American drove through UK’s infamous roundabout that’s said to be impossible for Americans to understand
- This 6-in-1 UK roundabout is notoriously ‘impossible’ for US drivers
- The intersection has five small traffic circles, with a big one in the center
- It’s said it would cause a huge amount of crashes stateside
Published on Dec 26, 2024 at 12:00 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Nov 27, 2024 at 2:22 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Tom Wood
This complicated six-in-one UK roundabout is notoriously ‘impossible’ for US drivers to tackle.
It’s said that it would cause a huge amount of crashes stateside.
The intersection comprises five small ones interconnected to a huge one in the center.
So what happened when one crossed the Atlantic and gave it a go?
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The story of the UK Magic Roundabout
Built in 1972, the Magic Roundabout is located at the busy intersection of County Road, Queen’s Drive, Fleming Way, Drove Road, and Shrivenham Road in Swindon, UK.
It consists of six roundabouts: five small ones swirling around a larger gyre in the center.
Frank Blackmore of the British Transport and Road Research Laboratory designed it.
A huge amount of research went into it and making traffic flow around it as smoothly as possible.
Research from the 1970s suggested that smaller roundabouts improved traffic flow by 25 -35 percent more than larger ones by making routes across more direct and reducing the amount of time spent on it.
It started off with two two linked roundabouts, before steadily increasing to five.
In short, each mini-roundabout works like a regular one: simply adhere to lane markings and yield to \ traffic from the right.
However, US drivers seem completely perplexed.
How US drivers fare
TikToker, kalanighosthunter, doesn’t seem to be able to get over how difficult it was to navigate
“I don’t know what to say,” he enthused.
“I drove probably 10,000 miles in the span of a month over in the UK – so I’ve had to do my fair share of mileage – but the roundabouts!”
He continued: “They were all over the UK but the one in Swindon is special!”
On a similar note but on the other side of the Atlantic, this Clarksville, Tennessee version is so popular it has its own name and theme song.
In other news, this ‘selfish’ driver who uses the ‘slingshot’ method to bypass traffic circle divided the internet.
Meanwhile in the Netherlands, this new ‘protected intersection’ looks extremely confusing but actually makes sense.
London-based Amelia cut her journalistic teeth covering all things lifestyle, wellness and luxury in the UK capital. Fast-forward a decade and the experienced content creator and editor has put pen to paper for glossy magazines, busy newsrooms and coveted brands. When her OOO is on you can find her spending quality time with her young family, in the gym or exploring the city she loves.
