I hate roundabouts -- but maybe I am wrong

A1ARealtorRick wrote:

I fully agree. Not many horse women around here. Just a bunch of young gals giving it their best to try to operate these huge pieces of machinery in the proper way. Funny, yet dangerous.

Over a lifetime I have seen danger from inexperienced and untrained people operating machines of all kinds and sizes. Never saw where indoor/outdoor plumbing made a difference.

rhagfo wrote:

A1ARealtorRick wrote:

valhalla360 wrote:

A1ARealtorRick wrote:
You missed my point. Re-read what I wrote. I am referring to privately-owned light- to medium-duty PU's, not commercial vehicles. Most commercial vehicle drivers know how to drive, park, and negotiate whatever's thrown in front of them. Put your Millennial 100-pound 5'2" wife in a new F-150 crew and watch her try to park it at Kroger, let alone negotiate a roundabout! :C

If the big commercial trucks can navigate them, so can RVs.

My 5'-0" wife loves the F250 and can park it fine. She even tows occasionally.

Sorry, wasn't referring to 'your' wife in particular. Just saying so many I see are clearly uncomfortable tooling around in these behemoth trucks, at least around here.

I fully agree with you. Not many horse women around here, but I was referring to so many that have these huge beasts as daily drivers and just don't know how to properly operate them.

LOL!
Not likely you have been around many horse women! Most handle their rigs better than most of the guys on on this forum!
Given the fact that a 30' horse trailer tow like a 40' 5er due to axle placement, most don't give towing a second thought.

I fully agree. Not many horse women around here. Just a bunch of young gals giving it their best to try to operate these huge pieces of machinery in the proper way. Funny, yet dangerous.

Watching Tiff Needel drift a 54hp Morris Minor around a wet roundabout is a thing of beauty.

I like roundabouts as I first learned to drive the Orange Circle (100 block of Chapman Ave. and Glassell St.) in Orange California (2 lane)...

As long as the roundabout intersection is immediate clear to the left, I accelerate fast into the circle with no hesitation (to avoid other potential hesitant idiots to my right) and keep moving.

What I hate about roundabouts are the drivers that yield while the circle is three vehicle length clear while one vehicle is in the circle around the 10 o' clock position as the intersection "still parked" yielding car is at 6 o' clock position wondering if the vehicle will leave the circle at the 8 o' clock position or continue in the circle while I happen to be directly behind the hesitant fool delaying traffic.

That's when I start yelling out the side window "Look kids, Big Bend...PARLIAMENT" !!!! if it ain't -40 below or something when someone stalls roundabout traffic in my area.

Perhaps ODOT is better than some at making them but I've been through a few dozen around here with both an 18' and my current 34' trailer and never had an issue, only once even hit the inner curb when I tried to take it to fast and so the truck keptyo the inside pulling the trailer in a more straight line than would be ideal.

I got no use for roundabouts. On a street in Tucson there are two of them that also have 4-way stop signs! Idiots.

We have some left turns in the Tucson area called Michigan Lefts's. You go through the intersection then make a U-turn, come back, and then make a right. We have lots of family in Michigan and we've travelled Michigan a lot and have never seen or heard of a Michigan Left in Michigan. The traffic engineers in the Tucson area don't have a clue what they're doing.

JRscooby wrote:

IMHO, a much better option would be the old "Jug Handle" for left turns.

New Jersey is the only place I have seen the jug handles. work great.
bumpy

valhalla360 wrote:

JRscooby wrote:
Going the wrong way? Well you have about half mile to get across the traffic to make a U turn. Then the joy of merging into the passing lane, getting into the right, so you can make another right to go on up the road you where on.

Sounds like you are describing a Michigan Left (aka: Indirect left).

If the minor road is fairly busy, they are typically signalized. If not, using the u-turn crossover is safer and faster compared to sign or signal control...even though some traffic travels further.

At low volume cross roads, we often don't allow the thru movement at all and close it off because it's safer if the main road is high speed.

As much as you may struggle with merging, it's still far safer than a direct crossing.

A lot of it comes down to managing the number and spacing of traffic signals. Drive down 8 Mile on the north side of Detroit some time. Set the speed at 45mph eastbound or westbound and you will go for miles without stopping.

I don't know what you call it. But the first place I have seen this mess there is about 70 miles between traffic lights. For decades the outlaw trail (Road that will get you around the scales) I could stop for sign, wait for traffic from left to clear, pull tractor and up to 53 ft trailer out to median. When I got a gap in traffic from right, make my left into the right lane. While I'm getting up to speed, all traffic can pass me on my left, the safest way. If 2 come up side by each, 1 must merge to left, safer than to the right.
Before, when ready to go back to the interstate, sure I have to slow down in the left lane, (Fat, takes more distance to slow, but not near as long as to get up to speed. Plus I have had distance to get myself in the big gap) But I can still get crossways to oncoming traffic, wait for gap, and straight across. The U-turn starts with the same risk as the left turn but adds the merge to the right, where traffic is moving fastest, and hardest to see.
IMHO, a much better option would be the old "Jug Handle" for left turns.

2oldman wrote:

rlw999 wrote:
(4 way stops)I'm that car -- if a car is approaching rapidly, I'll wait 'till he stops, or at least slows significantly, to be sure he's actually going to stop.

Then another one approaches..and another.. you'll be there all day! :)

Well, when that guy stops (or at least slows down enough to make it clear that he's gonna stop), then I'll go. If it turns out he didn't stop and just blows through the stop sign, then I made the right decision!

rlw999 wrote:
(4 way stops)I'm that car -- if a car is approaching rapidly, I'll wait 'till he stops, or at least slows significantly, to be sure he's actually going to stop.

Then another one approaches..and another.. you'll be there all day! :)