How to use a roundabout

[BillyB]

DWI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEwwxKl5K18

Italians have a sense of humor also.

[ScottRAB]

quote:

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Originally posted by pahoated

The flaw is a single lane roundabout. All the examples of roundabouts working are two lane which makes sense. A one lane roundabout means a bottle neck, if anything happens in it.

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No logic there.
Single-lane modern roundabouts (90-120 feet in diameter) can handle intersections that serve about 20,000 vehicles per day with peak-hour flows between 2,000 and 2,500 vehicles per hour. Two- and three-lane modern roundabouts (150-220 feet in diameter) can serve about 50,000 vehicles per day and handle 2,500 to 5,500 vehicles per hour. Right-turn slip lanes can increase those numbers if needed (just like for signal intersections). Much depends on how balanced the entries are, but only in determining how many lanes are needed for each movement.
Most crashes will be fender benders and you can use the truck apron to go around if they don't move off the circular roadway.

[leilanidude]

It would be great if they moved a couple of those traffic cams to point at the roundabout.

http://punatraffic.com/

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

move a couple of those traffic cams to point at the roundabout.

The County could make it pay per view, with a monthly subscription, and a "Best Of The Pahoa Roundabout" video channel. It definitely would have entertainment value.

I'd love to see a slo-mo replay of a little Datsun I watched "LIVE!" yesterday when the driver took a wrong way shortcut backwards through the roundabout. The guy she almost hit head-on looked like he momentarily considered using the considerable horsepower and elevation advantage of his giant truck, to demonstrate who had the right of way.

Oscar Wilde's Last Words: "Either this wallpaper goes, or I do."

[DTisme]

Getting a kick out of fact there have been people confused about what direction to go! Ha! You're on right side of road, head to the right, go only direction you can go (counter-clockwise), then take exit that works for you. It seems to be working smoothly, tho I did have one guy try to enter in front of me while I was coming around - I was headed from Burger King/Long's to Malama. You have to go around the roundabout to do that. Guy was coming from Keaau direction, had started to enter, and looked totally surprised someone was coming around the roundabout. Hit his brakes with a look on his face that said, "whoa! Now I get it!"

[Guest]

Its taken a little time to get use to this roundabout but I think I really like it. That once very deadly intersection is now a slow moving beautiful circle that does look a bit city like.

I do have one concern I need to address about this roundabout.
Twice now I have been returning from hilo in the late evening hours(midnight) and seen the same frightening occurrence, They(drivers) seem to get confused as to the actual entrance of the roundabout when Heading from hilo to kalapana they simply drive all the way to the left into the wrong lane until they have to make a late right turn back onto the roundabout or continue on the left side towards kalapana if there is no on coming traffic.
The first time I saw it happen the guy was lucky no other traffic was around and he sailed right on through at about 45 mph. The second time was a woman and she looked frightened and acknowledged her blunder by her response to stop halfway through and drive back onto the roundabout in the right direction. I think she thankfully saw the oncoming traffic and figured it out in time.
No problem traveling from kalapana to hilo as the roundabout entrance is well marked with a proper lane dividing distance and no feeling of a moving lane change. The opposites can be said when traveling from hilo to kalapana, maybe this can or will be addressed before it is finished,jmo.

[kalakoa]

They(drivers) seem to get confused as to the actual entrance of the roundabout

Probably due to some smoke or fog from PGV.

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

They(drivers) seem to get confused...
Probably due to some smoke or fog from PGV.

Perhaps the County could set up a Roundabout Buyout and Relocation Fund. Set up a camera at the entrances to the roundabout. Anyone who drives in the wrong lane will receive a letter from the County of Hawaii asking if they would like to move north of Pahoa so they no longer have to deal with the intricacies of a traffic intersection that is creating untoward complications in their daily life.

It will have the following positive effects:
1) Safer for other drivers.
2) Previously confused drivers will now have a simpler day to day existence, freeing up valuable time to better humanity and should their new schedule permit, the environment.

[kalakoa]

Roundabout Buyout and Relocation Fund

People would just move closer to the roundabout, and then complain about the traffic, noise, fumes, and general desecration of the holy circle.

[PunaMauka2]

I haven't been down to take my chances in the roulette of traffic mayhem and doom yet, but I'm glad to hear that civilization in lower Puna hasn't come to a screeching halt due to the fundamentally discombobulating influence of a foreign inspired, non-authoritarian traffic design. And they say you can't teach an old dog new tricks...