Bosch and the RACC, an application that warns of suicidal drivers
DGT.Fines those who abuse the middle lane or the left lane
Attributed to the French architect Eugène Hénard,
the first roundabouts or roundabouts were designed in Paris at the beginning of the last century, although they did not begin to be present on Spanish roads until about four decades ago.
Its usefulness is undeniable, since it allows to suppress dangerous crossings at the same level.
In addition, they allow to eliminate traffic lights and speed up traffic.
Although they have also become a source of not a few conflicts, due to the determination of
many conductors to draw them at their free will.
Which is usually not the right one.
In fact, most of the studies that have been done in this regard estimate that motorists who do not know the rules of the road in a roundabout oscillate between half and two thirds of the total.
Something that translates into an increase in accidents that occur in them.
In this sense,
a study carried out by Automovilistas Europeos Asociados revealed that between 2012 and 2016 the number of fatal accidents at these intersections had increased by 131%, from 16 to 37.
And the DGT data referred As of 2018, the last year for which it provides information in this regard, it indicates that there were 8,795 accidents with victims (counting city and highway).
Of them, 62 fatalities with 63 deaths.
Considered a pending issue, as is the use of lanes on the motorway and motorway,
both the DGT and the Civil Traffic Guard have been trying to educate drivers for years.
And for example, one of the latest messages that the body led by Pere Navarro has put on Twitter and where it collects the three essential rules when approaching a roundabout.
Not respecting them, apart from the risk of an accident, means committing a serious offense punishable by a fine of 200 euros.
One of the most common mistakes or infractions committed in roundabouts is to cross the roundabout in a straight line, cutting off the paths of other vehicles and creating a risk of accident.
"Do not cross half a roundabout! Position yourself in advance,"
warns the DGT in one of its tweets.
In this other message, it is the Civil Guard that reproduces
the correct flows of circulation in these places.
Another mistake is to
use only the right lane, blocking the entry and exit of other vehicles
.
Although the DGT clarifies that it
is allowed to stay in the outside lane
to make a U-turn (even to make a 360º turn), it points out that
the most "coherent" thing is to do it through the lanes
to
make a U-turn
and "make the corresponding lane changes progressively until you are on the outside to exit ".
"The obligation is to always leave the roundabout on the outer lane, the one on the right.
You can travel on the inner lanes as long as you join the outer lane to exit,
" the DGT responds to a Twitter user who does not The explanation was clear to him.
In some countries like
Portugal
, the traffic regulations
prohibit drivers from occupying the outer lane
, the one on the right, unless it is to
leave the roundabout directly at the first or second exit
.
Failure to comply with this rule is fined 300 euros in the neighboring country.
Another driver raises an interesting question about roundabouts where there are
three lanes to enter and only two to circulate within the roundabout
.
"Which lane does each car take?" Asks this user.
"In that case there is no preference between the lanes that give access to the roundabout. Education and common sense
,
"
answers the DGT.
"If you paint two-lane streets arriving at the roundabout, it
seems absurd that the roundabout has three lanes,
" objected another driver, not satisfied with the DGT's response.
"
The interior lanes are to distribute traffic
, especially in large roundabouts", clarifies the autonomous body.
But, what if
two vehicles that circulate in parallel
in a roundabout leave it at the same exit, taking advantage of the fact that the street also has two lanes?
In this quite common case one of them is doing it wrong.
"
Leaving the roundabout from any of the interior lanes is a violation
because it cuts off the path of other vehicles and could cause an accident," the DGT responds with an animated infographic.
"The correct way to use the inner lanes to circulate through a roundabout is to
access from the central or left lane of the street
, signal the corresponding lane changes and get into the outer lane in good time to exit the roundabout", ditch the DGT.
Although according to data from the Civil Guard, 60% of drivers misuse the turn signals when driving through a roundabout or even do not use them directly.
The Royal Automobile Club of Spain (RACE) recalls that, "given the impossibility of moving to the outside lane to take our exit, as when that lane is previously occupied by another vehicle,
we must necessarily make a new return to the roundabout
to make a second attempt to previously access the outside lane to be able to take the exit that suits us ".
The video above shows us a typical case of collision in a roundabout due to misuse of lanes.
The images show how a vehicle traveling in the inner lane
crosses to try to exit the roundabout and ends up colliding with the one traveling in the outer lane
, the one on the right.
Although the cause of the collision is the driver who circulates inside while the one outside circulates correctly,
this car had already passed two exits
and gives the impression that it is about to make an almost complete turn of the roundabout, so in this case it
would have been more consistent to choose the inside lane
to make the U-turn.
In addition, the video shows how the car that circulates on the outside seems to modify its trajectory slightly, invading the inner lane, probably pushed by
the bus that tries to access the roundabout and is too far ahead
.
Just before the collision, another car crosses from the inside lane and
another target that follows the two protagonists of the video also does the same
.
In fact, a third car that is also driving on the outside, and passes the same exits, has to change lanes to avoid one of the crashed cars and continue driving through the roundabout (
it should also have chosen the inside lane
).
Meanwhile,
a third car
that appears to be a gray minivan also leaves the roundabout directly from the inside lane,
crossing into the path of the bus
, which has already entered the roundabout and has to brake to avoid colliding with the minivan.
In short,
an endless number of infractions, mistakes and bad practices
that are very common in Spanish roundabouts and roundabouts.
According to the criteria of The Trust Project
Know more
Traffic
Traffic accidents
DGT
Motor
Motor Six out of 10 parents are afraid that their children will catch it on school transport
Road Safety An 'M' in the car for those over 70: Marlaska says "not on the agenda"
Motor Mobile use accounts for 50% of complaints due to distractions
See links of interest
Last News
English translator
TV programming
Work calendar
Movies TV
Topics
Dijon - Rennes
Olimpia Milan - Real Madrid
TD Systems Baskonia - Khimki Moscow
Nîmes - Paris Saint-Germain
14th stage of the Giro d'Italia, live: time trial between Conegliano and Valdobbiadene