Roundabouts: Everything you wanted to know but were afraid to ask

Friday, 26 August 2016

Police officer Brett Currie explains how motorists still find it difficult to negotiate roundabouts.

A simple intersection or a terrifying ordeal? Either way, New Zealanders are lax in their roundabout way of approaching traffic circles dotted over the country's roads.

Rules for roundabouts are often overlooked, causing everything from complaints to crashes.

So police are urging drivers to be aware of their surroundings when they approach and leave every intersection.

**READ MORE:

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Roundabout at the intersection of Collingwood St and Grove St.

* Survey finds drivers aren't indicating correctly at roundabouts

* Driver bypasses queue and goes the wrong way around a roundabout in Lower Hutt

* City of Roundabouts a land of confusion**

At a popular main roundabout in Nelson, over a 10-minute period, motorists can be spotted incorrectly indicating right to go straight, not indicating when leaving the roundabout - or not indicating at all.

This small, informal case study reveals nothing new to local traffic cops.

Nelson Bays strategic traffic unit officer Sergeant Brett Currie said the most common mistakes at roundabouts included not signalling appropriately for exiting and not being in the right lane on approach.

He said people seemed to be most disgruntled when they were cut off at roundabouts by drivers changing lanes, which caused near-misses.

'That's when most people tend to complain to us. Once you get into a certain lane leading into a roundabout, particularly if it's got an arrow there, you must follow it through.'

The four main roundabouts which have 'higher than usual' crash rates in Nelson - the Three Brothers Corner at Richmond's State Highway 60 intersection, Richmond Deviation, Quarantine Rd/Wakatu Drive/Annesbrook Drive and Haven Rd at State Highway 6.

Currie emphasised that despite give way rules changing a few years ago, drivers were still obliged to give way to the right.

'Be patient' on the road.

If people 'remember the basics, they shouldn't come to grief', he said.

Causing delay and disruption to fellow motorists is just the beginning. The police have a range of punishments when it comes to the misuse of roundabouts, including verbal and written warnings or a $150 fine.

Currie said enforcement was a final measure. Ultimately it was about prevention, improving driver awareness and limiting crash rates through looking at the layout design.

In Tahunanui, Nelson's beachfront suburb, two roundabouts were removed several years ago and replaced by traffic lights. .

AA driving instructor Geoff Morgan has been in the industry for years and was a testing officer prior to becoming an instructor.

He said the most common fault was drivers going too fast for the conditions, followed closely by incorrect signalling at roundabouts.

A notable danger for motorists is vehicles moving out from the left and not giving way.

Everybody at roundabouts looked to the right, looked straight ahead and worked out when they could move off, Morgan said.

'The second they move into the roundabout they forget what's happening on their left.'

Driving safely and defensively is all about looking at the 'what if' and thinking ahead.

Morgan said he didn't always have faith in a motorists indicator to show which way they were going.

If he didn't trust the signal, he would look at which way the driver was actually looking.

If he still wasn't 100 per cent sure he would wait until he physically saw their wheels start to turn.

'I don't care who toots behind me … if I'm not sure, I'm going to make sure of all those three things before I pull out.'

Roundabout signalling is really simple, Morgan said.

'Going into a roundabout, you signal your intention and you signal leaving, always, no matter what.'

New Zealand Transport Agency statistics showed an average of 2.4 fatalities and 48.3 serious injury crashes at roundabouts across New Zealand from 2006 to 2015.

Numbers for Nelson roundabouts between 2006 and 2015 showed no fatal crashes but an average of one serious injury crash per year.

NZTA regional performance manager Mark Owen said roundabouts were designed to reduce risk by slowing down drivers and reducing the severity of collisions. Traffic signals were better for heavier and variable traffic flows and were also more user friendly for cyclists and pedestrians.

Correct indicating procedure:

If you're going straight ahead you must only signal a left turn as you pass the exit before the one you intend to take.

If you're going left, signal a left turn before entering and continue to indicate left as you exit.

If you're going right, signal a right turn when entering, then a left turn as you pass the exit before the one you intend to take.

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