Exiting Roundabouts

[The Central Scrutinizer]

There are a couple of roundabouts near me where you approach in two lanes but exit the lanes into a single lane.
Just lately i have noticed people will approach the roundabout in the right lane but then take the second exit(straight ahead).
I had this today but i knew what was going to happen so i let him/her cut me off to avoid an accident.
Aren't they being taught that you use the left lane for this manoeuvre or are they to lazy or ignorant?

 

[cougie uk]

There's a lot of bad drivers around.

 

[Regular.Cyclist]

There are many roundabouts near me that have two lanes on the entry and two on the exit. Both lanes are marked for straight on and the right lane is also marked for right.

Road marking can tell a lot about what is likely to lie ahead though sometimes they are poorly implemented.

Are the drivers the OP refers to locals or simply unfamiliar with the roads?

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

I grew up near a big, weirdly shaped and busy roundabout
It was the one that, when we were taking driving lessons, kids used to come into school saying "my instructor says he will take me round Moreton Cross next time" - with a sense of dread

I lived about 100 yards away from it and had been riding my bike round it for far longer than my parents knew
I had learned to take it at speed and to take Primary before that was ever a thing

I have continued to do that when necessary - taking Primary on leaving a roundabout - and on going round it - it often just necessary

Speed can help but is not necessary - but may account for my tyre wear - the one at the bottom of our road is fun at speed in the dry!

 

[Jenkins]

Some are designed like this (St. Augustine's in Ipswich for example) where you approach for straight on in two lanes and are supposed to merge in turn on the exit. Causes no end of fun for the spectator.

 

[Mike_P]

There are a couple of roundabouts near me where you approach in two lanes but exit the lanes into a single lane.
Just lately i have noticed people will approach the roundabout in the right lane but then take the second exit(straight ahead).
I had this today but i knew what was going to happen so i let him/her cut me off to avoid an accident.
Aren't they being taught that you use the left lane for this manoeuvre or are they to lazy or ignorant?

Same thing happened to me last week. I was the middle of three cars approaching a roundabout, the other two went into the right hand lane at the approach and we all went straight on

 

[Ian H]

It just requires a bit of give-and-take, which is what aggressive British road-users are not good at.

 

[presta]

Aren't they being taught that you use the left lane for this manoeuvre or are they to lazy or ignorant?

Why? The highway code says right lane for turning right, left for left, and either for straight on.

I grew up near a big, weirdly shaped and busy roundabout
It was the one that, when we were taking driving lessons, kids used to come into school saying "my instructor says he will take me round Moreton Cross next time" - with a sense of dread

I lived about 100 yards away from it and had been riding my bike round it for far longer than my parents knew
I had learned to take it at speed and to take Primary before that was ever a thing

I have continued to do that when necessary - taking Primary on leaving a roundabout - and on going round it - it often just necessary

Speed can help but is not necessary - but may account for my tyre wear - the one at the bottom of our road is fun at speed in the dry!

Try Birchanger roundabout on the M11 at J8/Stansted Airport for size, it was on my route to & from Ivinghoe YHA. Half a mile in circumference, varies between two, three, and four lanes, a bypass running through the middle of the island, traffic lights, a lot of heavy traffic, and no verge where you can wheel the bike.

 

[cougie uk]

I grew up near a big, weirdly shaped and busy roundabout
It was the one that, when we were taking driving lessons, kids used to come into school saying "my instructor says he will take me round Moreton Cross next time" - with a sense of dread

I lived about 100 yards away from it and had been riding my bike round it for far longer than my parents knew
I had learned to take it at speed and to take Primary before that was ever a thing

I have continued to do that when necessary - taking Primary on leaving a roundabout - and on going round it - it often just necessary

Speed can help but is not necessary - but may account for my tyre wear - the one at the bottom of our road is fun at speed in the dry!

That Moreton Cross ? My bike club used to meet there. At least it was quiet on a Sunday morning.

I do try and avoid roundabouts as much as I can whilst cycling. Always a risk to cyclists.

 

[Cerdic]

Highway Code says - unless there are specific markings showing otherwise, left lane for 1st exit/turning left, right lane for 3rd exit/turning right, BOTH lanes for 2nd exit/straight on.

So unless there are arrows in the right hand lane showing right turn only, taking the right hand lane for the second exit is perfectly acceptable.

Of course, some roads are just really badly laid out. Two lanes going into one past the roundabout sounds like it is probably this…

 

[slowmotion]

When entering or exiting a roundabout on two wheels, self-preservation is uppermost in my mind, not my rights.


Here lies the body of Michael O'Day.
He died defending his right of way.
He was right, dead right, as he sailed along,
But just as dead as if he'd been wrong.

 

[Alex321]

Highway Code says - unless there are specific markings showing otherwise, left lane for 1st exit/turning left, right lane for 3rd exit/turning right, BOTH lanes for 2nd exit/straight on.

So unless there are arrows in the right hand lane showing right turn only, taking the right hand lane for the second exit is perfectly acceptable.

Of course, some roads are just really badly laid out. Two lanes going into one past the roundabout sounds like it is probably this…

That is what the HC used to say. I'm not sure when t was changed, but it was prior to the most recent changes.

What it now says is:

Rule 186​

Signals and position. When taking the first exit to the left, unless signs or markings indicate otherwise

• signal left and approach in the left-hand lane
• keep to the left on the roundabout and continue signalling left to leave.

When taking an exit to the right or going full circle, unless signs or markings indicate otherwise

• signal right and approach in the right-hand lane
• keep to the right on the roundabout until you need to change lanes to exit the roundabout
• signal left after you have passed the exit before the one you want.

When taking any intermediate exit, unless signs or markings indicate otherwise

• select the appropriate lane on approach to the roundabout
• you should not normally need to signal on approach
• stay in this lane until you need to alter course to exit the roundabout
• signal left after you have passed the exit before the one you want.

When there are more than three lanes at the entrance to a roundabout, use the most appropriate lane on approach and through it.

You should give priority to cyclists on the roundabout. They will be travelling more slowly than motorised traffic. Give them plenty of room and do not attempt to overtake them within their lane. Allow them to move across your path as they travel around the roundabout.

Cyclists, horse riders and horse drawn vehicles may stay in the left-hand lane when they intend to continue across or around the roundabout and should signal right to show you they are not leaving the roundabout. Drivers should take extra care when entering a roundabout to ensure that they do not cut across cyclists, horse riders or horse drawn vehicles in the left-hand lane, who are continuing around the roundabout.

The last two paragraphs were added at the change in January this year, but the rest was already the same.

Of course "Select the appropriate lane" is very much open to interpretation.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

We have several roundabouts around here that connect via dual carriageways to each other, what I am seeing is that if somebody wants to go across straight ahead on 3 roundabouts & then turn right on the 4th one, they move to the outside lane as they approach the first then stay in the outside lane all the way to the 4th roundabout.

On the Sheffield Parkway they come off the M1 go immediately to the outside lane then stay in it for the whole 6 miles until they turn right at the bottom.

The other one that seems to encourage them is in the past if 2 lanes became 3 at a junction or roundabout it was always the inside lane that branched to become 2, now I'm seeing it's the outside lane which is branching. Local roundabout is 3 lanes at the lights before it, inside is left, middle is left & straight forward, right is right, if you approach in the nearside as I believe you should you have to cross the white lines to get into the correct lane to go straight forward. However if you are i the incorrect outside lane you can filter into the middle without crossing the lines, which I think is wrong & encourages people to use the outside lane.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

Just thought - the other thing I do is very clear - even stupidly clear - signalling

If the car behind me knows what I am going to do in advance then there is a good chance that they will not get it wrong

After all - if me and my bike bounce across their bonnet then it will probably get scratched and dented

 

[T4tomo]

I think the OP was in his car, but I may be wrong.

The highway code is largely irrelevant to behaviour as very few people read it or know what it says.

Quite often the "which lane for straight on when there is a single lane exit" has a local silent convention that the vast majority observe, and depends on prevalence of the "non straight on traffic" to go left or right etc.

of course there are also idiots who see roundabouts as overtaking opportunities.