Like many other people I’m having trouble at smaller roundabouts.

I follow the Highway Code advice of giving way to vehicles from my right. However, what does ‘give way’ actually mean? I have always taken it to mean if someone on my right has actually entered the roundabout I wait. Recently, I have entered roundabouts and someone from my right, who had not reached the roundabout when I set off, has come up behind me blowing the horn. Advice please.

If you can see a vehicle approaching from the right, which is fairly likely to be entering the roundabout whilst you are on it, should be heeded to. For me personally, this means if a car is up to 50 metres from the junction whilst I am coming to a halt, will be heeded to. Also, you should be looking out for a signal (or not) which can help your decision to go or not.

If ever you are beeped at for baulking someone coming across the roundabout from your right, then you must have misjudged their speed / their timing or your own timing, not knowing how long a mini roundabout manouvere will take (usually involves a tight turn if not crossing over the roundabout symbol itself)

Rule is "If in doubt, DON'T go"

Becomes more difficult when there is a car giving way in each entry lane into the roundabout though. Then it usually needs someone to take precedence and quite likely baulk someone.

The code states "give way to the right".

People already on a roundabout will usually have priority.

So at any major roundabout it's quite straight forward - anyone on the roundabout to your right you let past and then you join the roundabout.

Mini-roundabouts can be slightly different.

The rules on "give way to the right" still exist, as does that on people already on the roundabout.

The difference here is traffic on your right coming onto the roundabout - with a mini-roundabout they are doing so a lot quicker and because the roundabout is so much smaller they will reach your entry point a lot quicker.

So personally I stick to all of the same rules, but if a vehicle appears to be fast approaching a mini-roundabout that I'm waiting to enter I tend to let them get on with it rather than risk my vehicle being hit.

If I know I can safely pull out in front of him (I call safely if the other car doesn't need to brake) then I'll proceed.

"Give Way" - Slow down, and be prepared to stop if not doing so will force another vehicle to alter its course and/or speed. Note that this will require you to consider the other vehicle's likely course and actual speed, as well as your own planned course and speed.

Or were you expecting a different answer to apply to Octavia 2s?

I recall a friend who lived in Clearwater Florida telling me they had just had their first "roundabout" put in (carousel they call it). Apparently a new bodyshop had sprung up nearby and was doing roaring trade, as the locals didn't have a clue how to treat the new road layout.

I prefer their (crossroad) four-way stop junctions (also appears as three-way stops, at T junctions.) Whoever arrives at the junction first must stop, but also goes first. I have not yet seen any problems with this system (except probably with tourists who don't know what it means!!)

I understand that the French use their roundabouts exactly the opposite to us in that if you are on the roundabout you give way to traffic emerging onto it from the streets ahead of you. But I've haven't driven there for 50 years so don't know if it is still true.

You're half-right with the French roundabouts.

Some are "give way to your left".

Where as others are "priority to those entering the roundabout".

I don't know what the two different signs are.

However the majority of them now are the same as ours (well opposit - give way to the left).

You're half-right with the French roundabouts.

Some are "give way to your left".

Where as others are "priority to those entering the roundabout".

I don't know what the two different signs are.

However the majority of them now are the same as ours (well opposit - give way to the left).

And the approaches are signed "Vous n'avez pas la priorite" (excuse any mis-spellings) which should be clear enough?

Remember years ago, before the days of D&D, my friend and I always went out on Saturday nights to sink a few too many pints

followed by a rum and black after each one.

We had a 1950 Vauxhall Creasta - pink with black hand painted go faster strips, bald tyres and a blown exhaust.

Never had any problems with roundabouts, or come to think of it, anything else on the road.

Can't think why !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Give way means that you should be prepared to stop or slow down to give priority to vehicles on the roundabout or about to join it on your right, it requires that you judge their speed of course so if in doubt better to stop and wait. It also assumes that the driver on the right will approach it with equal respect and not treat it as a test of launch speed ability... Lane discipline on large roundabouts is important too and the habit of "undertaking" on roundabouts is becoming more common, as well as a seeming inability to drive around them maintaining any lane sense or signalling at the correct time. Skodas should have their own rules of course and special lanes with smooth new tarmac but until that day arrives will just have to obey the normal highway code.

I was tending to give way on someones visible position relative to the roundabout entry. Now seems that I should also assess the speed that someone will attempt the roundabout at. I have been underestimating the local wimmin in their Jimnies and the like. Beep beep.

Never scrolled down far enough to realise there was a general Car Chat forum.

Edited 11 May, 201115 yr by gregoir

A lot of the mini-roundabouts round here in suburban North-West London don't work properly now because they are overloaded with traffic, particular at rush-hour. You either get total indecision on the part of drivers, with everybody holding back from entering as they are worried by the possibility of conicident "Go" decisions from other drivers leading to an unavoidable collision or you get dominant stream, where nobody else gets a look-in because of a constant unbroken stream of traffic entering through one of the joining roads.

In these circumstances, they should be replaced or supplemented with lights. But a set of conventional lights are far too expensive and this was probably the reason why mini-roundabouts were installed in the first place, to avoid the cost of installing lights at what were lowly used T junctions.

IMHO, what's needed is a single traffic light in the middle of the mini-roundabout, with the appropriate number of faces that only allows one traffic stream to enter the roundabout at a time - performing the same function as the traffic policeman that were found in a gondola unit in the centre of big European Cities of old. Further, you could paint-up the whole circulation area around the round about with traffic control box cross hatching re-inforcing the notion, that no-one enters until you get a go from the light and you're desired exit point is clear !!

Or alternatively, the same effect could be achieved by getting one of the utility companies to be tasked to constantly dig-up and relay the surface of every problem roundabout ! So, no change in behaviour there then !

One local authority round her (Hillingdon) has two of these overloaded mini-roundabout junctions within 150 yards of each other (Junction of Joel street and Eastcote Road and Field End Road and Eastcote Road) So what did they do, certainly not address the junction problem. No instead they decided to install brand new zebra crossing 200 yards away, on a blind corner on a major road in the midst of a residential suburbia - I've never seen anybody use it.

And again, they installed another one across Rickmansworth Road from the Golf club to the back-end residential part of Northwood - most of the Golf Club johnnies turn up in their cars and park on the main road anyway. So that one's going to be lightly used and obstructed.

Brilliant policy implemenatation, trouble is it doesn't appear to be traffic policy that was being implemented, but no doubt it came out the roads budget.

Thank god I'm not a council tax payer of that borough.

Nick

Edited 11 May, 201115 yr by Clunkclick

Giving way to the traffic on the right should be straight forward but 30% of drivers don't know which side is on their 'Right' so whatever rules of road are invented there will always be problems.

From experience I can tell you it's the biggest vehicle that has right of way whatever the rules of the road are.

As for French roundabouts and joining the main road at other jucnctions, the rule is give way to the Left now, that changed years ago. There are some exceptions as there are in the UK as well.

As for French roundabouts and joining the main road at other jucnctions, the rule is give way to the Left now, that changed years ago. There are some exceptions as there are in the UK as well.

Err . . . Not on modern roundabouts in Northwestern and Mid western France where i've been on hols fo the last 3 years. If I hadn't given way to traffic from the left on roundabouts, I'd have been T-boned.

What has disappeared, apart from preserved rights that I observed in some bits of the Cotentin peninsular and in some rural towns e.g. Peross Guirec in Cote D'Armour, is "Passage protege" on country roads. Where vehicles have the right of way to emerge from side roads (Often blind) into main roads. Lunacy !! Presumably, this is maintained because of the benign influence of the French equivalent of the National Union Of Farmers/local co-op.

And of course, cars joining expressway/motorways from slip roads have right of way. Very sensible, cause those in the inside line of the motorway anticipate this and move into the outside lane if they see tarffic running down the slip road.

Edited 13 May, 201115 yr by Clunkclick

Didn't realise this give way lark on roundabouts was still widespread, I travel over there as a shopper occasionally so only stay around Calais/Boulogne areas and can't recall any old rule roundabouts. Always made me chuckle that everyone can easily get on to a roundabout but couldn't go round it or get off it. French

I have been driving in France for about 30 years and I can't recall seeing any roundabouts with the old rule:- traffic on the roundabout had to give way to vehicles joining it. It's always now give way to those on the roundabout, approaching from your left. They still have signing on the approach warning you that you don't have priority though.

As for the priority a droit rule, most main and secondary roads are marked with diamond shaped signs indicating that they have priority. But thee rule usually still applies in towns where it's easy to get caught out. Fortunately most local drivers watch out for tourists who don't understand thee rule.

Regarding mini-roundabouts, we have a few here in Guernsey, and most drivers don't even attempt to go round them, and frequently turn right before them. So I'm sometimes going straight on and judge that I have time to cross before an approaching vehicle signalling right goes round. Then I find it turning in front of me and, technically, going the wrong way round. These are mini-roundabouts on wide enough junctions to go round them comfortably.

But we also have junctions marked as "Filter-in-Turn" where everyone gives way in turn. If two vehicles approach with no others in front then it's simply the one that gets there first that has priority.