traffic circles

[e0richt]

hi, im a newbie / commuter wannabe...
How does one handle a traffic circle...
I have done one commute to work
and basically walked it around (using pedestrian cross walks) until I hit the section that
allowed me to make the exit on the road that I want...

is there an "accepted" way to handle this without getting off the bike?

[RomSpaceKnight]

Handle just as you would in a car. Same rules, same road, same rights.

[jeffremer]

There's one traffic circle I hit on a regular basis on the way to school - it's good fun, just don't follow a car too closely because cars entering the circle might not see you. Stay in middle of the lane, signal when necessary, if you can, make eye contact with drivers that might try to enter the circle in your "personal space."

[Jolt]

When you say "traffic circle", do you mean what we in MA call a rotary, where anyone entering has to yield and those already in it have the right of way? Or is it the kind of circle where it changes at each entrance as to who has the right of way (I hate this kind in a car, let alone on a bike!)? The person who said to handle it the same way as in a car has the right idea. Just make sure you are in the middle of a lane rather than way to the outside, because if you're way to the outside that can put you in the path of someone exiting (they may assume you are as well). There's one rotary I have to go through to get to certain areas of town, and it's wide enough for two cars going around but has no lane markings. I pretty much ride right in the middle of the road on this one until I am getting up to my exit. I also try to go as fast as I can through the rotary to make sure nobody gets PO'd at me for being slow :-)

[Helmet Head]

See this thread in the VC subforum:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=294196

If you have any more specific questions, please post them there so we have all the info in one thread. Thanks!

[John E]

Modern tight-radius, low-speed traffic circles are no problem. Multilane high-speed roundabouts scare the @%!$%^ out of me.

[pj7]

hi, im a newbie / commuter wannabe...
How does one handle a traffic circle...
I have done one commute to work
and basically walked it around (using pedestrian cross walks) until I hit the section that
allowed me to make the exit on the road that I want...

is there an "accepted" way to handle this without getting off the bike?
As far as "accepted", what you are doing is acceptable in all reality. I'd make use of the lanes as though I were just another vehicle. Back when I first started riding I'd do exactly what you have been doing. But with a few years and several THOUSANDS of miles under my belt I now have the skills and confidence that I deem necessary to ride like other vehicles out in the street.
Do what feels comfortable and what makes you feel secure is my motto!

[nelson249]

Here is a link to Waterloo Region's official guide:

http://www.region.waterloo.on.ca/web/region.nsf/index?openpage