Roundabouts are one-way systems and you travel round them in a clockwise manner. You give way to vehicles on your right. Keep an eye on the other exits too as traffic joining from one of the other exits will cause the traffic on your right to stop, which will allow you to join.
To turn left at a roundabout safely and under control you need to use the MSPSL routine.
Approaching a roundabout
| Mirrors | Check the centre and the left wing mirror |
|---|---|
| Signal | Give a left signal using the direction indicator |
| Position | Position the car into the left hand lane or if it´s a single lane roundabout keep left |
| Speed | Reduce the speed down to 10mph and change the gear down to 2nd gear on approach. If you can see a vehicle coming round the roundabout then stop at the give way line and change to 1st gear |
| Look | Look right and left several times to check it is safe to enter on to the roundabout. |
On the roundabout
On the roundabout keep in the left hand lane.
Exiting the roundabout
| Mirrors | Check the centre and the left wing mirror |
|---|---|
| Signal | Give a left signal using the direction indicator |
| Position | Exit the roundabout from the left hand lane or if it´s a single lane roundabout keep left |
| Speed | On exiting start to make progress and increase speed to a normal, safe driving speed |
| Look | Look into mirrors to assess situation in the new road. |
Once you have turned then check your mirrors once more to assess the situation in the new road and ensure that your signal has been cancelled.
To go straight ahead at a roundabout safely and under control you need to use the MSPSL routine.
Approaching a roundabout
| Mirrors | Check the centre and the left wing mirror |
|---|---|
| Signal | No signal |
| Position | Position the car into the left hand lane or if it´s a single lane roundabout keep left |
| Speed | Reduce the speed down to 10mph and change the gear down to 2nd gear on approach. If you can see a vehicle coming round the roundabout then stop at the give way line and change to 1st gear |
| Look | Look right and left several times to check it is safe to enter on to the roundabout. |
On the roundabout
On the roundabout keep in the left hand lane.
Exiting the roundabout
| Mirrors | Check the centre and the left wing mirror |
|---|---|
| Signal | Once you have passed the exit before the one you are wishing to take, give a left signal using the direction indicator |
| Position | Exit the roundabout from the left hand lane or if it´s a single lane roundabout keep left. |
| Speed | On exiting start to make progress and increase speed to a normal, safe driving speed |
| Look | Look into mirrors to assess situation in the new road. |
Once you have turned then check your mirrors once more to assess the situation in the new road and ensure that your signal has been cancelled.
To turn right at a roundabout safely and under control you need to use the MSPSL routine.
Approaching a roundabout
| Mirrors | Check the centre and the right wing mirror |
|---|---|
| Signal | Give a right signal using the direction indicator |
| Position | Position the car into the right hand lane in good time or if it´s a single lane roundabout position just left of the centre line |
| Speed | Reduce the speed down to 10mph and change the gear down to 2nd gear on approach. If you can see a vehicle coming round the roundabout then stop at the give way line and change to 1st gear |
| Look | Look right and left several times to check it is safe to enter on to the roundabout. |
On the roundabout
On the roundabout head for the inside lane.
Exiting the roundabout
| Mirrors | Once you have passed the exit before the one you are wishing to take, check the centre and the left wing mirror |
|---|---|
| Signal | Give a left signal using the direction indicator |
| Position | Move over to the left hand lane or if it´s a single lane roundabout keep left. |
| Speed | On exiting start to make progress and increase speed to a normal, safe driving speed |
| Look | Look into mirrors to assess situation in the new road. |
On approach to the roundabout the first thing you need to take note of are the lane markings. Sometimes the left hand lane is for turning left only and to go straight ahead you need to be in the right hand lane. The routine would be as follows:
Approaching a roundabout
| Mirrors | Check the centre and the right wing mirror |
|---|---|
| Signal | No signal |
| Position | Position the car into the right hand lane in good time or if it´s a single lane roundabout position just left of the centre line |
| Speed | Reduce the speed down to 10mph and change the gear down to 2nd gear on approach. If you can see a vehicle coming round the roundabout then stop at the give way line and change to 1st gear |
| Look | Look right and left several times to check it is safe to enter on to the roundabout. In particular keep an eye on any vehicle in the left hand lane that might be incorrectly positioned itself. If the vehicle on your left goes AHEAD in the left hand lane you could be on a collision course with it as you are both heading for the same space! If the car on your left does continue ahead, then you may have to come off in the right-hand lane (if that is an option) or go around the roundabout again. |
On the roundabout
On the roundabout head for the inside lane.
Exiting the roundabout
| Mirrors | Once you have passed the exit before the one you are wishing to take, check the centre and the left wing mirror |
|---|---|
| Signal | Give a left signal using the direction indicator |
| Position | Move over to the left hand lane or if it´s a single lane roundabout keep left. |
| Speed | On exiting start to make progress and increase speed to a normal, safe driving speed |
| Look | Look into mirrors to assess situation in the new road. |
If you imagine that the roundabout is like a clock face, where 12 o´clock is ahead, 9 o´clock is to your left and so on then if our straight ahead exit is positioned between 12 o´clock and 3 o´clock over to our right then logically it makes sense that we approach the roundabout as if we were turning right. See above for details on how to turn right at a roundabout.
Mini roundabouts work in exactly the same way as standard roundabouts. Whilst you must signal on approach to a mini roundabout to turn left or right, it is not necessary to signal off a mini roundabout.
