Roundabouts

[robing]

4 years ago I was hit by a car on a roundabout. (I was on the roundabout, car was approaching). The same thing very nearly happened today. Both times clearly driver at fault, in the collision the driver was prosecuted.

My question is, what can I do to make myself safer? My strategy for roundabouts is get over them as quickly as possible, but this may not be the best technique.

[james01]

There've been quite a few threads about this topic. Some riders go for the "pretend you're a car" approach, taking the right hand lane upon approaching, if the intention is to turn right when leaving the roundabout. Of course this can mean having to cross multiple lanes as you edge left towards your exit. The other extreme is to remain at the outside circumference. The big disadvantage of this is having to cross exit lanes until you reach your planned exit - scary. The advantage is that you're near to the pavement/verge so at least you can bale out, and you aren't stuck in a middle lane with fast traffic both sides. Realistically, nowadays there are many fast multiple-laned roundabouts where the pragmatic cyclist reluctantly admits defeat and walks his bike around the danger..

[irc]

Every roundabout is different of course.

Assuming a two lane road I will get in the centre of my lane to prevent overtakes and make myself as visible as possible.

Speed going through again depends. If going fast means I clear it before any approaching cars enter it then fast. Otherwise watch approaching cars and have a plan for if they don't stop. Brake, swerve behind them etc.

Try and make eye contact with drivers. If you cant see their eyes you might be in their blind spot behind a door pillar.

[thirdcrank]

Roundabouts, particularly large roundabouts and gyratories, are the most feared feature of the road network for cyclists. Even experienced cyclists will make detours to avoid certain roundabouts or sometimes dismount and wheel their bicycles across the junction. They have good cause to do so ....

Cycle-friendly Infrastructure p 63

It's a quarter of a century since that was published and things haven't improved with the increases in traffic.

There's some good advice in Cyclecraft but an alternative route if there is one is the best idea. The only time I was actually knocked off by a vehicle as an adult was on a roundabout and I was fortunate that there was a decent alternative route.

http://cyclecraft.co.uk/

[robing]

Both times it was cars joining the roundabout not seeing I was already on it. I guess bottom line is you need to anticipate and be able to stop if they don't. But equally I don't want to dither or hesitate when I'm on the roundabout.

I do think drivers tend not to see you so easily when you are side on. I don't know if there's anything that will make you stand out more - flashing light on your helmet maybe, something on your wheels?

[Paulatic]

I was driving on a roundabout in York a few days ago and witnessed a cyclist who was inches from being taken out. From my position I could see it enfolding. The cyclist was adopting the perimeter approach but behind him a van was blocking him being seen from anywhere but where I was.
Thankfully a faster car exiting managed to stop with inches to spare. From what I saw the cyclist should have been in the i'm a car position in the middle lane but I’ve sympathy into how he’d ever get out there on that roundabout.

[Stevek76]

I generally take the same path that the centreline of my car would trace if I was driving. I don't see the problem with a little dither mid roundabout if I'm not convinced a driver approaching the entrance I'm about to pass has seen me. Obviously some drivers can get irritated by this but that's their problem. If they'd taken their foot off the accelerator rather than gassing it right up to the roundabout I'd have been out of their way by the time they'd arrived so they only have themselves to blame.

[Jdsk]

My question is, what can I do to make myself safer? My strategy for roundabouts is get over them as quickly as possible, but this may not be the best technique.

Do you drive a car and/or ride a motorbike, please?

Thanks

Jonathan

[thirdcrank]

Both times it was cars joining the roundabout not seeing I was already on it. ...

Roundabouts are generally designed to maximise capacity and this assumes drivers entering the roundabout will look two ways simultaneously, seeing what's in front and what's approaching from their right. Inevitably, there's a tendency for drivers to concentrate on the latter to spot gaps and it's easy to assume that the road ahead has cleared. And it is the drivers who see / don't see you.

[mattsccm]

Of course all roundabouts are diffwrent but generally I take the same lines as I do on a motorcycle. In priciple I make myself a bloody nuisance> it gets me noticed.

[robing]

My question is, what can I do to make myself safer? My strategy for roundabouts is get over them as quickly as possible, but this may not be the best technique.

Do you drive a car and/or ride a motorbike, please?

Thanks

Jonathan

Yes been driving for 35 years.

[drossall]

I thought the perimeter approach was proven to be more dangerous? It was recommended for years in the Highway Code before finally being removed for that reason, in the first major public consultation that I remember for a review. The then CTC were heavily involved in this. Then it crept back into a draft of the latest revision. I commented on it.

[irc]

I do think drivers tend not to see you so easily when you are side on. I don't know if there's anything that will make you stand out more - flashing light on your helmet maybe, something on your wheels?

At night, side on, nothing stands out more than Scotchlite spoke reflectors.



https://www.amazon.co.uk/Pack-Premier-S ... B009N3DSA4

[peetee]

I thought long and hard about this and came to the conclusion that because of the angle of approaching traffic and the speed of vehicles on the roundabout drivers that should be giving way are paying more attention to what is happening out of their side window than their windscreen. Any slow moving object in front of them could well be ignored or missed. For that reason I would commute with a flashing white light pointing directly left on the side of the handlebar stem.
Another issue is the potential for moving objects to be lost from view behind the car screen pillar.

[Pete Owens]

While all roundabouts are different the general rule is to approach, and circulate the roundabout riding in the centre of the leftmost traffic lane
appropriate for your exit (exactly as you would if driving a motor vehicle). Definitely avoid the highway code suggestion to ride round the edge. (actually it is written as a warning to be particularly careful if you opt to do it) and just follow the general rules for drivers.

People use the road position of other vehicles to judge where they are heading. If you ride on the edge you are effectively signalling an intention to leave at the next exit - every bit as much as if you were riding with your left arm stuck out. This means drivers may overtake as they leave the roundabout (especially if it is a two lane exit) and also that drivers may pull out at the next entrance.

Also, UK roundabouts are designed with tangential, rather than perpendicular approaches. This means that drivers waiting to enter the roundabout are already having to look over their shoulders to see the main traffic stream. If you are on the edge, not only are you positioned to appear to be exiting the roundabout, they have to twist even further to see you at all.

Another advantage of riding well away from the give way markings is that if a driver does start to pull out you have that much more warning in order to take evasive action. For the same reason trying to ride as fast as possible is not such a good idea. While it is worth getting a move on to get decisively into the correct lane as you enter the roundabout, once you are there the hazards are mostly in front of you. The faster you are going the harder they are to avoid - and the less time other road users have to spot your approach.