from the other side would join the same place as those that swing around the roundabout surely?

If people merged in turn, it wouldn't be a problem.

Nothing stopping anyone else doing it 🤷🏼‍♀️

I love the way the people who do this blame the people in the queue.

It’s smart to go around the roundabout and avoid the queue surely?

I hate people who purposely drive down the wrong lane and demand to be let in at the bottom, but the roundabout thing is totally fine IMO

Well, to be precise it would be the traffic being split into 3 then rejoining into two lanes.

Depending on how much and how long the peak traffic lasts that would either smooth out the flow, allowing all traffic to move faster or have no effect (unless someone is a complete arse and blocks the roundabout).

I very much doubt this splitting and merging smooths the flow at all. The splits and merges all require drivers to check, manoeuvre, check, manoeuvre ... it'll inevitably slow things down overall.

It's a dick move, but two wrongs don't make a right and the OP can't legally not give the CF queue jumpers priority when they rejoin the left turners.

The other somewhat similar thing that satnavs are blindly encouraging now is if there's slow moving traffic on a motorway,hopping off and on again at junctions. The 'hoppers' may gain a couple of minutes but increasing the volume merging back onto the motorway will slow that down, plus it may well negatively impact other traffic on the junction.