I don't think that's supposed to be there

Kinja'd!!! "Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
02/12/2018 at 18:13 • Filed to: None

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Over the past few years, we’ve had some creative newfangled intersections built throughout the suburban parts of Madison where there’s room to put in these things. The traffic engineers are especially fond of traffic circles. Drivers here are especially fond of crashing on traffic circles.

This particular traffic circle is one of two along my commute. It’s also one of two funky intersections along the road that crosses my commute at this traffic circle.

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The traffic circle is on the left of this pic, and the extra funky intersection that I’m not going to bother trying to explain here is on the right.

I was heading home, going south along Pleasant View Rd, when I noticed some flashing lights. I saw this Honda Civic had spun out and ended up on the curb. I’m not sure what direction they were attempting to go or how they spun, but they ended up with the ass end of their car in the middle of the median and the front of it hanging out into traffic.

Generally, these traffic circles do keep traffic moving pretty well, but I also notice that in winter, a small subset of people just can’t wrap their minds around the idea of a traffic circle and slip, slide and crash into one of the medians, usually (thankfully) without hitting any other cars. Which is more than I can say for the older gentleman in a Toyota Sienna who was driving next to me on my way to work this morning who oozed well into my lane in the circle and I had to slam on my brakes and horn to alert him to my presence. At least no crash happened.

Overall though, I’m actually surprised more people don’t crash on the thing.


DISCUSSION (28)


Kinja'd!!! TheTurbochargedSquirrel > Textured Soy Protein
02/12/2018 at 18:18

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It’s always the Civic in the snow bank. I was driving along once and there was a bunch of snow on the road covering about 150 yards from the bottom of a hill up over a crest. I come over the crest to find 5 Civics spread out in the ditch along the side of the road. Nobody around, and it looked like they had been there since at least the night before.


Kinja'd!!! arl > Textured Soy Protein
02/12/2018 at 18:32

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When I go to visit my parents in Indiana, I’m always amaze at how many of these have sprung up.


Kinja'd!!! Urambo Tauro > Textured Soy Protein
02/12/2018 at 18:33

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The traffic circle is on the left of this pic, and the extra funky intersection that I’m not going to bother trying to explain here is on the right.

Hey man, you pointed it out. Now I have questions.


Kinja'd!!! HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > Textured Soy Protein
02/12/2018 at 18:33

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I love roundabouts, they’re dope. Although I came across one south of St. Paul that had a 5 foot tall concrete flower bed in the middle, and a bunch of shrubs in it. So you had zero chance of seeing a car coming in from the opposite side.


Kinja'd!!! WilliamsSW > Textured Soy Protein
02/12/2018 at 18:35

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Grew up right near this:

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My mom drove through it on her way to work, and saw a minimum of 1 accident/week there in the winter. And this was 30+ years ago, when (as far as I know) it was the only one of its kind in the Chicago area. The markings were much poorer back then, too.


Kinja'd!!! Textured Soy Protein > Urambo Tauro
02/12/2018 at 18:45

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If you’re heading south on Junction Rd you can’t turn left to go east on Mineral Point Rd. You have to turn right down the ramp to Mineral Point Rd, then turn right on to Mineral Point, then wait at a light where Mineral Point Rd intersects the northbound half of Junction Rd. Here’s the google street view, you can play around from here.

You also use the ramp if you’re heading east on Mineral Point and want to turn right to head south on Junction but that part is relatively straightforward.


Kinja'd!!! Urambo Tauro > Textured Soy Protein
02/12/2018 at 18:59

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Yeah, I got the gist of how it works from the pic. What I don’t understand is why . Why elevate the southbound lanes at all? The northbound lanes are still at ground level, and now there are three intersections with traffic signals instead of just one. This looks like it was a much more expensive project than it needed to be.


Kinja'd!!! facw > Textured Soy Protein
02/12/2018 at 19:16

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My real question is why can’t you turn right from southbound to westbound? Looks like you have to go over the bridge, come around, and then make a left?

Also, it looks like you have a single turn lane, which becomes a two lane ramp, which becomes four turn lanes? I get that they want some room if traffic backs up at the light, but seems like a bike discrepancy between input and output. 


Kinja'd!!! facw > HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles
02/12/2018 at 19:20

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Can be a problem, but it seems like normally, you wouldn’t need to see the other side, just what’s coming from the left?


Kinja'd!!! shop-teacher > WilliamsSW
02/12/2018 at 19:33

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I’m generally a fan of traffic circles, but that one in Des Plains is HORRIBLE! As I understand their critical error in designing that was making it too big. Traffic gets going to fast in it, for it to work properly.


Kinja'd!!! for Michigan > Textured Soy Protein
02/12/2018 at 19:54

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So it’s like a Michigan Left, but more complicated and less useful?


Kinja'd!!! Textured Soy Protein > facw
02/12/2018 at 19:56

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Oh, yeah, that’s all correct what you said, I forgot the right turn to go west quirk is actually right on the ramp then left at the light.


Kinja'd!!! CaptDale - is secretly British > Textured Soy Protein
02/12/2018 at 20:00

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I LOVE THE ROUNDABOUT!!! Wake up America! Let’s make America Roundabout “again”


Kinja'd!!! WilliamsSW > shop-teacher
02/12/2018 at 20:11

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Well, keep in mind that it opened in the 1920s, so they probably didn’t plan on the speeds there you see now.

I always thought there were two big issues- first, for a long time, it was the only one around, so no one was used to it. Second (and creating most of the accidents) is that it’s got 2 lanes. A lot of people get in the wrong lane, and just exit as they see fit.

Compounding all of that is that it’s very hard for newbies who want to continue on Golf Road (or exit toward NW Hwy) to figure out where they’re supposed to go. It’s not entirely logical if you aren’t familiar with it.

Back in the 1980s, street markings and signage was much worse than it is now, so they’ve made some improvements at least. But there is still an accident per day there.


Kinja'd!!! Textured Soy Protein > facw
02/12/2018 at 20:29

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Also I think the reason for so many lanes at the bottom of the ramp is the light there is red a lot. You can turn right on red but certain times of day there’s a lot of oncoming eastbound traffic. It looks like farmland on the aerial photo but there’s a lot of housing west of there.


Kinja'd!!! Textured Soy Protein > Urambo Tauro
02/12/2018 at 20:43

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It used to be the whole road was where the northbound lanes are and this intersection was severely congested because there’s big pockets of housing to the south and west, and a lot of the people who live in those pockets get on the highway at a ramp a little further east on Mineral Point. They’d pile up during rush hour and have to wait thru like 10 light cycles. So the intent was to make room for rush hour.


Kinja'd!!! shop-teacher > WilliamsSW
02/12/2018 at 20:44

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I didn’t realize that it as that old.

I only go through there about once every 8 years, so I usually screw it up and go the wrong way :)


Kinja'd!!! WilliamsSW > shop-teacher
02/12/2018 at 21:03

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Yeah, I looked that up out of curiosity. I knew it predates me, I recall riding through it in the 70s and driving through it in the 80s.

There’s a whole mess of busy roads (4, and 2 railroads) that come together in a small space, so I guess they just made do back then.


Kinja'd!!! shop-teacher > WilliamsSW
02/12/2018 at 21:15

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Yeah, there is a lot going on there!


Kinja'd!!! HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > facw
02/12/2018 at 21:23

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But usually the thing on the other side will be thing things coming from the left.


Kinja'd!!! Urambo Tauro > Textured Soy Protein
02/12/2018 at 22:45

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Ah. Yeah, I kinda figured it had to be a special situation based on local traffic issues. The multiple lanes -especially the multiple turning lanes- suggest that this is a real hot spot.


Kinja'd!!! BKosher84 > Textured Soy Protein
02/13/2018 at 08:08

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Cleveland Ohio: *Hold my beer*

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Kinja'd!!! Textured Soy Protein > WilliamsSW
02/13/2018 at 15:01

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As someone who would never, ever, consider living in a house on a main road, that one house with its driveway in the traffic circle makes my OCD itch a lot.


Kinja'd!!! Textured Soy Protein > BKosher84
02/13/2018 at 15:07

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DC has all sorts of wacky circles but here’s Dupont Circle.

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Kinja'd!!! WilliamsSW > Textured Soy Protein
02/13/2018 at 15:10

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Same here. The weird thing is that it’s actually a very nice house:

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And there’s an alley right behind it. I wouldn’t live there, but if I *did* I would put another garage door in the back of the garage and open it up to the alley.

Note that it’s 1 of 2 houses directly on the circle - - there’s one on the NW corner also.


Kinja'd!!! Textured Soy Protein > WilliamsSW
02/13/2018 at 15:26

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Yeah but the driveway for that other house at least is on a side street. Or I suppose that’s the alley you’re referring to.


Kinja'd!!! WilliamsSW > Textured Soy Protein
02/13/2018 at 15:33

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Yep - that’s the alley I’m referring to.


Kinja'd!!! Wacko > Textured Soy Protein
02/14/2018 at 13:29

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the average North-American driver is too stupid for roundabouts. Or as we call them in canada Round aBoots