Driving - Your "pet hate" on the road

[Vesper Martini]

Originally Posted by BENT_8

Indicating your intention to exit a roundabout isnt about law, its about common coutesy to others and its hardly surprising courtesy to others is something Victorians would struggle with.
Roundabouts are designed to aid traffic flow, traffic flows better when everyone is clear with their intentions.
One of the things ive noticed lately at roundabouts is the unnecessary speed at which the modern motoist without a second to spare enters them, resulting in understeer and subsequently excessive and maintained steering angle with a late reef on the wheel in the opposite direction to exit.

When im driving a coach the ability to maintain momentum with caution is important from a passenger comfort and vehicle wear and tear perspective, i dont want my punters bounced around as i jump on and off the throttle/brake, nor do i need to wind up from a stand still when it was completely avoidable with a little courtesy.

In a situation where im approaching a roundabout with good visibility my tactic is to scan for vehicles approaching from my right and opposite, if the vehicle approaching from my right is indicating left i know i can all but rule out the need to stop whilst maintaining caution, if they dont indicate, or indicate right i assume they have right of way and will adjust my speed to merge after them or stop if necessary, its only when they approach the roundabout without indicating left, causing me to assume they are intending to go straight through, i therefore adjust accordingly only for them to go left and leave me slowed or stopped for nothing.
Same to for vehicles approaching from the opposite direction, if they dont indicate left on approach i assume they are a going either straight ahead or right across my path minus the appropriate right turn indicator. Some will say why indicate left to exit, well, if you drove a heavy vehicle you'd appreciate that you learn to read the body language of other vehicles, if youre approaching me from opposite, fly into the roundabout and are still hard on the right lock to control your subsequent understeer and dont indicate your intention to exit to my right i will assume youre one of those who dont need indicators to turn right and i will find myself stopped unnecessarily out of caution . Flick that left indicator on as you pass the previous exit and im more inclined to believe you and go about my business as a roundabout allows.

A roundabout in peak hour traffic whilst behind the wheel of a sometimes slow, heavy vehicle is at or close too being the moment of greatest risk because unlike light vehicles, we cant just duck through that little gap, we need good warning so we can negotiate safely and without holding anyone up unnecessarily because one thing is a certainty, find yourself inconvenienced by that slow moving vehicle just trying to tip toe amongst you and even if youve contributed through your own lack of courtesy, you will throw all your toys from the cot.

There's a small roundabout going into my kids high school, if the bus is trying to get out I always signal them through, why? because its courtesy and getting the bus out of the roundabout also helps overall traffic flow