Whacky Signs.

[Ozexpatriate]

It's not photoshopped - it is a real sign.

[JDW]

It's not photoshopped - it is a real sign.

And if you follow the sign, it takes you to a roundabout, something the US isn't known for... although there was a discussion on that on the driving standards thread a while back I think.

[Ozexpatriate]

And if you follow the sign, it takes you to a roundabout, something the US isn't known for... although there was a discussion on that on the driving standards thread a while back I think.

There are more of them than most people would assume, but they are not ubiquitous like they are in the UK or in Australia. 

 

I think this is mostly because they are less effective in the grid street plan so common in US cities. By the time traffic levels reach the point that stop signs are an impediment, roundabouts / traffic circles are too expensive to retrofit.

 

EDIT: I am starting to see them more frequently in newer planned residential areas.

Edited December 28, 2017 by Ozexpatriate

[PhilJ W]

And if you follow the sign, it takes you to a roundabout, something the US isn't known for... although there was a discussion on that on the driving standards thread a while back I think.

 

 

There are more of them than most people would assume, but they are not ubiquitous like they are in the UK or in Australia. 

 

I think this is mostly because they are less effective in the grid street plan so common in US cities. By the time traffic levels reach the point that stop signs are an impediment, roundabouts / traffic circles are too expensive to retrofit.

 

EDIT: I am starting to see them more frequently in newer planned residential areas.

When I visited the states back in 1978 I came across a roundabout in Gettysburg that at that time was reckoned to be one of only two or three in the whole USA.

[Metr0Land]

There seemed to be quite a lot of 'cirlces' (as the locals call them) in New England when we visited in 2008.  I suspect that's because in those areas the road system evolved before the widespread use of grids?

[Ozexpatriate]

When I visited the states back in 1978 I came across a roundabout in Gettysburg that at that time was reckoned to be one of only two or three in the whole USA.

DC alone has several that go back to the origins of the city - DuPont Circle, Washington Circle, Logan Circle, Thomas Circle and others and NYC famously has Columbus Circle, so I suspect that piece of local wisdom was a bit exaggerated. It is true that apart from the 'famous' urban ones they were quite rare, back in the day.

 

There seemed to be quite a lot of 'cirlces' (as the locals call them) in New England when we visited in 2008.  I suspect that's because in those areas the road system evolved before the widespread use of grids?

They are called rotaries or traffic circles in New England. Here are two examples. While I think roundabouts are well suited to the more 'organic' street layouts you find in places like Boston I don't think there are any roundabouts in downtown Boston. At one point the rotaries were more common in New England than anywhere else in the US. You can find them in a lot of places now. I went through these three a couple of days ago.  If I turn right onto the street where I am right now I will pass through two of them in the space of a mile or so.

 

Wikipedia halfheartedly tries to make a distinction between a traffic circle (larger) and a roundabout (smaller). Personally I think that this is a distinction without a difference.

Edited December 28, 2017 by Ozexpatriate

[melmerby]

One of the problems that seems to becoming an epidemic in the UK is putting traffic lights onto roundabouts which rather defeats the object of them.

Not one of those so afflicted that I have used has better traffic flows with the lights, than they had without.

 

With most of them a straightforward crossroads with lights would be better, or if not possible, regulating the entry of traffic onto the circulation, not stopping it three or four times whilst going around. Madness!

 

Keith

[Horsetan]

One of the problems that seems to becoming an epidemic in the UK is putting traffic lights onto roundabouts which rather defeats the object of them.

Not one of those so afflicted that I have used has better traffic flows with the lights, than they had without....

No, but it does wonders for the profit-and-loss accounts of Siemens, Motus, etc.!

[Ramblin Rich]

One of the problems that seems to becoming an epidemic in the UK is putting traffic lights onto roundabouts which rather defeats the object of them.

Not one of those so afflicted that I have used has better traffic flows with the lights, than they had without.

 

With most of them a straightforward crossroads with lights would be better, or if not possible, regulating the entry of traffic onto the circulation, not stopping it three or four times whilst going around. Madness!

 

Keith

Absolutely agree with this. One roundabout in Exeter with lights has box junction areas, but is also full of shrubs so it's difficult to know if there's space before the next set of lights as you go around, without entering the box junction areas. Or you crawl around, causing cars following to get annoyed. Works far better as a normal roundabout when lights fail....

[Gareth Collier]

One of the problems that seems to becoming an epidemic in the UK is putting traffic lights onto roundabouts which rather defeats the object of them.

 

When they built the Polegate bypass down the road from me a few years back it ended at a massive roundabout with 5 exits and they decided to install traffic lights. It was chaos with queues far worse than pre bypass. Within 3 months they had all been removed and with the exception of rush hour all now runs smoothly. What a waste of money that was.

[kevinlms]

One of the problems that seems to becoming an epidemic in the UK is putting traffic lights onto roundabouts which rather defeats the object of them.

Not one of those so afflicted that I have used has better traffic flows with the lights, than they had without.

 

With most of them a straightforward crossroads with lights would be better, or if not possible, regulating the entry of traffic onto the circulation, not stopping it three or four times whilst going around. Madness!

 

Keith

In Melbourne, there is a few examples of this. They seem to be installed only at roundabouts, where the traffic flow is totally unbalanced. These seem to work quite well, its the exit roads that have the traffic snarls.

[jcm@gwr]

In Melbourne, there is a few examples of this. They seem to be installed only at roundabouts, where the traffic flow is totally unbalanced. These seem to work quite well, its the exit roads that have the traffic snarls.

 

The problem is when they only control some of the entrances and exits,

the roundabouts on the A1 at Stirling Corner (Borehamwood) and Apex Corner (A1/A41)

being a couple of examples where it can be very frustrating to try and join from one of the

uncontrolled roads, it unbalances the flow even more!

[TheQ]

Going back to the naming of roads, I used to work for GEC Marconi Avionics, one of their products was the AI24 Foxhunter Radar so when a new road was put through part of the site it was named Foxhunter Drive.

 

These days we occasionally deal with Seagate, Address,

1 Disc Drive

Derry City

BT48 0BF

 

Other companies we sometimes deal with around the world have similarly appropriate addresses.

[Mark Saunders]

One of the problems that seems to becoming an epidemic in the UK is putting traffic lights onto roundabouts which rather defeats the object of them.

Not one of those so afflicted that I have used has better traffic flows with the lights, than they had without.

 

With most of them a straightforward crossroads with lights would be better, or if not possible, regulating the entry of traffic onto the circulation, not stopping it three or four times whilst going around. Madness!

 

Keith

Not really if there is an imbalance of traffic!

 

Until recently trying to get off the A19 North to turn East on to the Parkway towards Redcar was extremely difficult in rush hour conditions now it is straightforward!

 

Mark Saunders

[Enterprisingwestern]

If drivers used roundabouts correctly there would be no need for traffic lights, it's a self-buggering situation.

 

Mike.

[melmerby]

Going back to the naming of roads, I used to work for GEC Marconi Avionics, one of their products was the AI24 Foxhunter Radar so when a new road was put through part of the site it was named Foxhunter Drive.

 

These days we occasionally deal with Seagate, Address,

1 Disc Drive

Derry City

BT48 0BF

 

Other companies we sometimes deal with around the world have similarly appropriate addresses.

The GEC telephone works in Coventry was situated on Telephone Road, which was within the works, there was also a Magneto Drive.

This road in the housing estate that now occupies the site seems to be the only link to GEC's vast works that used to be there:

https://goo.gl/maps/qrmztv2b4yK2

 

They also had a works in Witton, Birmingham appropriately on Electric Avenue. (now redeveloped as a factory centre)

One of the original signs:

https://goo.gl/maps/LBR8MBYqLDC2

 

 

One of those road signs  IIRC is now at Crich.

 

Keith

Edited December 30, 2017 by melmerby

[Welly]

The South Yorkshire Police HQ is on Letsby Avenue in Sheffield.

[PatB]

The GEC telephone works in Coventry was situated on Telephone Road, which was within the works, there was also a Magneto Drive.

This road in the housing estate that now occupies the site seems to be the only link to GEC's vast works that used to be there:

https://goo.gl/maps/qrmztv2b4yK2

 

They also had a works in Witton, Birmingham appropriately on Electric Avenue. (now redeveloped as a factory centre)

One of the original signs:

https://goo.gl/maps/LBR8MBYqLDC2

 

 

One of those road signs  IIRC is now at Crich.

 

Keith

 

I'm now going to have Eddie Grant going around in my head for the next 3 days.

[Horsetan]

I'm now going to have Eddie Grant going around in my head for the next 3 days.

Meanwhile, in Brixton....

[melmerby]

Meanwhile, in Brixton....

Both roads were established at a similar time.

Brixton about 1889? and Witton a little later but possibly before 1900.

 

Keith

[melmerby]

If you like amusing how about this post on twitter from Railcam:

 

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DR7GDMlX4AMPSAn.jpg:large

 

To which I can add this re the resignalling around Soho Junction Birmingham (again courtesy of Railcam):

 

 

Keith

Edited December 30, 2017 by melmerby

[stewartingram]

The South Yorkshire Police HQ is on Letsby Avenue in Sheffield.

The Police station in St.Ives (Cambs) was moved to a new location in 1973, the address of the new one was Pig Lane. There was a lot of controversy over that at the time, and that section of the road was hurriedly renamed Broad Leas.

 

Stewart

[Horsetan]

Both roads were established at a similar time.

Brixton about 1889? and Witton a little later but possibly before 1900.

I think Brixton's was named to mark its first covered market to be lit by electricity.

[Liam]

The GEC telephone works in Coventry was situated on Telephone Road, which was within the works, there was also a Magneto Drive.

This road in the housing estate that now occupies the site seems to be the only link to GEC's vast works that used to be there:

https://goo.gl/maps/qrmztv2b4yK2

 

They also had a works in Witton, Birmingham appropriately on Electric Avenue. (now redeveloped as a factory centre)

One of the original signs:

https://goo.gl/maps/LBR8MBYqLDC2

 

 

One of those road signs  IIRC is now at Crich.

 

Keith

Reminds me of a question in one of my GCSE maths textbooks, where the question was about costing. There was an electrician involved, and no prizes for guessing what his name was ......

 

 

 

Mr Sparks

[stewartingram]

LUL, Seven Sisters (Vic line) train crew accomodation:

 

 

 

Stewart

 

 

Edited December 30, 2017 by stewartingram