Should cars have a third set of indicators ?

[Lee H]

Why bother ?

BMW drivers have issues with left and right indicators. Adding a centre one would just confuse them even more really

[5lab]

If your turning at the first left on a roundabout, you indicate left - anywhere else, you indicate right, and just before you turn into the road you want to go to, you indicate left. I think you'll find that in the highway code.

not quite. i was told not to indicate if going straight on. the highway code is a bit ambiguous

162: Signals and position, unless signs or markings indicate otherwise.

When taking the first exit
signal left and approach in the left-hand lane
keep to the left on the roundabout and continue signalling left to leave.

When taking any intermediate exit
select the appropriate lane on approach to and on the roundabout, signalling as necessary
stay in this lane until you need to alter course to exit the roundabout
signal left after you have passed the exit before the one you want.

When taking the last exit or going full circle
signal right and approach in the right-hand lane
keep to the right on the roundabout until you need to change lanes to exit the roundabout
signal left after you have passed the exit before the one you want.
When there are more than three lanes at the entrance to a roundabout, use the most appropriate lane on approach and through it.

it just says 'signalling as necessary'

[Howard]

Yeah, fair enough, I've noticed that alot too. Nobody goes around them, just through them .

You know what I mean, though?

Say you're approaching a mini roundabout, you can go left, or straight on. If you're going left, you indicate. The person waiting in the road you're turning into, knows they can go. If you're going straight on, just keep going round (or over, if you're one of those people like me who doesn't bother swerving to go "round" a mini roundabout, and half over it) and the person in that road knows to wait. No need to fart about indicating right and left as you're just coming off.

Same if you're approaching one where you can go right, or straight on.

And if you're approaching a "medium" sized roundabout like the one the OP was describing, and there's three or four exits, you indicate left for the first exit, right then left for the farther exits, and if you're going straight on you just use judgement to see whether or not you need to indicate off. There's one down the road that I just drive straight round when I'm going straight on (it's before the twelve o' clock position, FYI) and no one waiting on the left ever seems fussed.




Edit: above, "Signalling as necessary". Sums it up well.

[BUFF]

I'm with Lee.
If they don't bother with existing indicators what makes you think that they would use a 3rd set ...?

[Gorgeous]

It's a very annoying aspect of driving, I've only been driving for the lat 6 and a half years and have just got into a habit of indicating whether there are other road users about or not, especially at night when anyone can come out of the darkness.

Pointless story time...

Once on my way home i was crossing over at some traffic lights, saw a car was by the side of me not indicating, waited another min, checked that the car still was'nt indicating. Then the other lights turned red and the ones i waited by turned green, i started to walk across the ones on red and next thing i hear is a horn and a car braking suddenly. So i can clearly see the guy swearing at me, so i give him a few hand gestures back.
So now i'm ont he other side of the road and the guy has decided to follow me and get out of his car looking pretty well pissed off, only words i said were "Well if you'd turned your f**king indicators on" and he decided to walk back to his car.

The moral of the story is...use your indicators even if there are no other cars behind/coming in the other direction. You might just not kill me

[Kumagoro]

If people are wanting to come out and not indicating I wont let them out.
Im another one which indicates whether theres anything about or not just to
be in the right if anything did happen. Its not just other cars your indicating to
its people walking and on bikes too.
Sometimes indicating confuses people about what you are doing.

For example imagine a T junction which has a mini roundabout.

======================
------------------ O ---------------
========== .... =========
......................| | |
......................| | |

If you are coming from the left and going straight on then dont indicate, you
could indicate left as there is no left exit but its not necessary.
coming from the right and going straight if you indicate right then it looks like a
U turn

Another thing which bothers me is which lane to be in on some roundabout systems
You have three ways to go and only two entrances. Using the left one means you cant
get out as people just block your way. But as some people use the left one and some
use the right, its a bit dodgy. See greenstead roundabout in colchester for a good
example.

[5lab]

Another thing which bothers me is which lane to be in on some roundabout systems
You have three ways to go and only two entrances. Using the left one means you cant
get out as people just block your way. But as some people use the left one and some
use the right, its a bit dodgy. See greenstead roundabout in colchester for a good
example.

i can beat that - a roundabout in brighton has 3 lanes entering it, 1 lane exits left (fine) 1 lane straight on.. and thats it.. stupidly, the entrance to the roundablout has 'straightonarrows' on both the middle and right lanes, which leads to scraps for whoever doesnt know the roundabout. i've been cut up at least 10 times on there.

[KW1816]

And if you're approaching a "medium" sized roundabout like the one the OP was describing,

Actually, I was trying to describe a mini roundabout - it's just it has a small island in the middle with a lampost on, perhaps a 'midi' roundabout ? Certainly not big enough to indicate right then left as you would/could/maybe do at a larger roundabout.

To give an example of what I'm talking about, I was waiting to go right at a different roundabout and a stream of 4 or 5 cars went left (meaning it should have been clear for me to go) without indicating. The temptation is to predict the 6th car will also go left, although it's not indicating. The 6th car did indeed go left but the 7th went straight on. As a positive 'this is what I mean to do' I personally would find a straight on indicator usefull if only to give numpty drivers less of an excuse to drive at me

Of course we also have lots of drivers round here who don't actually know who to give way to on a roundabout which sort of defeats the whole idea ........

[Stringent]

Not many people seems to know what a mini roundabout is. I have gone to go round them indicating right, nothing on it so I go on, all of a sudden some twit in some stupid car thinks he has right of way coming from my left to go straight through! I get hooted and abused. I just mouth "roundabout" and point at the white lump on the floor. Grr. We have so many idiot drivers on hte roads now, its no wonder the government/local authorities/police want to cash in on peoples idocy.

[Howard]

Just flash your headlights in the same fashion as an indicator

[ajbrun]

No, because the 'going straight forward indicator' is infact not having the indicator on at all.

If your on a roundabout everyone should indicate, even if going straight on you still need to indicate (on a roundabout).

Not on a mini roundabout. I haven't passed my test yet, but my driving instructor (and he should know) says that if you go straight on a mini roundabout, then you don't need to indicate at all, as all you're doing it following the road. If it's a proper roundabout with lanes though, then yes - indicate.

[shelley bda]

Not on a mini roundabout. I haven't passed my test yet, but my driving instructor (and he should know) says that if you go straight on a mini roundabout, then you don't need to indicate at all, as all you're doing it following the road. If it's a proper roundabout with lanes though, then yes - indicate.

Have you bothered to check what the highway code says instead of your instructor, my instructor tells me to treat mini roundabouts in exactly the same way as big ones so you'd have to indicate left as you passed the 1st exit if you were to go straight on
( 2nd exit ) failing to let others know of your intentions properly will get you a fail

Roundabouts/Mini roundabouts

[ajbrun]

I think that describes larger roundabouts only with more than on lane. I'm still sure that if you're going straight on a mini roundabout, there is no need to indicate.

It does say "Approach these in the same way as normal roundabouts."

But it used the word approach, with I assume mean "before you get to". For example, firther up, is said "signal left and approach in the left-hand lane". This is before you get to the roundabout. It says nothing about whether or not to indicate when going straight on a mini-roundabout.

[shelley bda]

I think that describes larger roundabouts only with more than on lane. I'm still sure that if you're going straight on a mini roundabout, there is no need to indicate.

It said this at the bottom

164: Mini-roundabouts Approach these in the same way as normal roundabouts. All vehicles MUST pass round the central markings except large vehicles which are physically incapable of doing so. Remember, there is less space to manoeuvre and less time to signal. Beware of vehicles making U-turns.

That says to me to use exactly the same signals etc as you would a normal roundabout, funny how people interpret things differently

[Dorza]

Not on a mini roundabout. I haven't passed my test yet, but my driving instructor (and he should know) says that if you go straight on a mini roundabout, then you don't need to indicate at all, as all you're doing it following the road. If it's a proper roundabout with lanes though, then yes - indicate.

My instructor told me exactly the same thing when I was learning to drive. Its danagerous to singnal left if your going straight on at a mini roundabout. To be perfectly honest there isnt that much time too signal when your going around a mini roundabout anyway.

It doesnt matter what the highway code says, on this issue. On the road in the real world you have to use common sence, use your judgement and watch what other people are doing. To me signaling left when your going straight on doesnt make sence espeicially if theres a left turn before the straight on exit of the roundabout.

However after saying that I know for a fact that advanced drivers are told to indicate left even if their going straight on. A few of my mates and their dads are and have been police officers and traffic police, they all had to take advanced driving tests before they could drive for the police and they all indicate left when going straight on at mini roundabouts. Though I think im right in saying that the police advanced driving test and the civilian ones are different in some way.

[loki]

It would be nice if people would use their indicators to start with. I recon more than a quarter of drivers don't even bother with indicators. Police should be able to fine people who do so on a continual basis (i.e. if following someone then pull them over and fine them in the same way you would for not wearing a seatbelt.)

On the mini roundabout i would signal left if going left, wouldn't signal if straight on but left to leave and right if i was going right with left to leave. It's just the same as any roundabout in my view.