Benefits of roundabouts, and a chance to practice

While visiting England a few years ago, when it came time to drive through roundabouts, I freaked out.

Not only was I sitting on the right side of the car and driving on the left side of the road, now I was having to drive around in circles with no idea where I wanted to go. Each time, I felt

like I was in an old slapstick comedy episode.

I was lucky to get out without a major damage tally tacked onto my rent-a-car bill.

Then, in the time it took my English friend to allow four words to float out in her lovely, lilting accent, I saw the light.

“Look to the right,” she said.

That was all I needed to know. From then on, when I approached the English roundabouts, I looked to the right. If someone was coming, I yielded. If no one was coming, I went.

Suddenly I was in driver’s heaven. Swinging through those babies without having to stop and sit at a maddening light gave me an incredible feeling of freedom. I became a convert.

Here in America, the direction is different but the mantra is essentially the same: Look to the left.

For the record, a roundabout is a large concrete circle in the center of an intersection. Cars and trucks going in perpendicular directions are separated by driving around the circle, rather than by having to stop and take turns.

More roundabouts are being built here all the time. They can be tricky to negotiate for drivers who aren’t used to them, so the state Department of Transportation is offering a “roundabout rodeo” Monday in Monroe. People will get a chance to practice driving through a mock roundabout from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Evergreen State Fairgrounds.

I won’t go so far as to say roundabouts are far superior to stoplights as a way to control traffic at intersections. I’ll just present some of the evidence.

n Accidents happen in roundabouts, but they’re almost always fender benders. Head-on collisions and T-bone smashups that kill people are rare or non-existent.

n Ever sat at a light for what seems like forever, watching maybe one or two cars pass on the cross street? Doesn’t happen with a roundabout. If no else is there, you can go.

n A roundabout moves more cars through an intersection in the same amount of time than a traffic signal, studies have shown.

n Spending less time sitting at an intersection means wasting less of that $60 you just spent to fill up your gas tank. It also means spewing less exhaust into the air.

n Those pesky ticket-giving, Big Brother red-light cameras? Hasta la vista, baby!

Crosswalks need painting

Trudy McLaughlin of Lynnwood writes: I live in the Martha Lake area off 164th Street SW in Snohomish County. I have been observing for the past several months that there is a real need to have the crosswalks painted, especially from Ash Way east over the overpass of I-5.

It is especially bad on rainy, cloudy days. The crosswalks are pretty much non-existent. There are traffic signals allowing pedestrians to cross at all these intersections, but it is confusing for some as to where the lines are for cars to stop when the lights change. Is there anything in the works to update the worn paint?

This question required a two-part response. The intersection is under the jurisdiction of Snohomish County and the overpass is controlled by the state.

Owen Carter, Snohomish County engineer, responds: The Ash Way intersection is under our jurisdiction and we have a work request in to paint the crosswalk. However, until the weather changes we will not be able to do any of our painting maintenance.

Bronlea Mishler, spokeswoman for the state Department of Transportation, responds: As you might guess, rain isn’t the best weather for striping the highway. We plan to restripe the crosswalk and pavement markings on the northbound I-5 off-ramp to 164th Street as soon as it dries out. Our crews will also touch up the stop bars and crosswalks at the other on- and off-ramps if needed.

Look for updates on our Street Smarts blog at www.heraldnet.com/streetsmarts.

E-mail us at stsmarts@heraldnet.com. Please include your city of residence.