Dear Editor,
Re: [B.C. drivers struggle with roundabout, mapleridgenews.com, March 10]
I would like to submit a letter in regards to how to drive in a roundabout.
It’s just not that complicated folks. I know roundabouts did not exist in the Lower Mainland prior to the year 2000 and so a large portion of the driving population did not learn to navigate them in our youth, but again, there are just a few simple rules.
Number 1: Yield to traffic already in the roundabout. Yield means you need to stop if, when you look left, there is a car travelling towards you. This means you may need to wait for a car or two or maybe more before you can enter.
Roundabouts are not four-way stops so do not treat them as such. I have had the unpleasant experience of being fully into a roundabout when an irate driver is losing their cool (you know, waving their arms about, angry face, honking their horn) because they think it’s their “turn” to enter.
Also, I have had larger vehicles cut me off when the entitled driver has decided they don’t want to yield to more than one car in the roundabout.
Number 2: Take it slow and signal when you are exiting the roundabout. If you need a good visual, there are some great YouTube videos that demonstrate how to navigate roundabouts.
We can and should all learn the proper ways to drive our vehicles to keep everyone on the road safe.
Erin Jaskiewicz, Maple Ridge
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• READ MORE: Not knowing roundabouts just one driving pet peeve for columnist
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