Reconsider the Roundabout

Traffic and car travel make up a large portion of our lives, and our worlds are shaped around the curves and crosses of our streets. Because of this, it’s always worth thinking about how we could improve our roads. Here in America, there’s one route of improvement we resist: the Traffic Circle. Even though they’re safer and more efficient, we resist them. So, here’s a case for why roundabouts are better for our towns, cities, cars, and environment.

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Video Transcript:

Hi there, we're Epipheo.
We've been thinking about traffic. Particularly, the dreaded *roundabout*. Or traffic circle. Or rotary. Same difference.

If you live in the US, you probably see them as European killing machines. You can't get into them, you can't get out of them, or you avoid them altogether. But we've learned that there's only one thing worse than the roundabout... and that's this terrifying thing called the intersection.

Don't believe us? Let's see what happens when intersections and roundabouts go head to head. First, let's agree on the rules. There are three things matter with traffic: Safety, Efficiency, and Environmental Impact. Those are the factors we want to maximize.

So 3, 2, 1, let's go!

Lap 1: Safety. Intersections encourage you to speed up as you approach, and they have 32 possible collision points. That's lots of fast, deadly crashes.

In fact 9000 people die at intersections in the US each year.
Compare that to Roundabouts, which only have 8 collision points, and when they happen, they happen at much lower speeds. Roundabouts have been shown to reduce crashes by 40%... so it's safe to say that Roundabouts win on safety.

Lap 2: Efficiency. Which is better at getting traffic through the junction quickly? Cars at intersections waste a lot of time slowing to a stop, waiting their turn, and then crawling through the crossroad. Compare this to a roundabout, where the cars are constantly in motion, slowing only to merge on or off.

This simple fact about the way roundabouts work means that roundabouts reduce delays by about 65%. Roundabouts get you home faster, and that means they win by a huge margin on efficiency.

Finally, Lap 3: Eco Friendliness. Accelerating from a complete stop is the least efficient thing a car can do. Guess what you do at intersections...

Meanwhile, the constant motion of cars in a traffic circle reduces emissions by 46%... and you'll likely spend less on gas, so Roundabouts are an eco win AND a wallet win.

If all this is true, why do we shudder at the sight of this sign?
Well, sometimes we fear the unfamiliar... We don't want to crash and risk expense, injury, or death.

There's a bit of history behind this too... they were really dangerous, but they're better now. We see roundabouts as distinctly Eurpoean, but the first one was built in New York City... and these early roundabouts gave incoming traffic the right of way, making them high speed death traps.

Europe saw this, and reversed the rules to create the modern, safer traffic circle.

It's true that roundabouts are a little more complicated than green and red lights, so we're going to show you what to do the next time you hit a traffic circle...

Slow to approach, let any pedestrians cross, and use your turn signal to show the person behind you where you plan to go.

Merge into the traffic circle, yielding to cars that are already circulating.

If you're going right or straight, stay in the outer lane.

If you're going left, get into the inner lane if that's possible...

When you approach your exit, signal your merge and then leave the circle.

Roundabouts are the norm in many countries, while the US still resists them. But a lot is at stake. This epiphany about roundabouts could easily save thousands of lives each year, and it's up to you to encourage roundabouts in your area, share this video... and the next time you see this sign, take a traffic circle for a spin. It'll help your city, and make your life better.

[jonathonaitken]

chill out with the effects. less is more :)

[SilverTuxedoChannel]

Way too many effects in this video. Makes it harder to listen.

[JanStrojil]

When they first started appearing in our country in the 90's, they had the same flaw - right of way for the incoming. That got corrected quickly and now they are pretty much the norm. They may not be the best choice everywhere, but when used in the right places, they provide a much better experience for everyone!

[MindManiacMarcus]

I live Nevada USA and I love the few roundabouts we have, I don't hear people complaining about them myself.

[owenwhitlockable]

Very well produced. Just a small point, at the part about staying in the inner lane to turn left, and the outer lane to turn right, the animation shows a clockwise roundabout (where you drive on the left hand side of the road), but the instructions given are only true of an anti-clockwise roundabout (where you drive on the right hand side of the road).

It's a small point, but driving the 'wrong' way round a roundabout can have big consequences! ;)

Still a brilliant video.

[PixiBoii]

A roundabout IS an intersection. They are also not always more effecient than light controlled intersections. But very gold nonetheless.

[Darrell]

Another thing I do is when I ride with my workers and boss and each time we approach a roundabout like the Hermantown Superior Moose Lake Cloquet ones my eyes go closed and I don't pay no attention of them when we are off it then my eyes opened

[TracyNorrell]

The amount of work and time spend on motion graphics is crazy. Good job Epipheo, but don't burn yourself out. YouTube channels are a marathon, not a sprint. Amazing work on the graphics, but let your V.O. carry some of the video. just my 2C. If you guys are a team that is deep with resources and can afford the man hours you put into this video... well.. then that's why i'm subscribed to you guys :)

[BrandonTwede]

After living in Europe for 2 years I love roundabouts. However, there's still one big obstacle I see to roundabouts coming to the US- space. Intersections are much more space efficient. When I think of the intersections here, 95% of them would be too small to convert to a roundabout. If I have a 4 lane road with two lanes of traffic each way, that means I have a 2 lane roundabout. Even with the minimum size of a reasonable circle with that roundabout, it still would be way too big to replace the intersection.

[Minty]

the issue with roundabouts is the space they take up its pretty much impossible to change most intersections to them...

[clazzyhonkey]

I'm no stranger to having to stop and wait for a good while before entering a busy roundabout. Though, finding a pocket in the endless row of cars to sneak into is much easier.

[jimperezcadena]

I love your video. Thanks for this bit of knowledge.

[quixilvr]

The animation at 3:54 is confusing because it shows the lines flowing clockwise, while traffic flows around a traffic circles in the US counterclockwise. if the intended audience of this video is for US viewers, it might make more sense to reverse the direction of this animation.

[gfrewqpoiu]

actually it is forbidden to activate the turning lights when merging into a roundabout (at least here in Germany) but you HAVE to use them when exiting.

[themorningmotivation]

Interesting. I never gave this much thought.

[Cheiiba]

Yea, apparently you haven't seen UKs idea of a roundabout at the end of a two lane busy highway.

[ImProvementSC]

Roundabouts are fantastic compared to interactions! Especially compared to intersections without traffic lights.

[NatureMan]

Where I live you don't need to use a turn signal at all in a roundabout. Even if you are turning right.

[jacobmueller]

The efficiency section doesn't discuss the square footage required for a roundabout. Intersections require less space. Consider the effect of changing intersection on all city blocks...

[HaveAVindicare]

So what? The US doesn't teach to give way to the left for traffic at a roundabout? I don't see your problem here if that is the case.