Big Roundabouts in Peterborough
The biggest roundabout in Peterborough is where the A15 & A1139 meet up, it’s locally called “Eye roundabout”.
Big roundabouts will feature on your BIG TOM intensive driving course in Peterborough (01733 306 016 ). Whether a driver is young, old, experienced or just passed the test, the fact is, most drivers do not like them. I want to offer a golden tip for dealing with this roundabout. But first, let me describe why it’s causing so much attention.
It has 5 entries/exit points, and 4 lanes actually on the roundabout, so it is big. It is so big in fact that there are traffic lights on it. It is a spiral roundabout which means the idea is to let the white paint on the roundabout do the work for you, you just need to be in the correct lane (more on that in a second). It connects up two busy dual carriageways in Peterborough so although it has 40 mph speed signs on the approach, most drivers ignore this fact. So we have some key ingredients here… speed, volume of traffic, many options to exit, traffic lights, several lanes.
Sometimes it helps to consider things in terms of what you and I can control and what we can’t. In this example, we can control our speed on the approach and in many respects that is the key about this roundabout.
Once you approach in the correct lane for your intended exit, STAY IN THAT LANE. Resist every urge and instinct to switch lanes, it is a “spiral roundabout”, and one of the rules with these is that you stay in lane, the white paint will naturally filter you out to your exit.
But it will only do that, if you have picked the correct lane to start with! And this is why this roundabout catches so many people out, old or new drivers, it matters not, if you do not PLAN this roundabout, you will get caught out.
So my tip for you: watch this very short clip and see with your own eyes what I mean about lane discipline.
To any Learners reading this, remember this. If you were to decide to follow the path taken of the vehicle in front of you, and it cuts across the white lines on the roundabout, so you do too, you are very likely looking at a test fail. I know that sounds unfair because the driver in front did the same fault but let me tell you why. The reason why is because this spiral roundabout in Peterborough is SO busy, that in all likelihood there will be traffic around you while you are driving across the whites lines that split up the lanes, and those drivers around you will be spooked by your lack of attention to position in the road. As I said on a recent blog for Grantham, it is better to safely take the incorrect exit than force yourself into a different lane in an unsafe manner so as to get the correct exit.
I have a whole playlist on big roundabouts here, hope it helps you.
If you have any questions on big roundabouts in Peterborough, ask away, I guarantee you will not be alone in asking your question, so you will very likely be benefitting other people by asking the question.
