Public tells Pattaya to hit brakes on Dolphin Roundabout replacement

[Rimmer]

Public tells Pattaya to hit brakes on Dolphin Roundabout replacement

PATTAYA:--Pattaya residents told city hall to put the brakes on plans to replace the Dolphin Roundabout with traffic lights, saying more study is needed.

 

City officials met Aug. 15 at the Sabai Resort with business leaders, former Pattaya workers, and former city council members to gather opinions about the demolition of the landmark traffic circle and creation of a four-way intersection.

 

The views were not what Pattaya leaders wanted to hear.

 

As has been the case every time removal of the roundabout has been suggested over the past 20 years, the public objected, calling it a historic landmark that, if operated correctly, serves its purpose.

 

Roundabouts have been scientifically proven to be more efficient and safer than conventional intersections. They allow more cars to pass through at a time and studies have shown they reduce injury and accidents by 75 percent.

 

Pattaya, however, has broken the proven traffic solution by barricading some of the lanes, making it impossible to circumvent the rotary. Once the barriers went in, traffic woes worsened.

 

Read more:--http://www.pattayamail.com/news/public-tells-pattaya-hit-brakes-dolphin-roundabout-replacement-184198

 

-- © Copyright Pattaya Mail 2017-08-26

[darksidedog]

The biggest problem with the roundabout is that most of the locals have absolutely no idea how to use one. I suppose since they don't seem to actually understand the concept of "give way" to anything, anywhere on the roads, expecting them to now do so to traffic already on the roundabout is too much to ask.

[gk10002000]

Sigh, an old road and intersection that originally only had to handle bicycles and motor scooters.  You can break infrastructure

[LennyW]

They need to plant signs in the bushes that instruct everybody to give way to traffic approaching from the right, in the native language of course.

[YetAnother]

7 hours ago, Rimmer said:

Pattaya, however, has broken the proven traffic solution by barricading some of the lanes, making it impossible to circumvent the rotary. Once the barriers went in, traffic woes worsened.

great job; not only monumentally stupid (no surprise there) for this specific item, but reveals , generally, the ability of current leadership

[KhunBENQ]

Here we are back again
In many countries roundabouts serve very well at such intersections.

Just not in Thailand.

Reminds of the removal/replacement at Soi Watboon in Jomtien.

I feel much safer at roundabouts where the hools can not easily speed through.

 

[sweatalot]

14 hours ago, KhunBENQ said:

"... safer at roundabouts where the hools can not easily speed through."

 

exactly roundabouts not only make traffic smoother they are safer then junctions - in a land with notorious red light runners

Edited August 27, 2017 by KhunBENQ
quote fixed

[bert bloggs]

The roundabout is great and really wished it worked ,unfortunatly the "ME FIRST" mentality of the average Thai driver makes that a no no .

[newnative]

The Wat Boon roundabout was working fine--so they got rid of it and now you sit at a very long traffic light at a confusing intersection.  The Dolphin roundabout intersection needs some sort of change--it's ridiculous that you can't get on to Beach Road coming from Naklua without first doing a time-consuming U-turn.

[stanleycoin]

1 hour ago, newnative said:

The Wat Boon roundabout was working fine--so they got rid of it and now you sit at a very long traffic light at a confusing intersection.  The Dolphin roundabout intersection needs some sort of change--it's ridiculous that you can't get on to Beach Road coming from Naklua without first doing a time-consuming U-turn.

No the roundabout was dam right dangerous.

 

If you find a crossroads with traffic lights confusing maybe you 

should not be on the roads of Thailand.. 

Edited August 27, 2017 by stanleycoin

[newnative]

3 hours ago, stanleycoin said:

No the roundabout was dam right dangerous.

 

If you find a crossroads with traffic lights confusing maybe you 

should not be on the roads of Thailand.. 

If you thought that tame little roundabout was dangerous maybe you shouldn't be on the roads either.  You're going in a circle so the traffic wasn't moving fast and you usually didn't have to wait long to get through.  Sometimes cars didn't yield but you just waited for a break and easily got through.  It's a pretty messy, unattractive intersection now.

[jesimps]

11 minutes ago, newnative said:

If you thought that tame little roundabout was dangerous maybe you shouldn't be on the roads either.  You're going in a circle so the traffic wasn't moving fast and you usually didn't have to wait long to get through.  Sometimes cars didn't yield but you just waited for a break and easily got through.  It's a pretty messy, unattractive intersection now.

The original roundabout was fine until they started messing about with it. Here, roundabouts are safet than lights. No red light jumpers.

[stanleycoin]

3 hours ago, newnative said:

If you thought that tame little roundabout was dangerous maybe you shouldn't be on the roads either.  You're going in a circle so the traffic wasn't moving fast and you usually didn't have to wait long to get through.  Sometimes cars didn't yield but you just waited for a break and easily got through.  It's a pretty messy, unattractive intersection now.

Thank you for the description of how a roundabout works in the country of your origin.

 

Quote

If you thought that tame little roundabout was dangerous maybe you shouldn't be on the roads either.

Pathetic, attempt to turn your own inability to understand a cross roads 

with traffic lights.  

There are a few of them in Thailand you know. 

[newnative]

1 hour ago, stanleycoin said:

Thank you for the description of how a roundabout works in the country of your origin.

 

Pathetic, attempt to turn your own inability to understand a cross roads 

with traffic lights.  

There are a few of them in Thailand you know. 

I understand an intersection with traffic lights perfectly well.  I can also walk and chew gum at the same time.  However, anybody approaching the Wat Boon/Jomtien Second Road intersection for the first time coming from Sukumvit will be confronted with a rather poorly designed, and, yes, somewhat confusing intersection, partly because 2 of the roads do not align well and the intersection was re-done quickly and poorly when the roundabout was removed.  Actually, the misaligned roads made the roundabout a good choice for the intersection.  Pity they didn't stick with it.

[NanLaew]

On 8/26/2017 at 4:32 PM, LennyW said:

They need to plant signs in the bushes that instruct everybody to give way to traffic approaching from the right, in the native language of course.

That's been done to death at roundabouts all over the enchanted kingdom and just doesn't work. Even if they get the translation right, the whole concept of 'give way' conflicts with the 'me first' attitude. Maybe the signage should say, "Don't stop ON the roundabout" since I reckon that is a the greater misuse.

[NanLaew]

If they have signage saying "give way to traffic already on the roundabout and don't stop once on the roundabout", do you think that will work?

 

Failing that, seriously  rumbly 'rumble strips' on the lanes leading into the roundabout and as a final deterrent, a speed bump instead of the dotted line around the periphery.

[johng]

5 hours ago, NanLaew said:

If they have signage saying "give way to traffic already on the roundabout and don't stop once on the roundabout", do you think that will work?

 

 

Nope....they tried that on the  Jomtien ( Soi Wat Boon) roundabout it didn't help them at all.

however the sign didn't last very long I think someone crashed into the barriers and then they remodeled without any instruction of how to navigate round it....or maybe the crash happened first  cant remember now 

 

the red writing says " let the vehicles on the roundabout go first"

 

 

[Basil B]

Using the word "Brakes" in the headline, was that meant to be a pun??? 

 

[balo]

The soi watboon roundabout worked just fine, no accidents because we all had to slow down and look out for traffic. Especially at night an intersection with red lights can be dangerous , drunk drivers and other idiots will take their chances and run the red light.

[stanleycoin]

3 hours ago, balo said:

The soi watboon roundabout worked just fine, no accidents because we all had to slow down and look out for traffic. Especially at night an intersection with red lights can be dangerous , drunk drivers and other idiots will take their chances and run the red light.

 

I was there maybe 3-or 4 minutes after an accident on the exit from that roundabout.

so what does that make you ?

Also post 17, that was just fake news to  ?

I saw that fake news type of accident post 17,  aftermath, twice,  early on weekend mornings

so what does that make me , more fake news ?

unbelievable.  

 

[bobbin]

Roundabouts are not common in North America. Even well-educated drivers with little to no experience using them are not comfortable using them..

 

The Soi Watboon roundabout did move traffic faster than the current intersection but that was not the point. Intersections with traffic lights are universal and everybody understands how they work.

 

This is what works..

 

Sensors in the road controlling the traffic lights. Red light cameras. Fines that get steeper for re-offenders.. Easy. Red light runners are way worse than speeders, as they transgress the basic rule of the road, that is that you are safe if you follow the directions of the traffic lights.

 

Plus plus that the Police/Municipal authorities get to sit back and watch the money roll in from all the offenders until the offenders get tired of being hit in the wallet for their selfish driving habits and start to wise up and follow the rules of the road.

[NanLaew]

11 hours ago, bobbin said:

Roundabouts are not common in North America. Even well-educated drivers with little to no experience using them are not comfortable using them..

 

The Soi Watboon roundabout did move traffic faster than the current intersection but that was not the point. Intersections with traffic lights are universal and everybody understands how they work.

 

This is what works..

 

Sensors in the road controlling the traffic lights. Red light cameras. Fines that get steeper for re-offenders.. Easy. Red light runners are way worse than speeders, as they transgress the basic rule of the road, that is that you are safe if you follow the directions of the traffic lights.

 

Plus plus that the Police/Municipal authorities get to sit back and watch the money roll in from all the offenders until the offenders get tired of being hit in the wallet for their selfish driving habits and start to wise up and follow the rules of the road.

What also works is correctly programming the filter lights but even for some of the simplest 4-way major intersections in LOS, the controllers are programmed for the simplest 4-way rotation where right-turn across traffic filters are enabled only as long as the accompanying straight ahead green light is on; everyone waits for their next green light regardless if the cross-turning traffic is heavier than the straight ahead traffic. Since the cops have the keys to the control boxes, maybe it is all too hard for the lazy sods.

[balo]

15 hours ago, bobbin said:

Roundabouts are not common in North America.

 

I think its only Americans in here complaining  about the roundabouts. We Europeans love roundabouts , they are everywhere, and for a reason.

Just get used to it.  

 

 

[jacko45k]

On 8/28/2017 at 2:26 PM, johng said:

Nope....they tried that on the  Jomtien ( Soi Wat Boon) roundabout it didn't help them at all.

however the sign didn't last very long I think someone crashed into the barriers and then they remodeled without any instruction of how to navigate round it....or maybe the crash happened first  cant remember now 

 

the red writing says " let the vehicles on the roundabout go first"

 

 

Of course that now is a traffic light junction where I had to wait only yesterday for a while at red, there was pretty much no traffic around and a roundabout could work if drivers used it correctly (forlorn hope). The Dolphin, well it is far too busy ever to work well.

[gintis0604]

They should build 100 more roundabouts in Pattaya, and teach Thais how to drive there. Not stop IN THE ROUNDABOUT, as they do there.