It's pretty sad when you have to teach someone how to use a roundabout...from the 1/9/05 Enquirer:

 

 

N.Ky. faces learning curve on roundabouts

By Cindy Schroeder

Enquirer staff writer

 

For someone whose first experience with a roundabout was a negative one, Keith Logsdon has become a believer.

 

When Logsdon, deputy director of long-range planning at Northern Kentucky Area Planning Commission, encountered a roundabout at Hilton Head, last summer, he drove the wrong way.

 

"I needed to be in the left lane, but I was in the right lane," he said. "I misread the signage. I just had to turn around and go back through it again."

 

E-mail [email protected]

 

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050109/NEWS0103/501090359/1059/news01

 

The city has installed a couple of roundabouts to curb fast traffic in some affluent residential neighborhoods, and gotten a storm of protest from the offenders that are targeted by the change. There was a furious letter to the editor by a woman who demanded that a roundabout be removed "because it impedes traffic." Duh! :?

Rob, your images and such all broke recently - did you restructure your hosting?

They've got these things all over Seattle.  There the purpose is to combat cut-through traffic in residential areas.  They're really tight there because the streets are fairly narrow, with curb parking.  But they do keep traffic from moving quickly.

Rob, your images and such all broke recently - did you restructure your hosting?

On the structural end, my web site was getting to be a cluttered, unstructured, hard-to-maintain out-of-control mess, so I tore it all apart and rebuilt it. That involved changing some of the directory structures, and I'm sure it broke most of my old links. I built the new site off-line and then did a marathon session overnight to upload all of it. This morning I fixed everything (I think) that I broke in my sleep-deprived upload session, and opened it up again. I'd rather not go through the labor of finding and fixing all of the broken links in my previous posts, but all that content and more is now up on my site:

 

http://robertpence.com

 

Stop by and have a look-see. I still have a lot more stuff that I'm going to put up there as I get time, and the new organization will make it a lot easier for me to make changes and additions. It should make it more friendly to navigate, too. Hope you enjoy it! If there's anything you were looking for and you can't find it, give me a shout.

 

Edit 1/18/2004: Now matter how I try to be a hardass, I just can't pull it off. I relented and fixed a bunch of those links today. You're still invited to visit my site; often what I post on a forum thread is a subset of the web site collection on a topic. :wink:

hey, i've been on that roundabout before! and theysa moron for going the opposite way. i hope he got honked at

The city of Dublin has constructed several roundabouts, so they saw fit to provide a web page showing people how to use them.  There's even a video to watch--the link is up by the photo at the top.  They also link to roundabout.net and roundaboutusa.com.  No kidding.

 

Does anyone else think roundabouts are all that difficult?  I don't.

 

Anyway, here's the link:

http://www.dublin.oh.us/city/deptdev/engineer/roundabouts/index.html

 

I've driven the roundabout in Dublin.  It seems kind of pointless to be honest with you.  I'm not so sure it's such a good idea, with most people in America being unfamiliar with them.  It is actually somewhat complicated to figure out the traffic pattern on it.  There are two lanes going around the circle and it's not so simple figuring out what you are and are not allowed to do on the roundabout.

^ Is there one thing we agree on?  LOL

 

 

I love roundabouts, sure beats tacky cables running across the road for lights to hang off or metal poles for that matter.  They also usually have a fountain or something attractive in the middle.

been there, done that. there are lots of old roundabouts in ne ohio.

 

i don't mind'em. a friend of mine was badly injured on one in a car crash in france--they can be tricky!

 

 

Let them try to drop a roundabout on Bridge St (US 33/161) between Riverside and I-270.  :-D

i remember seeing a plan for a new one in cleveland's university circle at euclid and chester.  holy crap im glad they didnt build it haha. 

What about at the circle where East Blvd meets MLK meets 105th meet Mt. Sinai...that thing is a nightmare...

On Burgess and Niples's website they claim this was the first in Ohio so i don't know how you drove them in NE Ohio. I can see accidents for the first couple of years untill people figure them out. I just can't see how they handle more traffic.

 

First in Ohio?  No, I can think of the roundabout in Tallmadge as just one example.

The site linked here makes a distinction between "roundabouts" and "traffic circles"; I'd guess that's the basis for claiming the first roundabout.

The provision for pedestrians seems to be an afterthought. Can you imagine trying to herd a group of camera-toting forum geeks across one of these things?

 

"Dammit, we lost Monte again"

 

"Grasscat, must you stop to light up in the middle of the roundabout?

 

the pope: "Check it out guys - Big Ben!!, Parliament!!"

On Burgess and Niples's website they claim this was the first in Ohio so i don't know how you drove them in NE Ohio. I can see accidents for the first couple of years untill people figure them out. I just can't see how they handle more traffic.

 

going with the developer claim as gospel, eh? most towns in the western reserve have or had them via connecticut tradition. go up and see for yourself, they are too numerous to name.

 

now the difference between traffic circles and roundabouts as stated on the site seemed fairly subtle to me. yeah, six lane roads are different than eight lane roads too. whatev, developers like to make all kinds of publicty claims to hype their product. but ok i'll go with it on technicality. yay for dublin. they are a good idea in some cases, but no way are they anything new, just a new experience for most of the usa.

 

 

 

 

Yes, NE Ohio definitely has the round about/traffic circles.  They're the same thing... I saw a few subdivisions in Orlando that had them at intersections and they had little brick buildings that housed everyones mailbox.  But anyway, whatever Dublin wants to say so they can feel special...  Going far off topic but while staying at my sisters house in Powell she gets the Dublin public access TV station and the radio station that plays on it was reading that months issue of playboy, I was told it was part of a reading for the visually impaired show... I thought it was hilarious.

Theres one  in the middle of the Settlers Walk subdivision in Springboro....its actually fairly large, with this gazebo in the middle.

 

 

 

 

Hmm...I thought I had seen this somewhere....

 

The (minor) difference between a traffic circle and a roundabout:

http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php?topic=2086.0

 

From the 6/19/05 Plain Dealer:

 

 

Install roundabouts at bad intersections, engineers say

Saturday, June 18, 2005

April McClellan-Copeland

Plain Dealer Reporter

 

Akron -- Engineers are considering replacing several dangerous intersections in Summit County with "roundabouts," a circular design that resituates crosswalks and slows traffic.

 

A 2000 study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found that intersections with roundabouts had 89 percent fewer fatal and incapacitating accidents, Summit County Engineer Greg Bachman said.

 

 

 

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:

[email protected], 800-628-6689

 

http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/summit/1119087472302510.xml&coll=2

 

Dublin's looking at even more roundabouts.

 

Avery-Muirfield Drive and Post Road:

http://www.thisweeknews.com/thisweek.php?edition=Dublin&story=thisweeknews/012606/Dublin/News/012606-News-86150.html

 

And somewhere between Woerner Temple and Shier Rings roads:

http://www.thisweeknews.com/thisweek.php?edition=Dublin&story=thisweeknews/012606/Dublin/News/012606-News-86146.html

 

Dublin.  Stop light free by 2023!

 

Twinsburg is also considering a system of roundabouts to manage traffic around their square as an alternative to adding additional lanes.  I know you (grasscat) posted something a while back about Twinsburg putting in roundabouts in other parts of town as well.

Mason has two planned roundabouts.

 

See proposed plan of streetscape here: http://www.imaginemason.org/pdfs/StreetscapePlan_ProposedDowntownStreetscape.pdf

Downtown Lagrange has a roundabout (I think the traffic sign there says "Rotary") where 303 and 301 intersect.  Also Litchfield has one (Litchfield is on the way to Medina on Route 18, at the 83 intersection, this isn't usually found on a map).

this is so weird.  I am watching the simpsons and its the one where they go to england and homer gets caught in a roundabout.  It just went to commercial, I look over to my computer screen, and I see this topic.  So I figured I would comment about that......I know youre all enthralled by my story. 

They have roundabouts on steroids in Germany....where if you want to go through, there are tunnels or underpasses under the roundabout.....

They have roundabouts on steroids in Germany....where if you want to go through, there are tunnels or underpasses under the roundabout.....

 

On the westside of New Orleans (actually Jefferson Parish at that point) there is a roundabout sandwiched between Airline Hwy (bottom), Causeway Blvd (top), and a RR bridge.

 

And Roosevelt Blvd, in NE Philly, used to tunnel under several roundabouts (actually, the inner lanes of Roosevelt went under, while the outer lanes were part of the roundabouts).

there are some groovy traffic circles on long island, i am esp thinking of the south shore beaches like robert moses and jones beach. of course there are also traffic circles in manhattan on the four corners of central park & around prospect park in brooklyn. the most berzerk is grand army plaza. ugh.

 

columbus has a "60's-70's modern" old one too, tamarack circle in northland just south of 161.

While roundabouts maybe new to the midwest, Florida and other areas of the country are building these all over the place. While roundabouts are not for every intersection, they would function for most intersections better than a 4 way stop, stoplight, etc... Just because something is new to an area doesn't make it wrong. To learn more about the advantages of roundabouts the US Department of Transportation has published a research document(s) at the following link.http://www.tfhrc.gov/safety/00068.htm

 

welcome ragerunner. i think most of us are saying these are not new to ohio at all. its just another name hyped up by some developers for a traffic circle or rotary. they seem to be a revived fad --- they would prob go well linked with a new lifestyle mall i would imagine - heh!

First, their is a difference between a roundabout and a traffic circle. What was constructed in the past 60's, 70's etc... were traffic circles not roundabouts. Second, they have the capacity to do a lot more than just look nice, they have real economical, environmental, and traffic flow impacts that if most communities would take the time to educated themselves on would be building these things right and left.

Yes... welcome ragerunner!

 

Another possible benefit at busy intersections may be a reduction in "t-bone" collisions.  In that regard,, roundabouts would seem to be a better solution than these idiotic traffic cameras... which may reduce "t-bone" crashes, but have shown to increase rear-end collisions caused by people stopping suddenly to avoid rolling through red lights.

Absolutely,

Roundabouts can greatly reduce accidents and deaths.

Information from the US Transportation Guide on Roundabouts (link posted above)

 

Average annual crash frequencies at 11 U.S.

intersections converted to roundabouts.

Type of Percent Change

Roundabout  Sites Total  Injury  PDO

Single-Lane    8    51%  73%    32%

Multi-Lane      3    29%  31%    10%

Total          11    37%  51%    29%

 

Source: Jacquemart, G. Synthesis of Highway Practice

264: Modern Roundabout Practice in the United States.

National Cooperative Highway Research Program.

Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press, 1998.

Sorry,

Those numbers are all reductions. I forgot to add the - in.

From the 8/22/06 ABJ:

 

 

PHOTO: Painted arrows on Ridgewood Road reveal the traffic pattern as motorists approach the new roundabout at Hametown Road on Monday, Aug. 21, 2006, in Copley Township, Ohio.  Paul Tople/Akron Beacon Journal

 

What comes around goes around

In a roundabout way, dangerous intersection is made safer in Copley

By Bob Dyer

 

Don't believe the hype.

 

The Cleveland media spent Monday morning crowing about "the first modern roundabout in Northeast Ohio'' opening at 5 a.m. in the city's Tremont district.

 

Wrong.

 

Once again, the Cleveland media act as if "Northeast Ohio'' extends only as far south as Brecksville.

 

Let it be known that the first modern roundabout in Northeast Ohio actually opened at 3:15 p.m. Friday in suburban Akron...

 

 

Bob Dyer's column usually appears Fridays. Reach him at 330-996-3580 or [email protected].

 

http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/news/15330962.htm?source=rss&channel=ohio_news

 

Summit County Engineer Greg Bachman has been touting these things as the best engineering concept to have come down the pike in ages. Until now, his proclamations have been met mostly by blank stares, simply because the nearest roundabout is in the Columbus suburb of Dublin.

 

That's not true either. There are numerous roundabouts in Cleveland's eastern suburbs, and one was built in the 1990s on West Road at Forestview Drive in Olmsted Falls as part of a new housing development (Forestview).

i guess its claimed that Dublin had the first ohio roundabout...?? if thats the case then what the heck is that thing i drive through off MLK to get into university circle?  And yea theres even some old roundabouts in Parma/Parma Heights if im not mistaken

Burton's roundabout (around the city square) has been around for forever and a day.

nice they are coming back ,but dont think the are inventing the wheel here. there are many of these in smaller towns all over ne ohio and even all over ohio (troy, somerset, taramack circle development in northland columbus). the ne ohio versions go back to the preferred style of the western reserve/connecticut history. and seems like they forgot all about university circle? don't ya love lazy journalism and developer, etc. hype?

 

Seems like a pissing contest between cities. Is it really that big of a deal when a city gets a round about?

not really, well id just rather see some accurrancy and maybe a little less hype about something thats been around for a while

 

altho if you want a pissing contest you should check out the threads about which college or university is the best in ohio

^Which one?  Aren't there about eighteen of them now?  Jeesle...

has anyone driven the new w14 roundabout at steelyard commons? 

 

i was through the ridgewood rd one on saturday.  looks great, would like to see more of these go up instead on more traffic lights.

I nearly found myself in an accident a couple weeks ago in the roundabout in Bridgewater Falls, two cars were going the wrong way! We had to stop, and they made me back up!

nice they are coming back ,but dont think the are inventing the wheel here. there are many of these in smaller towns all over ne ohio and even all over ohio (troy, somerset, taramack circle development in northland columbus). the ne ohio versions go back to the preferred style of the western reserve/connecticut history. and seems like they forgot all about university circle? don't ya love lazy journalism and developer, etc. hype?

 

 

They explain the reasoning behind the term "modern roundabout" in the article.

 

Here is a question.....in a round about, isn't the traffic IN the circle supposed to have the right of way?  It seems some of the prior round abouts mentioned, the traffic in it has to yield to oncoming traffic....which to me seems idiotic (plus it does that disqualify it as a true round about?)

^ As I always understood it, traffic entering the roundabout must yield.  That's the only way it makes sense.

 

In most of the traffic circles I'm familiar with, the major road's through-traffic gets the right-of-way.  So in Sharon Center, the traffic either northbound or southbound on 94 gets to cruise straight through; the traffic either eastbound or westbound on 162 yields.  These are different, because instead of worrying about which road is doing the intersecting, all enterers yield...

 

So it's all right-hand turns, which are safer and faster; the rules are clear (just yield if you're coming up on it); and there's no unnecessary stopping...very cool.