They make sense for a one-off seven-way intersection, but are otherwise deployed willy-nilly as a solution in search of a problem. An expensive PIA.

The title of the article promises more information on the safety of the roundabouts. The article does not provide this information.

From the WisDOT page:

Reduce wait time and fuel wastage.
Lessen the severity of accidents (low speed sideswipes and rear ending versus high speed t-bones and head ons)
Eliminate energized signals that are costly.
Automatically adjust to improve traffic movement during high or low volumes.

WisDOT has an interactive tutorial that shows how to use roundabouts. Sorry, do not know the site address but it is interesting. Someone else showed it to me.

Get used to them. Local, county and state governments will be installing more to get away from the capital cost of signal equipment and energy usage. Sorry, I didn't write the book on this one. Just the facts.

Just a thought.

Many elderly shouldn't be driving in the first place. And snow covers the arrows, the pavement and the road in general. People go off the road on straight sections of the road all the time because they can't distinguish where the road ends and the ditch starts when it snows.

Most county deputies and state patrolmen can attest to this.

Maybe reassess your driving skills if you have a problem with roundabouts?

Just a thought, that's all.

Out in Waukesha County where I-94 meets Sawyer Road, a simple 4 way intersection that had been controlled by traffic lights and which never had much in the way of traffic was replaced by 4 consecutive roundabouts. Like them or not, that's just plain stupid.

I hate them

I do not like them either. They confuse me and I am not elderly yet.

I don't think it helps one way or another - you have so much more watching/waiting to do than a stop sign or light.

I absolutely love them. At first, I was very scared, not sure how to maneuver them, but once I learned how, I saw the true benefit. I no longer have to sit and wait at a red light when there are no cars on the other side, wasting gas and time. I wish every right light would be turned into a traffic circle. We would save so much gas, time, and energy.

Anyone been to Oshkosh lately? What the DOT has done to all the on and off ramp intersections from Hwy 41 is ridiculous! How can something that confusing be safer?

I didn't like the idea at first, but once they were built and I learned how to use them I think they are much better than stop lights!

Hate roundabouts and avoid them whenever possible.

They provide continual traffic flow~agreed. Lower amount of accidents at intersections~ thats a given with the design. But what they dont mention is that with the continual traffic spitting out of a roundabout, there is no break in traffic to pull out of driveways and sideroads. Some intersections it does make an improvement, like Good Hope and Townline. But others, i feel it was ridiculous solution.

I don't get how people are confused by roundabouts. U come up to it, enter the circle (which always travels counter clockwise), and exit the circle when u need to.

Do stop signs or light controlled intersections promote safety?

Not trying to make a political statement here but the reality is that if you want to save on tax dollars, roundabouts are a direct result. Let Walker, Doyle or who ever take the blame/credit but it goes towards the fed funding of our state highway system. Just like the emissions testing for SE WI, that is directly tied to fed highway funds.

I'm all for them. $$andSense makes a lot of valid points. What's the hurry, people? Slow down, read the signs and proceed. No sitting at red lights and slower speeds make for a reduction in serious or fatal accidents. No traffic standards also reduce the cost of constant maintenance. I'd like to see more roundabouts.

Round-abouts are great. They help control traffic while reducing congestion. I used to live in Washington where roundabouts are used frequently. They keep traffic flowing, reducing congestion. However, the drivers there know and understand how to use roundabouts.

The roundabout at the off ramp of I43 and Mooreland is horrible, because it isn't clearly marked, nor does it remind people to slow down. There are several lanes, and little signage.

The problem lies with little exposure to them, and little education about how to use a roundabout. Drivers ED for new drivers should go over how to use roundabouts, as well at the written test. And older drivers should be experienced enough to be able to get the gist of them quickly.

Learn how to use them or stop driving. It's your responsibility.

Big problem with them most are to tight and if you get on them with a smi watch out they will wipe you out . More then once had to take to the shoulder to keep from getting side swiped by them and the big rig drivers dont realy care i

Just yesterday there was a 3 car round-about accident at Racine Ave and I 43!

I'm not a fan.... Try to avoid them but that's getting more difficult.

Roundabouts don't CAUSE accidents. Horrible drivers do. This state is filled with people who can't even merge onto a freeway properly, so it's no surprise that these things are baffling to most drivers. And as for semi trucks, why not just give them room when they are going through them? The 3 second you lose, won't mean much.

Getting through them when there is no other traffic is fine; I love not having to stop for a stop sign when there are no other vehicles in sight. But, under light to moderate traffic, drivers who are too timid to enter the circle slow things down as badly as stop signs. Traffic circles also expose you to drivers who have no lane discipline or are unaware of the way to properly maneuver through the intersection. I'm not confident that this will improve as drivers become familiar with circles. My sense is that average driver skills and habits deteriorate, rather than improve over time. By this, I'm referring to drivers between the ages of 25 and 55, not the elderly. I'm on the road daily as a delivery driver and these are my observations.

If they are built appropriately they work. If they are one lane like the one on Hwy 59 and Hwy83 in Genesee, the large trucks and 'wide loads' that frequently use those highways cannot make it around. They have tried to lower the inner curb, but it was a big waste of money, it still does not function as a proper roundabout should. Make them large enough to support the type of vehicles that frequent the area.

It would be interesting to see some published data indicating whether or not they actually do increase safety in areas where they were installed. The assumption that certain features inherent in them assure safety is no different than similar assumptions made about other types of intersections - that drivers can/will negotiate them as they should. I've seen the yield signs that are supposed to control entry into the roundabout ignored in much the same fashion they're ignored at other types of intersections.

They do tend to eat up a significantly larger amount of real estate than traditional intersections of two undivided, single lane roads. Obviously that limits their use in urban areas. In some areas I'm familiar with where they've replaced traditional intersections, they occupy, in part, what once was private property.

I'm sure they make sense in a lot of areas. I've definitely seen them installed in areas where they don't.

If roundabouts lessen accidents than why are the three worst accident prone areas in Madison roundabouts? Check it out on the DOT website. Madison roundabouts and any other roundabouts are accidents waiting to happen. Upstate New York back in the 70's & 80's went the route of roundabouts and now realize they were a mistake and are removing them due to high accident rates. It seems that Wisconsin is always about 30 yrs. behind when it comes to issues like this.

I don't like them at all. I will avoid them if at all possible. Most of the one's I have seen are not clearly marked as to what the traffic pattern should be. And a lot of drivers do not know what the meaning of YIELD is. Also if you are crossing over the round about, you can sit there for quite awhile before you can get across at intersections with a heavy flow of traffic.

Based on Clark Griswold's experience I feel that Roundabouts could be a nightmare for many motorists in the heart of rush hour traffic.

Roundabouts have made Moorland & I-43 more efficient and safer. Even with the theater as one exit, which brings many infrequent travelers to the area. And the morning/afternoon commute is much more efficient and safer, with fewer close calls, no one blowing through the red lights.

83 from 59 to Mukwonago is much less putty with the addition of roundabouts.

I have witnessed one too many major accidents and waited at too many empty intersections for a green light not to appreciate roundabouts.

Most of the roundabouts that are being built in Wisconsin are toyabouts. If anyone has been out east and encountered a major roundabout they are 3 or 4 lanes wide. When you get into the circle you may go around at least 3 times before you are able to get over to exit.
At Cabelas 3 roundabouts in a row and they are toyabouts. What was the thought process there? The only sensible roundabout that I have seen so far is the one on hwy. 74 in the Lannon/Sussex area. That one is very effective due to the off setting intersection connections.
Putting a toy roundabout at a normal intersection is STUPID!

I hate roundabouts, they are expensive to build, confusing for drivers and take up more space. I especially dislike the roundabouts planned for Discovery Parkway that make an already too wide road even more invasive.

As we've recently seen, roundabouts are not safer for pedestrians, who already have enough problems in 'suburban' areas where drivers aren't expecting pedestrian traffic in the first place. At least with a light, cars have to stop sometimes. Some traffic lights will even have a pedestrian button to give you a fighting chance against the left turners. At a roundabout, drivers tend to be more worried about the cars behind them than the pedestrian in the crosswalk.

Love! Love! Love! them. People tend to fear and dislike the unknown and change. Yield the person on the left. When you have room, go. Do not stop or slow down while driving through one. It's that simple. Any haters need to become familiar and comfortable with them. Once they do, they will most likely, at the very least, like them too.

when we were in Poland they had a roundabout It was a very busy town and we had to wait a long time before we could enter the roundabout and then we had to pull into it fairly fast so we could get on
. In low traffic areas they are OK but busy places they don't make sense.

I wasn't sold on them at first... but I think they make a lot of sense at some intersections. I enjoy not getting held up continuously by stop lights and they DO, without question, prevent severe crashes. Look no further than Racine Ave. and Kelsey Dr. in Muskego, where very serious / fatal accidents were happenning several times a year. I don't think there has been one traumatic accident there since the roundabout was constructed. Definately not possible with stop lights. Saves on energy costs / maintenance over the long run too.

Unless we actually start enforcing the 15 MPH spped limit in roundabouts, we will see more and more accidennts
As well, where we have two lane roundabouts on one lane roads (as in Barker at North in Brookfield) speeders will use them to pass and go even faster than the straight road speed.
Properly regulated as to speed, they are fine. Since we don't seem to regulate them, they are more dangerous than a set of street lights.

tear them up dont need them

They save lives, gas and time. End of story. They are basically simple. Cars to your left have the right of way. Cars to your right have to bow to you. Love them!

They're not what we're used to, but with practice, we'll get better at them. Switching from inner to outer lanes rapidly so you can access an off ramp, is what bothers people the most.

They are too small. Semi drivers cannot help but cross over intot the next lane. It's physics!
Don't really like or dislike. Either way they are a pia!

Now that everyone has masted the Sawyer Road Slalom we can move-on to bigger and better roadway challenges. The counter-flow or 'magic' roundabout has, well, um, er..... just look at the diagram link and the photograph link.

http://www.roundabout.net/DIBcounterflow.html
http://www.swindonweb.com/index.asp?m=8&s=115&ss=289&t=THE+MAGIC+ROUNDABOUT

I have to say they proposed one near my sons school a few years ago and I was opposed. Why? One, he and I walked to school regularly, and while something needed to be done with the intersection, having a roundabout near two elementary schools and a college, just didn't seem to be a good idea. I have no idea how pedestrians are supposed to navigate a roundabout when the point is to not stop traffic. How does a pedestrian cross then? Two, there is also a high school within 1/2 a mile of the intersection. When we went to the public meeting, the engineer who was there admitted that having a roundabout near a high school, where drivers tend to drive too fast can be a bad idea. In the end the roundabout was denied and they put in a traffic light. The traffic light has really helped cut down on accidents. I guess traffic circles in areas that have a decent amount of traffic and no pedestrians might be okay, but not in an area with kids walking to and from school, downtown, or new young drivers, IMO.

Yes!

I don't see why we can't give ourselves time to get used to them, since they do in fact save money and wait time. Yes, they can be confusing at first, but give it a chance. People complain they will cause more accidents because people don't know when to go and when to yield (yield signs? hello?), but even if someone goes at the wrong time, they can't be going more than 25-30 mph around a circle, so there's no way it can be as risky as the idiots flying through red lights at 60 mph. I think people are just too afraid of change and need to give them a chance.

all the comments are for traffic. what about the safety of our kids riding their bikes or walking to a friends house. The roundabouts are very pedestrian unfriendly

I see the logic in safety factors and municipal budget savings, and I agree it's just a matter of getting used to it. However, I just survived a TRIPLE-ROUNDABOUT in Green Bay where they replaced the traditional 3-lane major artery Mason St./Hwy. 54 bridge over Hwy. 41, a big pain-in-the-butt that felt never ending. How are semis going to maneuver this major thoroughfare in winter? Some roundabouts defy reason.

I hate roundabouts, they are confusing and irritating with too many people moving all at once, making the possibility of an accident much higher!!

I have driven from one end of Ireland to the other and roundabouts are everywhere. If I can drive on the 'wrong' side of the road, on the 'wrong' side of a car, in a strange country and not make a single wrong turn, handling them here should be (and is) a piece of cake. They make people slow down and think. You also can't just go plowing through the intersection.

Poll: Does anyone FULLY stop at a 4 way intersection?

BOB KOSHAREK.
Best thing on the intersections. Keeps the traffic moving. You have to be alert, and drive slow.

In general, people don't like change. When we were fifteen and first learning how to drive, we had to learn new skills. This is just another new skill that has to be learned and down the road, no pun intended, ina few years when roundabouts are commonplace around the country, they will be second nature to our driving skill set and no one will give them a thought And by the way, stop picking on the elderly folks because you'll be one someday and clinging to your independence like these folks.

I've had first and most experience with roundabouts in Great Britain. My issue is my instinct makes me want to head into them going left. People in the UK, Europe, etc. learn to drive with them and here people are used to the most simplistic instruction. Add any level of sophistication and many become confused and frightened.

A great way to avoid traffic issues is mass transit! ; )

Stupid idea, very uncomfortable trying to get through them. I don't think they are safe.

Another problem a roundabout creates is the intersections away from it. A stop sign or traffic light creates gaps in traffic were a vehicle can safely cross the road that is away from the round about controlled intersection. Try crossing HWY 164 north of highway Q on the south end of Washington County during peak traffic times were once there were no backups at away intersections from the four way stop and now there is more accidents and backups away from the intersection with the roundabout.

By the way recent data from the state is will not be used for the round about for at least 2 years untill traffic gets to learns how to use round abouts.

The DOT or Muncipality must conduct a local public hearing prior to construction and not automatically insert a roundabout into a reconstruction plan with real answers and statistics not what is good for communitees with less traffic flow.

This is the stupidest quote...
The great thing about round-abouts though is that it reduces the chance of life threatening injuries because you have to go slower. I agree, people don't know how to use them yet but that is because they are new to most. People will eventually figure that out.

Because most people are trying to figure it out while IN THE ROUNDABOUT.

I personally don't like them but understand how they save fuel and reduce
bad accidents, I find it hard to believe it is reducing overall accident numbers... What I find the real problem is when the design of them creates a problem cases in point is semi's trying to get through the one south of I-43 on moorland .. it is not possible for them to negotiate the intersection and stay in just one lane, if when a bad accident occurs who will be liable, The truck driver for failing to stay in the lane or the state for bad design?? another example is on Hwy 20 & 45 just north of Union Grove.. the roundabout here and it's design has forced some farmers to drive a mile or two just o get to there farm fields because their machinery can not go through the round about without removing signs and light posts... Lastly A similar problem was adverted due to the smart Firefighters in Franklin, when designing them there to be in front of the Target store on Drexel avenue, the original sign would have made it impossible for the department's Ladder truck unable to through it without crashing, Chalk another one up for the Firefighters saving someone else's behind!

As for the whole "They work in Europe" talking point that doesn't work because they are converting cobblestone walkways into a driving path and need to maximize.
In Caledonia they want to destroy a business (DeRango's Pizza/Restaurant) to help mergre two different intersections and five points of traffic.

I heard a recent interview with the head of the DOT and he won't challenge his staff to do better.

Rounds work perfectly fine when people know how to use them, IF the round about is constructed well. Many round abouts are too made too small so it's hard to know when to go or not because by the time you figure out if the car on your left is turning or not, it's right on top of you. Larger round abouts work great and help with traffic flow.

However, when it comes to pedestrian safety, I think round abouts have major issues. People learn that they only need to look left when entering a round about which makes pedestrians likely to not be seen. Also since cars are constantly moving, pedestrians don't have a clear cut time to cross.

One of the main reasons they were shot down on Main St in Sussex is that Main St is a huge street for kids and families to walk and bike along and round abouts don't work well in either of those circumstances.

Eventually people will become more and more familiar with how they work, and the people building them will learn what does and doesn't work when building them, and everyone will eventually accept them.

It costs more money to put in a roundabout than to put up a stop sign. I don't know how many of you have visited in the Washington D.C. area where roundabouts are quite common. They are a nightmare! No one is courteous enough to take his/her turn merging into the roundabout. Isn't it too bad that fads seem to dictate our safety on our streets and highways. Of course, we don't have to worry in Shorewood as most of our streets are in complete disrepair without any plans to repair them in the near future. Let's hope that the roundabout fad is gone by the time that the village board sees fit to allocate money to fix them or we'll have to play dodge car too.

I find roundabouts awesome. At night, they make great skid pads for testing the adhesion rates of new performance tires.....uh, just kidding.

I hate roundabouts. The two things I have learned from the one on Drexel Ave. in Franklin, it's too small and the most aggressive driver goes through first!

They are an obnoxious pain in the rear. When I was stationed in Italy 43 years ago, I thought they were stupid, I still do. I've noticed then, and now, that a lot of drivers just do what they want to do at the these intersections.

Stop it with the cell phone, someone's texting argument. That is irrelevant here. Roundabouts just suck. Period. Someone in the DOT thought they could save a few bucks and jammed these down our throats. Can't wait to see the bill to remove them and go back to stop lights.

I believe the "real" key here is the saved money in the long run. The thinking may also be that it will save fuel waste and be better for the environment. This might be true, if as mentioned by many: People knew how to effectively navigate them and there were no disrespectful and law breaking drivers out there.

Anybody try the 5 in a row that are up by Cabela's in Richfield? I get dizzy going 'round in circles and always miss my "exit" and have to try it all over again. Hate them!

if memory serves me right, the first full year the roundabouts at I43 and Moorland Rd were in place they led New Berlin in traffic mishap occurrences

I once had a concrete truck come at me the wrong way in a roundabout at the one on 25 and Canal just west of the casino.

All you need to remember when going thru a roundabout is yield to the traffice from the left, just that simple. Not rocket science, real easy.

I don't mind them, except for the morons on hwy 38 and K that can't figure out when to yield and then I have to stop for them even though I have the right of way.

Love the conversation on this ... the first time I drove roundabouts was in Boston about 10 years ago. Everybody was going 45 mph through them and it scared the snot out of me. But I got out in one piece.

They might not be a horrible idea in SOME spots but the places they are deciding to put them are just ridiculous. We have one right in our area with two little dead end roads on either side and one through road with very little traffic at all. The grass is completely overgrown in the middle. How is this safer then a stop sign?

I'm totally convinced there is no subject we all can agree on.

Are we all still in agreement that we should still use cars? Let's go back to horses. Let's have a poll on that. I promise you there would be people who would want to use em instead of cars.

I'm just saying the human condition is not one which takes to change very well. No one likes change.

Take away all things new. I'M KIDDING. LOL

The thought isn't really that way out Rees, look at all those who ride bicycles today. Some would rather ride a horse than a bicycle, they are better equipped for snowy weather, and have a sense to detect bad weather, unlike humans. Yep, a horse is actually a pretty darn good mode of transportation and it works as an engine for the pickup when you need it or the wagon when you want to go camping.

I travel and have been exposed to round abouts out east for years - they are the greatest and cheapest way to move traffic thru intersections - the only downside is they take more land - another advantage to east coast driving is the limited access to major roads like Bluemound. - Frontage roads move traffic in one direction with access to businesses from the frontage roads

The lack of roundabouts was one of the main things making American roads superior to those in Europe. The drive I took across Germany last year was truly dizzying, where I drove for an hour straight through towns and villages without stopping, but constantly spinning around the roundabouts. I hope it does not end up like that here...

I am sure that the roundabout on Barker and North improves the traffic flow. What worries me is when I see our neighborhood children having to run across the street at the designated crosswalks to avoid being hit by a car. Pedestrians and busy roundabouts just don't mix.

1) Of course they increase safety. That doesn't make them a good idea. We could save a LOT of lives by reducing the speed limits on highways to 25 MPH.

2) They sort of make sense for efficiency when people come from all 4 directions roughly equally. But where you have much heavier flow in two parallel directions, those two directions block up the people coming from the perpendicular streets, who have to sit and wait for an opening.

3) Roundabouts are AWFUL for pedestrian and bicycle traffic.

4) You can blame Jim Doyle's DOT for all of these.

Oh and 5) I'm sick and tired of having to cater to the lowest common denominator. Why is so much of our traffic engineering centered around trying to make it easier for people who suck at driving?

They make all the sense in the world. Greendale should have them at every intersection on Grange Avenue (except Loomis or 76th), at the south end of Broad, every intersection on 51st, almost every residential intersection that has 4 way stop now.

Most European roads I have been on do not have such large semi trucks like one finds in the U.S.

I have been through many roundabouts here in southeastern wisconsin. Muskego, Waukesha, New Berlin, Racine, Milwaukee, even up in Oshkosh and I still don't get why people have such a hard time with them. I have even been through the 4 consecutive ones and I LOVE them, they get me where I want to go safely, quickly and without problem. Way better than sitting at a light. How are they confusing? The ones IN the circle have the right of way, be in the left lane to continue past an exit and the right lane to exit at the next opportunity. So simple and yet so many people can't do it. I am thinking most people view them as something they can continue to fly into and past instead of taking the time to slow down, accomodate someone's wish to change lanes and navigate properly. There is such a thing as taking turns in traffic scenarios! That is probably why some don't like them, they have to actually let someone else go first when all they want to do is cut people off and go, go, go. Heavily driven areas with high traffic volumes may be a different scenario, but I have yet to come upon a roundabout that could not be easily and safely navigated.

The Round-A-Bouts are just fine. It's the asses that bully their way through them that are the problem. I've found myself waiting a very long time to get on one because of the steady stream of traffic winding through them at 35-40mph. My God, you should have a window open and listen to the rubber squealing. It's universally 15 mph people!

We went to Denmark and England this summer an had to use roundabouts many many times, even going the opposite direction in England, and we had no problems. Signage is important and we had a GPS telling us step-by-step what to do but even in a foreign language we loved them. I don't understand all the controversy. Learn to use them and enjoy!

Those that like them seem to like them under ideal conditions: sparse traffic and everyone follows the rules. Under those conditions, almost any type of intersection is workable.

Based on what I see on a daily basis, a good number of drivers treat stop signs like yield signs and yield signs as uncontrolled intersections (or as an indication that they should gun it to get through the intersection because traffic coming to it from the left or right is unlikely to slow down). That they do little or nothing to control entry into a roundabout shouldn't really surprise anyone.

In terms of safety, any intersection where people follow the rules is more like to be a safe one as opposed to one where people don't. Likewise, any intersection that requires a hard stop, by it's nature, is probably going to be safer than one where people are able to just roll out into uncontrolled oncoming traffic, based on whether or not they think they can do so safely.

One of the features that I think most people don't take into account is that a Round About is not necessarily supposed to decrease the NUMBER of accidents, but to change the TYPE of accidents. If you look at it from a pure "number of accidents" standpoint, you'll likely see no change, or maybe even a slight increase.

The important part is that you turn potentially deadly head on or T-Bone style accidents into much less dangerous glancing type accidents, and at much lower speeds.

Thank you socialist liberal democrats for trying to make us look like Europe. A country we left for more land and freedom. You and your car speed trains and roundabouts are a case study in failure and an abomination of spending.

Stop with the freaking roundabouts!

Yield upon entering roundabout and choose your exit. It's not complicated. (If you're in the roundabout you should not be stopping to let people in.)

Do Not Like Them. The ones on Moorland are horrible! Not an improvement. The one on Grange (west of Hwy 100) serves no purpose. It was never a busy area to begin with and 2 stop signs always did the job if you were turning onto grange. Instead of spending the money on Roundabouts why not use the funds to better staff the DOT? Get stoplights timed better? Replace missing street signs in the county (there are many that need it!). There is always work that needs attention....and ANYthing is better than putting more money towards roundabouts.

Whether or not roundabouts are safer is not a matter of "belief" as the poll states. It's a matter of fact, according to multiple real world studies. Properly designed roundabouts virtually eliminate the possibility of a head-on collision or a T-bone. Studies show a decrease in fatal accidents at intersections of between 76% and 100%. They do a better job of managing traffic flow in busy areas, reducing wait times associated with stoplights. Frankly, every significant intersection that has the space to do so should be converted to a roundabout.

The roundabout solution would be particularly ideal for the Pilgrim - Appleton - Menomonee intersection. That is one huge problem, and I can't count how many times I have driven past crumpled cars (and one very unfortunate cyclist) there. What are the collision stats on that intersection? There is plenty of space to put one in, and the center island could be a great 'gateway' to the downtown area.
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/research/deployment/roundabouts.cfm

I honestly think they should put one in downtown waukesha at the 5 points. That interscetion is crazy any time of day and at main and whiterock ave. You dont know how many times i have avoided being hit by moreons that dont stop and let the trafic from main turn on to whiterock.

http://www.channel3000.com/news/Three-of-Madison-s-most-dangerous-intersections-are-roundabouts/-/1648/16170598/-/hat227z/-/index.html
Some info out of Madison.

I just returned from a week in New England...mostly Maine. I encountered a couple of roundabouts (or rotaries as they're called in NE) in Augusta that weren't bad, although the signage was strange. Each route number was accompanied by a diagram showing which lane to use and the pattern of travel. These little squiggles were way too complex for somebody approaching the rotary for the first time and attempting to travel through with traffic.

I also had to do some Boston driving. I drove through a couple of rotaries including one, the Bell Rotary near Logan, that was bisected by a road that went straight through. This one had traffic lights, thereby defeating the original purpose of the rotary. They stopped the rotary traffic so people on the straight road could drive through. It really defied logic.

I've done a lot of Boston driving. The rotaries there are treacherous. Some of the most dangerous intersections in Boston involve rotaries. There may be advantages to controlling intersections with rotaries, but safety is not among them.

so they want to put a roundabout in at 31 +32, however if you take those two intersections and the roudabout on K the last fatal accident was on K!

Modern roundabouts are the safest form of intersection in the world. Search IIHS for FAQs and safety facts.
NCHRP 572 was the most recent evaluation report.

Modern roundabouts are not rotaries.

I believe modern roundabouts are safer once you get used to them :') At least someone is not going to hit you while they are speeding through a yellow light!\

It really depends. In some cases, they make perfect sense such as the one at North and Barker. That has made a huge positive impact on traffic there, especially in the morning. In other cases, it does nothing for traffic flow. Lastly, there are areas where they create a dangerous and problematic traffic situation such as I43 and Moreland. A thoughtful and reasoned approach is necessary when making the decision to build one.

What local government (as well as Federal gvt.) seems to not understand, is that we ARE NOT Europe. It's not the roundabout, per se, it is the simple fact that any, and every, idiot with $400 in their pocket can (and usually does) have a car (or four). Maybe 10% of the population can handle situations, that are out of the ordinalry, without having to stop and assess what it is they are trying to accomplish. If everyone could handle the simple concept of a roundabout, they would be spectacular...but most Americans can't handle a straight road if it's raining, or snowing, or the sun is too bright. BTW, roundabouts and pedestrian crossings simply cannot coexist...they are the antithesis of each other.

I love the roundabouts...vastly more efficient than stupid, miss-timed stoplights. They'll run smoother once our slow-witted neighbors get them figured out.

Born in England so grew up with these roundabouts, like most people say keeps traffic moving and just a side note if you are a tree hugger you should love these with no electricity being used and can even plant a garden in the middle.
Next thing Americans need to understand you use your directional signal when going around these roundabouts. Left directional signal, you show you are going around and the right signal when leaving the roundabout.

Roundabouts are a bad idea. Horse and buggy days they were pretty in old france, a hundred years ago. Now they waste time, signs like crazy, road paint that is worn off quickly and invisible during the winter. On the plus side they are better than what the DOT did with the Michel interchange. You have to go right to go left, left to go right and if the traffic is snarled you end up in the wrong lane and 20 minutes get added to your commute. Billions wasted. Chicago sucks but it is now better than here. Milwaukee will have road destruction forever, just like Chicago.

If they are about safery at dangerous intersections why are thee three consecutive round abouts just outside Milton one of which is not even an intersection. That's right, just a round about no other road going into it. Even if they build another road leading into it how do they know it's going to be dangerous? As far has traffic flow I've had to stop numerous times at them to allow cars from the left to go by, so the idea that you don't have to stop at them is not really true. Maybe they're worthwhile at some intersections, but I think some communites are going overboard.

go to Oshkosh - two on one side of the freeway at 9th avenue and 3 on the other side - try having time to determine what lane you need to be in to get on the freeway