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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Please help me with driving round this roundabout every day. It's all going wrong!!

62 replies

InternationalFlight · 20/05/2009 13:31

There is a rubbish roundabout near us and I have to negotiate it regularly.

I'm an experienced driver but it's started to be a real problem lately, and I don't know how to get it right. I've been beeped at several times, cut up nearly every time recently. It must be me I think.

Ok bear with me.

This is a fairly hefty roundabout. It has four exits...the one I approach from, has three lanes.

You can either turn left, by going into the left hand lane/bus lane at the last few metres. This is popular.

You can go straight ahead, which is what I usually want to do.

Or you can go right, which isn't popular as it doesn't go anywhere much.

So people going straight ahead tend to use both the central and right hand lanes on approach.
With me so far? Good

Ok, so I am approaching the roundabout in the right hand lane. The way is clear, there is a gap in the traffic coming from my right.
I start to enter the roundabout, remaining in the inside lane (closest to the middle island). However the person on my left also wishes to go straight across, and cuts in front of me as I go forward - so I have to wait for them to go before I can, thus missing the gap or getting hooted from the now-present car coming from my right.

It is also fairly difficult to get into this lane from the previous roundabout so I tend to use the central lane, which is even worse:

I'm now approaching in the central lane. Some cars in my lane are turning off into the bus lane to take a left turn - fine. Others are behind me wanting to go straight across. There are plenty of cars on my right, also wishing to go straight ahead.

I wait for a gap, and start to drive into the roundabout. At this point I am now given to total panic. This is because the car on my right wishes to take the inner lane (next to the central island) and the car on my left, which is going left, is taking the outer part of the roundabout. So I am stuck, being cut up on both sides by other cars. I just generally STOP now and wait for them to move, whilst getting hooted at by all of them plus the cars behind me.

I seemingly cannot win. I think the problem is that there are three lanes of traffic going into a two lane roundabout.

What can I do? It's making me want to give up driving completely as I feel so unsafe, it's kind of dog eat dog especially at rush hour.
I must be doing something wrong.

I stop at the roundabout, and wait

OP posts:
Original poster
InternationalFlight · 20/05/2009 13:32

Scratch the last line, don';t know where that came from!!

OP posts:
themoon66 · 20/05/2009 13:36

If you want to go straight ahead, is THAT road one or two lanes?

Chloe55 · 20/05/2009 13:36

Generally the right hand lane is for 3rd exits or more only so I would stick with the middle lane (regardless as to whether you can use the right lane) as surely you must then get right of way to traffic sutting up your lane from the right.

Roundabouts tend to become a bit of a nightmare though if you have bad experiences with them - I have one near me where dh always stalls the car due to a bad experience in the past.

Enter it confidently but just be aware of your surroundings.

5Foot5 · 20/05/2009 13:37

Could you not go in the right hand lane then go all the way around the roundabout instead of straight on straight away, but then change lanes when you were round once.

pinkstarfish · 20/05/2009 13:38

Stay in the right hand lane, get on the roundabout, go all the way around, then take the required exit

It does sound a nightmare, a 3 lane road going onto a 2 lane roundabout is asking for stress really!

pinkstarfish · 20/05/2009 13:39

great minds 5foot5

themoon66 · 20/05/2009 13:39

LOL at dizzy inducing suggestions of going round twice!

ProfYaffle · 20/05/2009 13:39

Ditto 5foot5, I do that a lot. I wouldn't get in the right hand lane to go straight ahead but dh would!

PaulaAtMummyKnowsBest · 20/05/2009 13:39

you don't live in london colney do you?

The roundabout there is a complete nightmare and i am cut up everytime i use it

southeastastra · 20/05/2009 13:40

start off in middle lane, then move to outide (farest from middle) to go straight over.

if you want to go straight across middle or left hand lane is where you need to be. not right hand lane

themoon66 · 20/05/2009 13:40

OP has not told us yet if the road she wants to go into is one or two lanes.... this is VERY important.

southeastastra · 20/05/2009 13:40

ha which one paula? the macdonalds one? that's funny.

you should try the magic roundabout at hemel. has seven roundabouts

Seeline · 20/05/2009 13:41

I'm a great believer in over-indicating on roundabouts. At least then everyone is aware of what you are trying to do, even if you have no idea what others are intending. I have noticed that there are a number of models of car on the roads these days that are the economy versions - they don't come with any form of indicator at all. This is the primary source of confusion at roundabouts

springlamb · 20/05/2009 13:47
  1. Is the lane that the left-turners used marked as an only for left-turners lane. If not, use that. At the last minute before you enter the roundabout indicate right, then as you pass the left exit indicate left. Just look like someone a bit confused about where they're going, but being very safe by indicating all the time.
  2. Wear a large hat with artificial flowers all over it.
  3. Email the council asking them to sort out the roundabout, mark the right lane as right turn only and the left as left turn only, or cut off the left corner so that the turning left traffic never really enters the roundabout (at which point you start using the middle lane).
Original poster
InternationalFlight · 20/05/2009 13:47

Loving the idea of going round twice fantastic!!

Ok the opposite road (ie where we all want to go) is two lanes. Therefore the people wanting the RH lane over there take the inner lane on the roundabout.

The ones wanting the LH lane take the outer lane (or try to)

SEA you have it, that's what I thought, BUT the outer lane has ALWAYS got loads of the LH turning b*stards blocking it up, so I can't just do that. The LH turning is always chocka. There is a tailback slightly or massivley into the actual roundabout Every Time.

OP posts:
stripeypineapple · 20/05/2009 13:48

here is a very dull link to the section of the highway code giving the rules for roundabouts.

Enjoy

Original poster
InternationalFlight · 20/05/2009 13:48

Springlamb LOLOL
Themoon sorry, I was on the blower and didn't expect ONE reply let alone 14!!

OP posts:
Original poster
InternationalFlight · 20/05/2009 13:49

Lol Stripey @ enjoy

OP posts:
springlamb · 20/05/2009 13:50

There's a roundabout that terrifies my sister. She can't go near it.
She's now a millionaire because this means she cannot visit Matalan, Homebase, Marks & Spencer, DFS, McDonalds, Argos, Mothercare, Next, the cinema, or the bowling alley.
It has its benefits.

Original poster
InternationalFlight · 20/05/2009 13:51

Oooh that picture at the bottom of that page looks like someone made it up as a project on HELL

OP posts:
themoon66 · 20/05/2009 13:51

OK - if the road you are heading for is a 2-laner than you can chose the middle or right lane.

If it were me, I would chose the right lane, but only if I had a very nippy car and thought I could make it across faster than the person beside me in the middle lane.

I would, therefore, naturally take the middle lane, but make sure I keep well left, so as not to trap the person on my right between my car and the actually roundabout.

Does that make sense?

stripeypineapple · 20/05/2009 13:52

You don't by any chance live in the same village as me do you?

London Colney in St Albans.

It has one of the worst roundabouts where every bastard from the county converges to cut everyone else up, daily.

BCNS · 20/05/2009 13:52

middlelane.. and look determined indicating the whole way

skramble · 20/05/2009 13:53

Yup lots of indicating,

trouble is most people don't actually go round roundabouts and follow where the lanes would be, they tend to go in straight lines even when cars are next to them.

We have the "everybody 20 secs to change lane" roundabout, its a spiral with lanes marked all round it and traffic lights, still get people that drive straight accross instead of following the lanes. Nightmare when its the trucks going for the ferry they take no prisoners

I can't figure out why you are being tooted at though, really only happens when you cut up people who do do it right, thos whou cut up tend to zoom on and don't even bother tooting, so it makes me wonder if you are doing something wrong, trouble is it could be right according to highway code, but local convention.

Maybe you are just going too slow and therefore prople feel you are holding them up. Don't know?

What kind of car do you drive, in my old 4x4 (not a gas guzzler on poncey) I would get cut up and hooted more and and never let out at junctions. In my big bashed up van they avoid me like the swine flu and I often get let out of junctions.

themoon66 · 20/05/2009 13:54

If you are going straight across DO NOT indicate as you enter the roundabout!!!

You should then indicate left when you are past all the other turns.

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