Drive through a Diverging Diamond intersection. Part One, with a near miss. 

"XJDano" (xjdano) 01/06/2019 at 15:40 • Filed to: Diverging Diamond, Dashcam, Not so grand caravan

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So I’ve been meaning to do a mini series of just a dashcam view of driving through the DD intersection near my house. I feel like they do save time verses a traditional highway interchange. Today it wasn’t too backed up, but since there are two turn lanes most everyone uses the left and I use the right because. 

Here is the gas station pin in north west corner of the google map.

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And now for the footage along with my  son rambling about his friend Daren and how they drive in Mario Kart.

Need to reset clock on dash cam to exclude DST.

Spanfeller is a twat > XJDano 01/06/2019 at 15:52

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You guys have a very strict definition of what a near miss is. But the car should’ve stopped, they had a yield sign 

Bman76 (hates WS6 hoods, is on his phone and has 4 burners now) > XJDano 01/06/2019 at 15:53

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Yikes.

ttyymmnn > XJDano 01/06/2019 at 15:53

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They’ve installed one of these on I-35 north of Austin. I don’t drive it regularly, but I have a friend who lives at that exit and he said it has made a considerable difference in wait times. Unfortunately, most Americans can’t manage a roundabout, let alone one of these.

Svend > XJDano 01/06/2019 at 16:00

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We just use a form of roundabout.

Most common.

Probably least common.

It probably isn’t but the diverging diamond just seems overly complicated. 

fhrblig > Svend 01/06/2019 at 16:09

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That’s what I thought when I first heard of them. Then I drove  through one and now I'm sold. They're great.

facw > XJDano 01/06/2019 at 16:21

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We should have more yields instead of stops or even lights. But also we should have more drivers who know what yield means.

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > XJDano 01/06/2019 at 16:23

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In general, turn-lane discipline is go awful in the US.

Here’s an intersection near my home, coming off a freeway. Right two lanes are right turn only, left lane is left turn only. Of the two right turn lanes, the outside lane splits into a left turn lane and a straight through lane (blue) . The inside lane becomes a right turn only (red).

It is a dialy occurance as I come home from work that I see people in the red line cross over, in the middle of dense traffic, to the left turn lane which means cutting across and into both blue lanes. I will watch them outright BLOCK all three lanes to try and make it into the left turn only lane (which has the shortest light timing at the intersection and it’s honestly faster to go straight or right and do a loop around somewhere else....)

But I have accepted that my first ever proper accident will happen at this intersection.

facw > Svend 01/06/2019 at 16:24

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The city of Carmel, Indiana has gone all in on roundabouts. We have a bunch here in Massachusetts (where they are called rotaries). T he one near my house is disguised as a series of ramps though :

WilliamsSW > XJDano 01/06/2019 at 16:30

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There’s one near me at I88 and Ill 59 - seems to be laid out the same as yours.

I don’t find it confusing personally- I think it helps that there are smooth curves to enter the crossover and a high median in the area where you’re driving on the “ wrong” side of the road. And it does seem to improve the flow of traffic.

XJDano > Svend 01/06/2019 at 16:31

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This intersection was modified to make the DD. Not nearly as much room for a roundabout with what was already there.

I wouldn’t mind those round abouts but most Americans can’t even pay attention to just drive. 

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > XJDano 01/06/2019 at 16:42

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This guy:

... I presume is supposed to stop or yield to the right of way.

Since I saw no stopping or yielding, I suspect that driver doesn’t know what a stop or yield sign means.

XJDano > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles 01/06/2019 at 16:43

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People are idiots. It works best if people are already familiar with the area to know where they need to be to know the best route on how to get there.

XJDano > Manwich - now Keto-Friendly 01/06/2019 at 16:48

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From their   point of view. (Thanks google street view)

WilliamsSW > XJDano 01/06/2019 at 17:12

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Roundabouts in the US are okay, as long as they’re a single lane. There’s a 2 lane roundabout (Cumberland Circle) right near where I grew up that has been there nearly 100 years - and it’s a complete disaster still, because people are idiots.

BrianGriffin thinks “reliable” is just a state of mind > XJDano 01/06/2019 at 17:17

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They’ve started to become a common renovation in PA for any highway I tereectuon thst requires a left turn across traffic. Personally I always liked the old cloverleaf design, but my engineer friends all swear by the DD design. 

Just Jeepin' > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles 01/06/2019 at 17:48

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It’s also the case that signage is pretty poor most places. Most interstate exit ramps, at least around here, don’t bother to tell you in advance which lanes are going which direction.

I don’t want to excuse poor behavior, but ignorance is understandable. Even exits I use semi-regularly I struggle to get the right lane. 

wafflesnfalafel > XJDano 01/06/2019 at 17:50

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yikes..

I get that these types of intersections lessen the severity of accidents, (lower speed sideswipes instead of higher speed t-bones, and there is value in that,) but the few we have out here seem to constantly have folks banging into each other, or into the circle itself, because it takes more attention to navigate through them...

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > Just Jeepin' 01/06/2019 at 18:33

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I don’t disagree that signage could be better, but bad signage doesn’t excuse ignoring traffic laws and being a massive asshole because the sign isn’t the easiest to read.

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > XJDano 01/06/2019 at 18:34

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I see similar cars doing it on a daily basis. I know they live in the area but the right turn only lane on the exit ramp is often smaller because it fees into the right turn only. So people get into it and then cut across thinking they’re gaming the system. Because people are dicks. 

Phyrxes once again has a wagon! > XJDano 01/06/2019 at 18:58

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I deal with the one below daily on my commute, it i s awesome as I no longer have to turn across traffic to get on the interstate.

Urambo Tauro > facw 01/06/2019 at 23:53

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THIS so much. It’s so frustrating having to come to a full and complete stop when visibility is great and there are no potential traffic conflicts. But it will never work if people don’t get with t he program on what it means to yield.

boxrocket > XJDano 01/07/2019 at 06:39

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I immediately recognized that intersection just from how frequently and many times I visit the CarMax just northeast of the overhead view. Also the QT.

I don’t even live in St. Charles/Peters.