Driving around roundabouts

Daaryl

What is it with people not being able to use roundabouts properly? I have been cut up a load of times on roundabouts and it's mostly by women and had a few lads do it to me too, And they look at me like i'm in the wrong when i beep at them! Had a few encounters with old people driving and it's really frustrating, I do know that everybody isn't perfect at driving, But some Women and Men take the cake at driving dangerously on the roads and have not got a notion of what's going on around them while driving, From being pulled out on to getting cut up on roundabouts and they have the cheek to look at you like you done something wrong.

Rant Over!

punisher5112

I just hit them.

The old system of free licence and years of no proper trainning or even enforcement sure why would they worry themselves on how to drive correctly or indicate.

Supergurrier

In fairness alot of roundabouts exit onto two lanes so it is possible in normal use to get cut up and for nobody to be in the wrong.

the twelve o'clock rules doesn't always apply

Damien360

We have far too many roundabouts where local rules apply.

I don't see too many problems in Dublin with a few glaring exceptions like walkinstown but once you get out, even to Kildare, local rules often apply. Starting on the left lane and cutting across to the inside is regular and they could be going straight on or taking 3 o'clock exit.

I have started profiling the car ahead to guess what comes next. Avensis (mammy with kids), micra (ould wan), RAV4 (seems to be old mans new car of choice) and I wait for it to happen. You can even judge it on confidence of driver as they approach any junction.

edburg

punisher5112 wrote: »

I just hit them.

The old system of free licence and years of no proper trainning or even enforcement sure why would they worry themselves on how to drive correctly or indicate.

+1 on this.

Happens most days to me out and about and feel prepared for it.

The horse roundabout at mallow on n20/n72 junction is hilarious, it like a free for all no rules seem to apply.

myshirt

I was going round a roundabout in Limerick last week and the car behind me made it through before me. How? They drove around the wrong way.

Woman. Late 20's. Irish.

my3cents

The problem I find is with smaller roundabouts that that have two approach lanes and room for two cars side by side going around. Cars that are going straight across (second exit) start on the inside lane then just drive in a straight line towards their exit. Anyone turning right that dares use the inside of the roundabout gets cut up. On such roundabouts when turning right (3rd exit) I just assume I'll be cut up so hang back I with my hand covering the horn so I at least have the satisfaction of waking anyone up who doesn't see me and cuts me up.

Pops_20

my3cents wrote: »

The problem I find is with smaller roundabouts that that have two approach lanes and room for two cars side by side going around. Cars that are going straight across (second exit) start on the inside lane then just drive in a straight line towards their exit. Anyone turning right that dares use the inside of the roundabout gets cut up. On such roundabouts when turning right (3rd exit) I just assume I'll be cut up so hang back I with my hand covering the horn so I at least have the satisfaction of waking anyone up who doesn't see me and cuts me up.

This happened to me just tonight, and regularly. Same type of roundabout where the person going straight ahead cuts into the inside lane of the roundabout (even though lanes aren't painted onto road). I always hang back, having to make changes to my driving to account for other people's ignorance.

The most annoying part is that a relative who happened to be travelling behind me at the time says, 'I saw you nearly crashed into that taxi on the roundabout'. The majority of people just don't understand roundabouts.

agent graves

myshirt wrote:

Woman. Late 20's. Irish.

How do you know she was irish? And what difference does it make.

challengemaster

agent graves wrote: »

How do you know she was irish? And what difference does it make.

Eh, probably that you could (partially) forgive a foreigner for driving the wrong way around a roundabout in a temporary lapse of memory for which side of the road they should be on. At the very least you'd have some logical reason for why they did it.

With an Irish person it's just pure stupidity or ignorance.

Cabaal

challengemaster wrote: »

Eh, probably that you could (partially) forgive a foreigner for driving the wrong way around a roundabout in a temporary lapse of memory for which side of the road they should be on. At the very least you'd have some logical reason for why they did it.
H
With an Irish person it's just pure stupidity or ignorance.

But how do you know they're Irish from just looking at them in the car? Very easily could be any number of nationalities

aphex™

I worked in an office with a lot of Polish and Slovakians. They had no idea how roundabouts work and it had to be explained to them.

They don't really have roundabouts in Eastern Europe, but they might be starting to introduce a few now.

In Slovakia they have some really convoluted rule about one road joining a more important one, and the guy had trouble explaining it.

Boskowski

Probably that rule that is in effect all over central europe which is called 'right before left'. Meaning if you come to a junction with no sign, no lights and therefore two roads of similar ranking crossing each other you yield to the car to your right. if translated to Irish roads it would probably be the reverse - 'left before right'. But I never heard of this getting a mention here.

myshirt

agent graves wrote: »

How do you know she was irish? And what difference does it make.

It matters because of context. She should have known better having been an Irish driver, presumably of a few years experience on Irish roads, both as a passenger and a driver.

I know because I pulled into Chawkes petrol station after she did, thinking it was a young joyrider and I'd have to take the keys off him + call the guards. But it wasn't. It was a young woman, perfectly sober, and totally at a loss to the significance of what she had done. Anyway, I think she got it on mature reflection, she looked like she was going to cry, so I got my coffee and a packet of minstrels and I moved on.

But going back to the op, I do believe this is an example of the awful problem with women drivers like this on the roads.

Stheno

myshirt wrote: »

But going back to the op, I do believe this is an example of the awful problem with women drivers like this on the roads.

Just the women drivers?

Daaryl

Daaryl wrote: »

What is it with people not being able to use roundabouts properly? I have been cut up a load of times on roundabouts and it's mostly by women and had a few lads do it to me too, And they look at me like i'm in the wrong when i beep at them! Had a few encounters with old people driving and it's really frustrating, I do know that everybody isn't perfect at driving, But some Women and Men take the cake at driving dangerously on the roads and have not got a notion of what's going on around them while driving, From being pulled out on to getting cut up on roundabouts and they have the cheek to look at you like you done something wrong.

Rant Over!

If it is happening loads of times maybe you ARE doing something wrong.

pablo128

Deleted User wrote: »

If it is happening loads of times maybe you ARE doing something wrong.

I doubt it. I see it all the time too. And I agree with the dub/country thing too. Culchies simply have a panic attack when they come to a roundabout, often stopping and waving other traffic on when they themselves have the right of way.

my3cents

Deleted User wrote: »

If it is happening loads of times maybe you ARE doing something wrong.

Not necessarily. On one roundabout I use anyone that tries to use it correctly to make a right hand (3rd exit) turn gets cut up. All you can do is hang back and make sure your not in a position to get cut up by drivers that take the shortest route straight ahead (2nd exit).

The problem is no one seems to ever check their blind spot to see whats on their right... or left.

punisher5112

Drive like your dunk and they all seem to stay well clear:P

cletus

On the bundle of sticks roundabout on the way in to Naas, this is a regular occurrence. Two lanes leading into the roundabouts heading towards the town. 1st exit leads you to the ring road, 2nd exit leads to town, 3 rd exit leads to a shopping complex. As a result at 8.30 in the morning the left lane is by far the busiest.

However there are relatively few mornings as I drive to work that somebody does not skip the queue in the left lane, come down the right, then try and shoehorn back in to leave at the 2nd exit. If you bother to beep at them, you just get the "what the **** is your problem" look

Daaryl

Deleted User wrote: »

If it is happening loads of times maybe you ARE doing something wrong.

And i suppose when it's happens to others it's there fault too....

Topper Harley

my3cents wrote: »

The problem I find is with smaller roundabouts that that have two approach lanes and room for two cars side by side going around. Cars that are going straight across (second exit) start on the inside lane then just drive in a straight line towards their exit. Anyone turning right that dares use the inside of the roundabout gets cut up. On such roundabouts when turning right (3rd exit) I just assume I'll be cut up so hang back I with my hand covering the horn so I at least have the satisfaction of waking anyone up who doesn't see me and cuts me up.

I'll admit, I'm sometimes guilty of this, but only when there are no other cars on or near the roundabout or me. But I can't get my mind around why people do it when there are others on the roundabout with them, especially right beside them.

I initially read your post to mean people in the right lane and going straight (2nd exit) were cutting you up when you were in the left lane and going right (3rd exit). While I realise this is not the case for you, it does happen and is another thing I can't get my head around. Why would anyone go in the left lane to turn right, especially considering that on many roundabouts the right lane is marked for those going straight as well as right.

Voodoomelon

One of the big problems with roundabout usage, is the MASSIVE confusion on how they actually work.

Who remembers this poll from 2011: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056163797

Just look at the results, incredible. It was a poll regarding whether the 12 o'clock rule should be used, or the counting number of exits rule should be used.

As you can see, the results are almost perfectly split, resulting in, on average, 2 different drivers taking two different lanes to take the same exit.

That poll is pretty much reflective of the general motoring population; everything thinks they're right, when in fact a full 50% odd are wrong.

As the RSA say, use the clock face system for determining entering lanes and exit choice. If you are using any other method of navigating a roundabout, you are WRONG.

visual

Many don't trust or have enough confidence in RSA to take their advise as being correct. Especially as previously political appointed ex tv presenter man of God was obsessed with speeding and points as if the motorist was spawn of evil.

The root cause of the bad driving is simply they where never thought, don't know and now just plodding along unaware.

my3cents

Voodoomelon wrote: »

One of the big problems with roundabout usage, is the MASSIVE confusion on how they actually work.

Who remembers this poll from 2011: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056163797

Just look at the results, incredible. It was a poll regarding whether the 12 o'clock rule should be used, or the counting number of exits rule should be used.

As you can see, the results are almost perfectly split, resulting in, on average, 2 different drivers taking two different lanes to take the same exit.

That poll is pretty much reflective of the general motoring population; everything thinks they're right, when in fact a full 50% odd are wrong.

As the RSA say, use the clock face system for determining entering lanes and exit choice. If you are using any other method of navigating a roundabout, you are WRONG.

But that really doesn't matter that much if you actually look before you change lanes on the roundabout or pull off it.

The problem is awareness of other traffic. If you know there is a car in the lane you are going for then you can avoid cutting them up.

carzony

People are not able to use roundabouts in Ireland. Especially when it comes to indicating correctly but with lack of enforcement, basic training, no driving assessment after you driving test we are asking for a bad standard of driving really..

madmaggie

In Bagenalstown, Co. Carlow, there is one mini roundabout. The usual driver behaviour is to approach it, stop, and look at the other drivers to see who will move first. The exception to this are lorries, because of their size, they do whatever the hell the feel like doing, and who's going to argue with an artic? How the drivers manage on a normal size roundabout is a mystery to me.

pablo128

madmaggie wrote: »

In Bagenalstown, Co. Carlow, there is one mini roundabout. The usual driver behaviour is to approach it, stop, and look at the other drivers to see who will move first. The exception to this are lorries, because of their size, they do whatever the hell the feel like doing, and who's going to argue with an artic? How the drivers manage on a normal size roundabout is a mystery to me.

I have seen this in Bagnalstown, and many other towns like it around the country. It's as if the drivers are terrified to make a move.

horse7

Just been stuck for 5 minutes(seemed like forever) twentyish female comes tearing out of phoenix park ashtown gate to me at bend in main road, lovely newish black bmeer,with mammy in the passanger seat, she tried to force me across road so i would have to go around her,she refused to back up,sorry i had taken my dash cam down,her driving was priceless.

edburg

horse7 wrote: »

Just been stuck for 5 minutes(seemed like forever) twentyish female comes tearing out of phoenix park ashtown gate to me at bend in main road, lovely newish black bmeer,with mammy in the passanger seat, she tried to force me across road so i would have to go around her,she refused to back up,sorry i had taken my dash cam down,her driving was priceless.

Got a lot of that when used to be out in trucks, putting feet up on dash and pulling book out tends to get them moving :pac:

Plopli

Multilane roundabouts are an aberration, there is no way some combination of entrance/exit will not cause one vehicle to cut another one.
And then you have some that have been designed by a 5 years old on LSD like Walkinstown.

Considering that, I'm always amazed there are no more accidents.