Cars turning into junctions on the wrong side of the road

[WrightsW5]

I've had plenty of times coming to t-junctions when drivers turning in from the left on the wrong side of the road have nearly killed me, more times when i've had to halt well before the junction to avoid danger. I'm so sick of it, having to avoid someone driving on the wrong side of the road should NEVER be necesary, but I find approaching certain t-junctions makes me nervous due to experience.
I can't be the only person in Britain it's happening to - is there no campaigns, driver education?

[Si]

I think that it's not so much that people are cutting the corner (I'm sure we all do it on occasion and in specific circumstances), rather it is that some people are not taking correct observation and making sure that it is safe to do so first. But yes, it is really annoying, and I find myself getting well to the right and leaning into them just to emphasise what they have done.

But to redress the balance, I've also found that there are a number of cyclists that do it too - especially club rides. Not long ago both I (on bike) and the car behind me had to slam the brakes on hard to avoid the tail end of the club ride that had just completely cut the corner. The front of the group had done it fine because the road was clear then, but the back of the group just followed on like blind sheep, assuming that the person in front was thinking for them.

[porky]

This happens to me most days, fortunately mostly when I am in my car. Certain junctions seem to attrct this type of behaviour, including the two nearest my house. In one case a kink in the road makes the wrong-sided approach seem normal, in the other a traffic-calming build-out seems to confuse drivers into treating the traffic-calming and the junction as one feature (meaning they also don't give way when they should).

In the car I am usually pretty assertive about taking up my position and use the horn to reinforce this. On the bike I just have to be very careful to anticipate drivers who might cut the corner, otherwise i will end up as a bonnet ornament.

If you think that the road layout may be contirbuting to your problems then it might be worth contacting the local council's highways department.

[Big T]

There's staggered crossroads just outside my workplace and this to me happens all the time, whether I'm cycling or driving to work. It's just laziness I feel, as people have to turn the wheel less if they can cut the corner.

[WrightsW5]

This happens to me most days, fortunately mostly when I am in my car. Certain junctions seem to attrct this type of behaviour, including the two nearest my house. In one case a kink in the road makes the wrong-sided approach seem normal, in the other a traffic-calming build-out seems to confuse drivers into treating the traffic-calming and the junction as one feature (meaning they also don't give way when they should).

In the car I am usually pretty assertive about taking up my position and use the horn to reinforce this. On the bike I just have to be very careful to anticipate drivers who might cut the corner, otherwise i will end up as a bonnet ornament.

If you think that the road layout may be contirbuting to your problems then it might be worth contacting the local council's highways department.

Them illuminated white bollards would cure it on the various problem junctions I think, the council coming up with money is another matter.

[thirdcrank]

...Them illuminated white bollards would cure it on the various problem junctions I think, the council coming up with money is another matter.

I'm not so sure. These bollards were installed for that purpose and mounted on concrete emplacements to prevent damage. The missing chunk was sustained within days of their installation.

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=victori ... ,7.75&z=14

[PRL]

These bollards were installed for that purpose and mounted on concrete emplacements to prevent damage. The missing chunk was sustained within days of their installation.

I suppose the corresponding missing piece of vehicle might give the driver a hint about their behaviour.

[Mike Sales]

Last year I was coming up to a T junction when a white van from my left cut the corner so badly that he would have hit me if I had not seen him coming. I did not shout, or even, as far as I was aware, look askance. He leaned out of his open sliding door and yelled something incoherent. I was too surprised to reply.

[drossall]

I've really only had it happen once, but it's quite a shock because you're not expecting to have a car come round the junction towards you on the wrong side of the road.

I shouted and the driver stopped. She was apologetic, but I was unimpressed with her doing it in the first place. I resorted to suggesting that if she at least took corners properly, she wouldn't need to look where she was going as well; my point was that she had done neither, but it probably wasn't the most lucid piece of sarcasm and may not have struck home.

[thirdcrank]

I find that people cutting the corner when making a right turn into a minor road happens a lot , although my experience is probably weighted by having an unsighted junction of this type as the only access to the main road since 1975. One of the bigger deterrents seems to be the drivers emerging from this type of junction intending to turn right who often now position their vehicle so far over to their right that it encourages / bullies drivers intending to turn right into the minor road, to allow them to emerge first.

[snibgo]

Do drivers ever not cut corners when turning right to a minor road? Such occurrences seem vanishly low. I know I used to, when it wouldn't cause problems. We must remember that the effort required to turn a steering wheel, even with power steering, seems to be considerable.

The problems occur, of course, when a cyclist is waiting to turn right out of the junction, and the driver either doesn't see the cyclist or forgets that the rear of the car will cut the corner more than the front. I've had enough close-shaves that I generally stop a metre or two behind the give-way line.

[Vorpal]

Teaching Bikeability, I have numerous opportunities to observe the behaviour of motorists at junctions. Even in the presence of learner cyclists, most motorists cut the corner when turning in. I would estimate that on some junctions as many as 10% of cars turning in to a minor/side road turn in on the wrong side of the road. I don't mean cutting the corner, but barely having a wheel on the correct side of the road. I have seldom observed a car turning in at a completely correct road position, unless another motor vehicle is waiting to turn right out of the junction.

I use the poor behaviour of motorists as teaching examples for the kids, but it is a case where (like following distance), common pratice is poor practice. Unless there is a car parked on the junction in such a way as to prevent correct road position, drivers should not cut corners.

They must realise that there is reason that cutting corners = failing on a driving test? Surely if you were to ask them, they'd know it's not correct?

[karlt]

Do drivers ever not cut corners when turning right to a minor road? Such occurrences seem vanishly low. I know I used to, when it wouldn't cause problems. We must remember that the effort required to turn a steering wheel, even with power steering, seems to be considerable.

The problems occur, of course, when a cyclist is waiting to turn right out of the junction, and the driver either doesn't see the cyclist or forgets that the rear of the car will cut the corner more than the front. I've had enough close-shaves that I generally stop a metre or two behind the give-way line.

I don't think it's the effort of turning the steering wheel. I think it's down to the degree of slowing down that's required to take the corner properly. There is unfortunately a subspecies of driver who believes everything should be done as fast as is possible.

[Richard Mann]

I don't think it's the effort of turning the steering wheel. I think it's down to the degree of slowing down that's required to take the corner properly. There is unfortunately a subspecies of driver who believes everything should be done as fast as is possible.

Funnily enough, the problem goes away if you get them to slow down. Raised crossings across the mouth of the side road (or tight geometry) work a treat.

[iviehoff]

Vehicle drivers, whether motorised or bicycle, can form a misapprehension that they are turning into a one-way street, particularly if they are currently on a one-way street, and they are turning into a 2-way street where there are no visual cues to dispel the misapprehension, and typically delivery vehicles parked on the corner hiding sight of the vehicles approaching. But at some junctions, those visual cues just are not present. There are few such junctions near me. I know them, and am very careful at them. I once encountered a recently-occurred head-on collision between cyclist (correctly placed) and van at one of them.

Simple visual cues to dispel this confusion might be as little as a white centre line in the street - this is lacking in the notorious locations I know. A "two-way street" sign would help, though given the frequency with which I see cars turn into one-way streets the wrong way despite clear "No Entry" signs, I think that subliminal clues like the white lines would be more effective than a sign.

I've occasionally thought about writing to Westminster Council to point out this issue. But I suspect I would be ignored. I think it opens a huge can of works if borough councils were to acknowledge they ought to think about this kind of thing in relation to their existing road system.