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Title:

ROUNDABOUTS - CURRENT SWEDISH PRACTICE AND RESEARCH

Accession Number:

00741177

Record Type:

Component

Availability:

National Institute for Advanced Transportation Technology

University of Idaho, Moscow
115 Engineering Physics Building
Moscow, ID 83844-0901 United States

Abstract:

The Swedish road network contained around 120 roundabouts in the early 1980s, most of them with large-scale designs. That number has nearly tripled and is still growing owing to excellent safety records, traffic performance, and traffic calming properties of roundabouts. Roundabouts are classified as mini (R sub 1<2), small (2<R sub 1<10) and normal (R sub 1 >10) depending on inner radius, R sub 1 and their driving properties for buses and trucks. The basic design principle is to provide the smoothest car path through the facility restricted by the condition for turning path radii, requiring R<100 m (32.8 ft) for driving speed </=50 kph (31 mi/h) and 50 m (16.4 ft) for </=30 kph (18.6 mi/h) The design vehicle is a 16-meter-long (52 ft) semi-trailer with an R10 driving strategy, which results in 5- to 6.5-meter-wide (16 to 21 ft) entries and exits and weaving widths of up to 8 meters (104 ft) for single-lane normal roundabouts. Swedish accident statistics give vehicle injury accident levels for roundabouts in the range 0.04 to 0.08 injury accidents per million vehicles, depending on major road speed and environment, with very few severe accidents. Roundabouts have successfully been used in a full-scale central area traffic calming project with an estimated 44% improvement in traffic safety. New traffic performance research proposes critical gaps depending on weaving width, length, and approach lane with a bunched major flow model, without consideration of vehicle direction. The current CAPCAL model gives higher capacities at 50 kph (31 mi/h) and lower at 70 kph (43.5 mi/h) when compared with these new results.

Language:

English

Corporate Authors:

Transportation Research Board

500 Fifth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20001 United States

Federal Highway Administration

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590 United States

National Institute for Advanced Transportation Technology

University of Idaho, Moscow
115 Engineering Physics Building
Moscow, ID 83844-0901 United States

TransNow, Transportation Northwest

University of Washington, Department of Civil Engineering
129 More Hall, Box 352700
Seattle, WA 98195-2700 United States

Authors:

Bergh, T

Pagination:

p. 36-44

Publication Date:

1997-7

Conference:

Third International Symposium on Intersections Without Traffic Signals

Location: Portland, Oregon
Date: 1997-7-21 to 1997-7-23
Sponsors: Transportation Research Board; Federal Highway Administration; National Center for Advanced Transportation Technology, University of Idaho; Transportation Northwest, University of Washington

Features:

Figures (9) ; References (24) ; Tables (5)

Uncontrolled Terms:

Subject Areas:

Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; I73: Traffic Control

Files:

TRIS, TRB, USDOT

Created Date:

Oct 28 1997 12:00AM

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