I'm increasingly annoyed at the way people seem to judge roundabouts/ringroads. Take, for example, the M42 j.6 ringroad. If you're heading north on the M42 and get off to head toward Coventry on the A45, you should be in the RH lane (because you are going right) and feed through the lanes to the left at each interval. You should NOT get into the middle lane for the NEC and just go on round. It's the same at Droitwich (j.5 of the M5), where people get into the LH lane to go right! What is wrong with these people, apart from the danger they cause, they also force the traffic in the correct lane to filter slower, and clog up such islands and the slip roads?!!!
Sorry, it's just really beginning to grate...
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Sometimes the design of the roundabout doesn't help though. There is one roundabout where it is actually safer to do exactly what you are complaining about (middle lane and continue round), and that's J11 of the M4, particularly coming off the Eastbound M4 carriageway to turn right onto the A33 towards Basingstoke.
The roundabout is a shockingly poor piece of road design. It's one of those "oblong" roundabouts with long straights over the motorway bridges and U-shaped connecting curves at either end. Not a problem in itself, but it is traffic light controlled, the lane markings disappear entirely for a huge swathe of it at one end creating a "free for all" situation, and the curves at the ends are about twice the width of the straights.
Once you have passed the exit back down onto the M4 Eastbound, you need to be in the outside (left) or middle lanes to take the next (A33 Basingstoke) exit. Trouble is, correctly following what you can make out of the lane markings before dumps you in the inside lane of the roundabout. This means you then have to make your way across at least to the middle lane, but to spice things up a bit, the middle lane is also used for vehicles turning right onto the M4 westbound (and hence carries a constant stream of traffic) No so-and-so ever lets you out, so you either have to lap the roundabout again, or stop.
I'm not familiar with the layout of the junctions you mention above, but if it's anything like J11 of the M4, I don't blame these people one bit.
Cheers
DP
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It sounds like it's much the same layout (j6 M42), to be honest. Except that there is the usual big blue sign as you come off telling you which lane for what, and it is well-marked on the way around between the lights. If you want to go right at a roundabout it's common sense to be in the right-hand lane, and frankly people who get in that middle one are the one's causing any danger because they sit there, refusing to filter down until the last set of lights.
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The problem is that there is only ONE exit lane towards Coventry so all the drivers are battling to be in the right place for that exit and cross white lane marking lines withoug signalling to make sure they are in the right lane at the exit.
I work in the Business Park and normally come throught the NEC now to avoid the idiots, only solution really is to get away from the last set of lights quickly enough to move across in front of them as you cross the M42!
If you think this one is bad try Junction 9 M42!
They are creating a similar problem at Bassets Pole with two entry lanes marked from the A38 Southbound (as A446) but only a single exit lane on the A446 (used to be 2).
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Yes, there is only one exit lane towards Coventry, but surely filtering shouldn't be beyond people? And why be in the middle lane to begin with, when it's clearly marked as the road for the NEC. With only one lane fo the Cov exit, it's surely all the more important everyone gets in the correct lane at the correct time?
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The choice of the best lane at multi-lane roundabouts can sometimes be confusing for strangers, especially if the lane markings change part way round. All you need is a little patience and tolerance. In any case, I'm not entirely convinced that there is such a thing as a "right" or "correct" lane ~ they're just recommendations.
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L\'escargot.
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