Ring Around the Roundabout

Shauna Farnell

Remember, vehicles inside the roundabout always have the right-of-way.

There are only so many places in the United States where you're lucky enough to steer your vehicle through a roundabout, or, as the Brits call it, a rotary.

Guess what? In Vail and Avon, you'll find roundabouts a-plenty! Although they have a tendency to mystify unversed motorists, especially with all the local construction and winter on its way, there's really not that much to maneuvering one without getting into a head-on collision.

Statistically, roundabouts account for much fewer accidents than intersections. They keep traffic flowing, give your brakes and accelerators a rest, save resources otherwise spent on traffic lights and provide a great opportunity to test your turning radius (your axle starts creaking while turning through the circle = bad). But, as evidenced by the occasional vehicle driving the wrong way through a roundabout or semi parked on the center island, not everyone is certain about how exactly to navigate these masterpieces of civil engineering.

Who has the right-of-way? Is there stopping involved? It's hard to know without asking ... Use these tips as a guideline to avoid confusion in Vail's roundabouts.

How to maneuver a roundabout:

• The vehicles circulating through the roundabout always of the right-of-way
• Vehicles approaching the roundabout must yield to those in it
• Don't ever stop inside the roundabout unless you're avoiding a collision
• Cyclists in roundabouts follow the same rules as other vehicles and when they are in the roundabout, approaching vehicles must yield the same as they would with another vehicle
• Take the outside lane of the roundabout if you're exiting at the first or second turn
• Take the inside lane if you're exiting at the third turn or going all the way around the circle.
• Use your right turn signal if you're exiting at the first right turn, no turn signal if you're continuing straight through, and left turn signal to enter the inside lane of the roundabout
• Don't enter a roundabout alongside a vehicle on the inside circle, because the vehicle may be about to exit

Video

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How to Drive Through Roundabouts

A lot of visitors and locals have some trouble in the roundabouts in Vail and Avon. Vail Policeman Craig Bettis tells us the proper way to drive through a roundabout.