Roundabout argument. What would you have done?

johnington

So yesterday I had a few choice words with a taxi driver on a roundabout and ever since it's been bugging me. In my opinion I was in the right but he evidently did not think the same. Not looking for pats on the back rather if I was in the wrong I'd rather learn from it so it doesn't happen again in the future. Bit long winded but trying to explain accurately.

The Overview picture shows the lay of the land. It was a busy roundabout at rush hour. There was only one way to my destination and that was off the roundabout so it was not as if I could have accessed it at a more convenient location. There were roadworks on the road I wished to exit onto which was operating a stop / go. This caused the road to back up and overflow onto the roundabout (terrible traffic management in place but I digress) allowing nobody on the roundabout to exit.

The scenario picture tries to show what I did. The traffic from number 2 exiting at number 3 blocked the road from the roadworks beyond where they entered the roundabout. I entered the roundabout at number 1 on the inside lane to exit at number 3. Once I reached the obstruction, I stopped, indicated that I was exiting left but left room for anyone wanting to access the roundabout to get by. I was there for about 2 minutes. The taxi wished to exit at number 4 and was in the inside lane a couple of cars behind me. After about a minute he shoots up in the outside lane, pulls up in front of my car and starts roaring at me. I fired back in kind and he sped off. About 30 seconds later, the traffic began to move and I managed to exit.

So was I wrong?

Mc Love

Never argue with Taxi drivers even if they are in the wrong - thats what I've learned. Have had run ins with them recently and they honestly think they own the road.

FWIW - you were in the right and I like the diagram

Was out at Salesians there a few weeks ago, and was coming from Ennis road down the hill, and taxi driver without indicating to go right, goes right and I slam on the brakes and he rolls down the window in front of me, shouting god knows what at me. I shouted back, have you any indicators? Que more obscenities thrown at me.

Funny ol world

johnington

Yeah I know arguing back is pointless but I have a short fuse and he managed to light it. The gang of teenagers in the back of his taxi had a good laugh though so that's one positive ☺

johnington

johnington wrote: »

Yeah I know arguing back is pointless ..........

Not really, always worth it with a taxi driver. They are usually in the wrong (as per this case) and once you give them back twice what they give you they usually seem shocked........especially the wannabe gangsta ones with the taxi sign as far back on the roof as possible.

Diemos

By the rules of the road you should not have entered a roundabout until your exit is clear. But like driving in the middle of the M50, most irish drivers seem to ignore that rule. Also you should not have been in the inside lane when coming on at 6 and leaving at 12 on a single lane roundabout.

As for Taxi drivers.....lunatics, all of them.
I had a taxi in Dublin last month pull out from a parallel parking spot while using a taxi app on the phone on his windscreen, no indicator and never checked his mirror, nothing. But apparently the entire thing was my fault when I had the audacity to let him know I was travelling the road already.

osarusan

Diemos wrote: »

Also you should not have been in the inside lane when coming on at 6 and leaving at 12 on a single lane roundabout.

That's not what they were doing though.

They entered from where they have marked as 1, and they wanted to take the exit they have marked as 3, not 2. The problem is that the road marked as 1 is a one-lane road (one lane each way i mean) so if they had waited at the end of 1, not entering the roundabout until it was clear to exit at 3, the taxi driver who wanted to exit at 4 (which was clear) would have been stuck behind them anyway.

It's not a single lane roundabout either, the taxi driver moved temporarily from the inside to outside lane to pass them and head for the clear exit 4.

(I hope I've understood the OP correctly anyway)

bucketybuck

Diemos wrote: »

By the rules of the road you should not have entered a roundabout until your exit is clear. But like driving in the middle of the M50, most irish drivers seem to ignore that rule. Also you should not have been in the inside lane when coming on at 6 and leaving at 12 on a single lane roundabout.

The inside lane on a single lane roundabout? Leaving at 12? Are we reading the same thread?

Apart from stay at home that morning I can't see what else the OP was supposed to do in the scenario described.

Diemos

Diemos wrote: »

By the rules of the road you should not have entered a roundabout until your exit is clear. .................

How does that work when entering a roundabout and planning to leave at exit 3 or 4? In many cases the visibility isn't there.

many roundabout have traffic lights that stop you on the roundabout.

A roundabout isn't a yellow box junction.

johnington

Diemos wrote: »

By the rules of the road you should not have entered a roundabout until your exit is clear. But like driving in the middle of the M50, most irish drivers seem to ignore that rule. Also you should not have been in the inside lane when coming on at 6 and leaving at 12 on a single lane roundabout.

If you call where I was entering the roundabout 6 o'clock I was taking the 3rd exit at about 2 o'clock so I was right to be on the inside lane.

As for not entering the roundabout until it was clear, a couple of points. This is a big diameter roundabout with trees in the middle so visibility of my exit was not great until I was on it. Secondly even if I could see my exit, I was accessing from a narrow one lane road. The road that was feeding all the traffic into the roadworks (number 2 on the drawing) was a busy dual carriageway. I would have been there hours backing up my access road if I waited for a gap.

bucketybuck

Augeo wrote: »

How does that work when entering a roundabout and planning to leave at exit 3 or 4? In many cases the visibility isn't there.

many roundabout have traffic lights that stop you on the roundabout.

A roundabout isn't a yellow box junction.

The irony being that the roundabout in question has a big yellow box on part of it, clearly accounting for scenarios such as the OP describes.

Diemos

johnington wrote: »

If you call where I was entering the roundabout 6 o'clock I was taking the 3rd exit at about 2 o'clock so I was right to be on the inside lane.

As for not entering the roundabout until it was clear, a couple of points. This is a big diameter roundabout with trees in the middle so visibility of my exit was not great until I was on it. Secondly even if I could see my exit, I was accessing from a narrow one lane road. The road that was feeding all the traffic into the roadworks (number 2 on the drawing) was a busy dual carriageway. I would have been there hours backing up my access road if I waited for a gap.

My apologies, I made a mistake.

Spook_ie

johnington wrote: »

So yesterday I had a few choice words with a taxi driver on a roundabout and ever since it's been bugging me. In my opinion I was in the right but he evidently did not think the same. Not looking for pats on the back rather if I was in the wrong I'd rather learn from it so it doesn't happen again in the future. Bit long winded but trying to explain accurately.

The Overview picture shows the lay of the land. It was a busy roundabout at rush hour. There was only one way to my destination and that was off the roundabout so it was not as if I could have accessed it at a more convenient location. There were roadworks on the road I wished to exit onto which was operating a stop / go. This caused the road to back up and overflow onto the roundabout (terrible traffic management in place but I digress) allowing nobody on the roundabout to exit.

The scenario picture tries to show what I did. The traffic from number 2 exiting at number 3 blocked the road from the roadworks beyond where they entered the roundabout. I entered the roundabout at number 1 on the inside lane to exit at number 3. Once I reached the obstruction, I stopped, indicated that I was exiting left but left room for anyone wanting to access the roundabout to get by. I was there for about 2 minutes. The taxi wished to exit at number 4 and was in the inside lane a couple of cars behind me. After about a minute he shoots up in the outside lane, pulls up in front of my car and starts roaring at me. I fired back in kind and he sped off. About 30 seconds later, the traffic began to move and I managed to exit.

So was I wrong?

Difficult to visualize it without knowing the roundabout, but, shouldn't you have been indicating left and moving into the outside lane just past the R527 exit, this would have left the inside lane of the roundabout clear for people navigating further round?

i57dwun4yb1pt8

from my understanding they can do what they want as they are a PSV , like a bus , so even if they are 200% wrong ,
legally you have to prove it

oh, and they are total c*nts ..

johndaman66

Spook_ie wrote: »

Difficult to visualize it without knowing the roundabout, but, shouldn't you have been indicating left and moving into the outside lane just past the R527 exit, this would have left the inside lane of the roundabout clear for people navigating further round?

I was thinking that too initially, ideal scenario to allow for the continuous movement of traffic around the roundabout but then again wouldn't be so quick to judge. When traffic did start moving on the road with the roadworks it may have allowed for a continuous flow of traffic from the unnumbered exit between 1 and 2 to flow through and exit at number 3 also - effectively 2 lanes of traffic exiting onto a one lane road. The OP and traffic wishing to exit at 3 that are stationed on the inside lane effectively may not have had the opportunity to move out in fairness with the continuous flow of traffic from previous mentioned exit between 1 and 2 - unless you pull straight out in front of somebody.


The taxi driver being on the inside lane a number of cars behind OP most likely had a clear path to pull out into the outside lane before the OP had and shot around the roundabout on the outside lane which he shouldn't have done in the first instance and then decides to pull up in front of the OP's car and presumably had to get out to start roaring the odds at the OP - all while having customers in his car - that's insane and uncalled for.

Eoinbmw

You came off the bloodmill road i think ya nothing major in it just a ratty law to themselves taxi driver id lose no sleep over it!
There are no yellow boxes on that roundabout so technicaly you could have been a **** and just parked across a lane but id have done the same as yourself!

bucketybuck

Eoinbmw wrote: »

There are no yellow boxes on that roundabout

Google streetview shows two of them?

Eoinbmw

There is none on that roundabout!

bucketybuck

Eoinbmw wrote: »

There is none on that roundabout!

You already said that. I was curious why pictures of the roundabout show two very obvious big yellow boxes on the roundabout itself, so just repeating that there are none is useful to nobody.

Eoinbmw

bucketybuck wrote: »

You already said that. I was curious why pictures of the roundabout show two very obvious big yellow boxes on the roundabout itself, so just repeating that there are none is useful to nobody.

Post the pic then!