HUNTSVILLE, AL - Wyatt Shankle of Madison said he has encountered some problems with the roundabout at Providence Main Street and Old Monrovia Road that leaves him with only two choices – risk an accident or risk the wrath of drivers behind him.
Shankle, who said he recently started using the roundabout, explained it this way:
“Because there are two lanes exiting to (Old Monrovia), I initially assumed that traffic exiting the roundabout would use the left-most lane, and that traffic turning right from Providence Main could use the right-most lane without having to stop.
“In fact, there is a solid white line that would seem to direct exiting roundabout traffic to the left-most lane. The first few times I tried turning right, however, I was almost hit by exiting traffic that crossed the solid white line.
“Subsequently, I began to yield when making a right turn, which resulted in angry horns behind me because I yielded. What is the rule when turning right in this case? Why doesn’t the city more clearly direct exiting roundabout traffic onto the left-most lane, such as by installing a narrow curb or safety island?”
Dennis Thompson, a traffic engineer in the city Traffic Engineering Department, said all of the needed signs, including lane signs, at the roundabout are in the appropriate locations to direct motorists through it.
“One should always yield when they approach a roundabout,” Thompson said. “You should always yield and look left to see if there is any traffic in the rotary.”
The city opened the roundabout in November 2004 to replace a four-way sign at the intersection. The city has since added a roundabout at Monroe Street and Heart of Huntsville Drive.
The absence of a school zone street sign has Jill Campbell wondering where the school zone ends.
Campbell, who drives north on Whitesburg Drive toward Airport Road every morning, said the problem is in front of Whitesburg Elementary School, where the speed limit during the active school zone is 25 mph.
But, Campbell said, drivers speed up to 40 mph as soon as they go through the traffic signal at Whitesburg Drive and Four Mile Post Road. She said there is no sign indicating where the school zone ends.
“I always go 25 (mph) until the sign on the other side of the road,” Campbell said. “This is frustrating for me since no one else is going this slow.
“Can you some how get the city to put a sign up? I would think this is a priority since this concerns children.”
Thompson said there are two ways to mark the end of a school zone – by posting a sign or by the next speed limit sign after passing the school.
Thompson said that in this situation, the speed limit sign marks the end of the school zone to keep from having too many signs in a short distance.
By Keith Clines
Source: AI.com