"Roundabouts have been installed throughout the Capital Region. ARE THEY GOING TO KILL YOUR CHILDREN? More at 11."

I’d like you to take a look at the headline to your right, which is what greeted me this morning when I went to check the news at the Albany Times Union‘s website.

The article focuses on the roundabouts that have been installed throughout the region to replace congested intersections coming off the Northway. A report shows that accidents have increased at the multi-lane roundabouts, from an average of 7.8 collisions a year to 45.7 at the Malta roundabout and 9.6 to 38.3 at the New Scotland/Route 140  roundabout.

Buried after the lead (note: most people read the first two to three paragraphs of a story, if that) is the fact that the roundabouts actually accomplish what they set out to do: reduce or outright eliminate more severe and sometimes fatal accidents.

Accidents in roundabouts tend to be less severe than at intersections with traffic lights. Rather than crash into each other head on or smack together in a T-bone crash, as drivers making lefts at conventional traffic lights often do, drivers in roundabouts tend to sideswipe and rear-end each other.

“The potential for high-speed, severe accidents is eliminated,” Kennedy said.

Which is the whole point.

The apprehension towards roundabouts comes largely from the fact that people in this area don’t pay attention to what the Hell they’re doing on the road. I see it even on the streets of Troy and Albany, with people taking left turns without using directionals, pulling out of spots without looking in their rearview mirror, and various other traffic infractions. Officials cite aggressiveness, but really it’s just laziness and carelessness. As an aside, Daniel Nester had a great piece about the “Albany Left Turn” and the “Late Left Turn Signal” on his blog)

Thankfully, things like Roundabouts are finally installed in this area so we can all be big boys and girls and drive responsibly. The number of accidents has increased, but it’s still relatively low.

More importantly, they’re minor. Fifty scraped bumpers is preferable to a dozen dead bodies.

So the answer to the question that wasn’t asked before the headline was written: no, it’s not a “vicious circle.” It’s a more responsible and efficient means of addressing problems this area has had with people getting T-boned in intersections.

Unfortunately, since most people don’t read past the first handful of paragraphs in any given newspaper article, the resistance to roundabouts will be cultivated so long as those very same people also aren’t doing things like yielding and looking in front of them.

See also: Pete Iorizzo’s take, “Bad drivers, not roundabouts, are the problem

26 Responses to The Times Union: sensationalistic death peddlers?

  1. Casey says:

    Gotta agree- as someone that grew up “driving the circle” in Latham before they dumbed it down, learning to drive a rotary was the best learning experience for young drivers. You can’t go on autopilot the same way you would at a light (green means go, nevermind looking around before proceeding…). I imagine the four people that I’ve seen drive the wrong way down 3rd st in Troy this month haven’t figured out how the roundabouts work yet. Or they’re really drunk…

    It seems like the TU has been doing a fair bit of unnecessary sensationalizing lately on the website. I’m pretty sick of clicking on something on the front page only to read that it’s a link to an article similar to the one you wrote about or to a blog. The TU blogs are great but there’s no reason to have a link to what basically constitutes the thoughtful musings of the parents of a 5 yr as the headline of the website.

  2. Rob Madeo says:

    I’d say they’re more shamelss hyperbolists than sensationalistic death peddlers, but it’s a thin line.

  3. Ann says:

    It doesn’t matter if it’s the bad drivers or if it’s the roundabout itself. Result is more accidents, though less destructive accidents.

    In Latham, the innermost lane can turn right in front of the outermost lane. That is not logical. Haven’t had a accident there yet so far, but still.

    Also, this is already being covered on a least three other blogs! I demand more variety in my entertainment! ;)

  4. Em says:

    Capital Region drivers have always been and will probably always be idiots.

    I will, however, volunteer to be the officially desigated gal to stand at the intersection and chunk fist-sized rocks at those drivers who don’t understand the rules of the road.

  5. Ed L. says:

    What’s worse…

    1. The Times Union homepage takes an actual piece of news and writes a summary that’s wrong, actually saying the opposite of the real story.

    2. The Times Union homepage skips the news altogether and puts a “Were You Seen?” photo series above the fold.

    I would say that the Times Union homepage is comically bad, except it isn’t funny: people actually get their news from the Times Union homepage. It’s irresponsible.

  6. Chris says:

    I didn’t read past the first two paragraphs of your blog post. It’s outrageous that these damn roundabouts are causing so many more accidents! They’re a menace, I say! A menace!

  7. Mick says:

    Let’s face it many people suck at driving. Everyone is in a rush and there is often a “me-first” mentality.

  8. Penny 4 Your Thoughts says:

    I bet some of the suck-o drivers are posting on TU blogs at this very moment… We have all driven like crap at one time or another and not always on purpose. Sometimes because we are lost… In a very important text from our BFF, or in the fact that we are having sexual acts performed on us while we are driving, or because we absolutely HAVE to put makeup on or drink coffee on our way to work.
    Who the heck knows, right?

  9. Britt says:

    It’s definitely unfamiliarity and poor driving. Roundabouts are not hard. I see so many people blow through yield signs all the time too, directly into oncoming traffic. The other day I saw a guy turn right.. from the left-hand lane.

    @Em- I’m with you on the rock-throwing. Especially if we organize a rock-throwing flash mob.

    @Ann- The inner lane has its own lane to turn off the circle as well. Anyone “turning” out of the circle drifting into the right-hand lane is certainly driving improperly, though.

  10. Roger Green says:

    What, the article had more than 2 paragraphs?! Outrageous.

    Actually, I hate them. They’re not friendly to bicyclists or pedestrians.

    • Roger Green – One thing I’ll say about Troy is that if so many anecdotes about Albany I hear are true, then the drivers here are much, much friendlier and less dangerous to cyclists.

  11. Ann says:

    Britt, the person in the left most lane might not want to turn right -they don’t have to, but the one in the right most might want to – hence collision even though following the signs.

  12. Ann says:

    Wait, reverse that – right most may want to continue, leftmost may and can turn right -collision ensues.

    KEVIN MARSHALL’S NOTE: …okay, that makes more sense.

  13. Tony Barbaro says:

    look kids,big ben..

  14. Will King says:

    The drivers here are no different than most other drivers.

    They’re all idiots (for the most part).

  15. HomeTownGirl says:

    The wheels on the bus go roundabout, roundabout, roundabout….

  16. I?NY says:

    Yes, there’s problems with roundabouts so government didn’t make a mistake, the people are stupid. What is ethanol made of again?

    • I?NY – I might be misreading, but are you insinuating that roundabouts were part of a greater conspiracy to increase gas consumption? Because the removal of traffic lights means less idling means less is used. So how would that work exactly? Or are you trying too hard to be clever in insinuating people are drunk if they think that the problem isn’t the roundabouts but the drivers?

  17. Em says:

    Actually you do have to go an extra few blocks now coming off of Rotue 85 to get to the Price Chopper in Slingerlands because the stupid road blocks access to turn left so you have to go down the street and around the stupid rotary and back up again instead of just turning into the damned parking lot.
    Not that I care though because Capital Region drivers can suck my finger.

  18. Jen says:

    Maybe it’s because I actually read whole articles instead of thinking I can get all the information I need to make a judgment on a morsel of information, but I read it the same way you did. I have yet to get in an accident at one of those things, but I also approach with caution and pray no one decides now would be a great time to run me off the road.

  19. jack straw says:

    if you can’t navigate through a roundabout without getting into a car accident, you shouldn’t have a license.

  20. A.C. says:

    Em, you can just get off the second rotary, make a right onto New Scotland, and cruise right into Price Chopper that way.

  21. Greg says:

    If you want to see a crazy rotary (as they are called in my native New England), check this one out:

    http://maps.google.com/maps?q=East+Longmeadow,+MA&hl=en&ll=42.064854,-72.512904&spn=0.001744,0.003964&sll=42.073762,-72.509766&sspn=1.785923,4.059448&t=h&z=18

    The first thing you’ll notice is that seven roads converge on a patch of land no more than 200 feet wide. What you can’t see in this picture, is that the person in the rotary doesn’t actually have the right of way. A person going south onto Route 220 actually has to stop for traffic where that arrow sits on the map.

    After learning on that rotary, no rotary is complicated.

  22. luvpudders says:

    Summer + tourists + roundabouts = BIG PROBLEM.

  23. Mickey says:

    Wow, every word of your post is 100% on the money.

    Well done, Kevin.

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