Your least-favorite roadway feature?

[roadman65]

25 mph speed zones on major arteries. New Jersey has plenty of them!

Then in Florida we have traffic signals being added in places where right ins and right outs should be made.

Intersections that are not striped for turn lanes, that should be as the general use lane is much wider than 12 feet.  That allows some cops to be anal and try to say that going around a left turning vehicle is considered illegally passing.

Not having dedicated right turn only lanes at intersections on major arterials for heavy turning right turn traffic at some locations.  This causes slowdowns in the right lane on high speed highways and if you are turning right while the light is red and the car in front of you is not turning, you are missed your chance for right turn on red.

[PHLBOS]

Sequential exit numbers skipped for no reason (see I-93 in Boston)

Do keep in mind that such was the result of the Big Dig/O'Neill Tunnel version of I-93 has less exit ramps than the original Central Artery I-93; the current sequential exit numbers for I-93 were assigned circa 1986-87.  Which is why the then-MassHighway & the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority should've went with mile-marker based exit numbers for the Big Dig tunnels and I-90 & 93 from the get-go IMHO.

Sherman, set the WABAC Machine to 1990 (a drive along US 1 & I-93 South):

In case the signs shown in the video were too blurry (exit number & location/vicinity):

Exit 26 - Storrow Drive (MA 3 North)
Exit 25 - Haymarket Square
Exit 24 - Callahan Tunnel (MA 1A North)
Exit 23 - High St./Congress St. (ramp was then-recently relocated to accomodate International Place high-rise)
Exit 22 - South Station
Exit 21 - Kneeland St./Chinatown
Exit 20 - I-90 West/Mass Pike
Exit 19 - Albany St. (note: no exit tab was ever added to the old 50s-era BGS')

[kkt]

Lanes that become turn only with little or no warning.

[Tarkus]

which highlights the problem if you botch a roundabout

A poorly-designed anything will cause more accidents than a well-designed anything- I don't know that it's fair to say "roundabouts are bad" (nor am I saying that you're saying that) because badly designed or inappropriately placed roundabouts are bad.

I'd agree that's sound logic, and I wasn't saying that all roundabouts are bad, or that a good roundabout was somehow inferior to a bad signal or 4-way stop.

To clarify, I was saying that a bad roundabout is worse than a bad signal or other control device from the standpoint of finances and flexibility.  Signal installation costs are usually measured in the hundreds of thousands--$300K is a typical figure.  If there's issues with a signal, it's possible to adjust the timing on it to improve operations, or retrofit the layout, and worst-case scenario, if the signal needs to be removed, you're out the $300K installation plus removal costs (which usually aren't significant), so probably a bit shy of a million.  Compare that to the most roundabouts, which usually push at least $1 million.  ODOT usually uses the $3-5 million figure for single-lane designs, and if a multi-lane design is used, that figure pushes up toward the $9.3 million that Springfield spent.  It's difficult to fix a roundabout without substantial re-engineering, and one would have to completely tear up and redo the intersection if the roundabout needs removing.  Bad roundabouts (especially multi-lane ones) are much harder and more expensive to fix than bad signals, and being a newer engineering device, bad roundabouts cast an ugly shadow on the good ones in the public eye. 

I get the sense that some engineers (esp. here in Oregon, at all levels of government) are more interested in trying to be "innovative" by pushing roundabouts into places where they really don't belong, rather than actually building a solid, functional project.  They're doing the general public and the reputation of roundabouts a severe disservice in the process.

[texaskdog]

those stupid traffic meters we had in Minnesota.  Without them it would take me 20 minutes to get to work/school,  With them I wasted 10 minutes at the meter making it a 30 minute drive (I had the option to go the unmetered way and I took it)

[TXtoNJ]

Freeways where the main lanes bridge over cross traffic, and then return to grade, like a roller coaster. Either put the whole thing on an embankment or piers, sink the lanes underground, or bridge the cross-traffic! It's especially bad in Texas because of the ubiquitous frontage roads.

[doorknob60]

Roundabouts only work when people know to use them. A roundabout filled with people who have no clue what to do is a nightmare waiting to happen.

Studies have actually shown that roundabouts decrease accidents, one of the reasons being that people who have no idea what they are doing drive much more carefully.

Most of the studies out there are limited to just single-lane roundabouts.  The results are all over the place when it comes to multi-lane roundabouts.  I've thoroughly studied the statistics at a couple of the main ones in Oregon . . . the one at US-101 and OR-202 in Astoria more than doubled the occurrence of injury accidents long term, without reducing accident severity.  The one on MLK Pkwy in Springfield has had 182 accidents in the past 5 years, putting it in the 3.00 per MEV range, which is pretty terrible, and far worse than any other intersection in the city.  It's been there 9 years and they've done absolutely nothing to address the issue, in part due to cost ($9.3 million for initial construction), which highlights the problem if you botch a roundabout--it's prohibitive to attempt to correct it (or to remove it altogether).

Reminds me of a certain roundabout in Bend. Here is a Google Sateliite view (unfortunately no Street View of it): https://www.google.com/maps/@44.0909659,-121.2817749,70m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en

The left lane is clearly marked left turn only, with multiple signs and road markings. The right lane is right turn or straight. EVERY TIME I go through here, someone stays in the left lane and goes straight! It really pisses me off. And this is in Bend, where people are supposed to know how to use roundabouts...

[roadman65]

Freeways where the main lanes bridge over cross traffic, and then return to grade, like a roller coaster. Either put the whole thing on an embankment or piers, sink the lanes underground, or bridge the cross-traffic! It's especially bad in Texas because of the ubiquitous frontage roads.

In Florida, too, most roadways that cross over another are at grade then climb and artificial hill to stretch over the crossing roadway, and then down another artificial hill to go back to grade.

I think its a little more costly to do it on flat land like most of the Florida Peninsula and most of Texas are.

Heck at least Texas is not like Louisiana, where they do not even build artificial hills at all.  Just built one hurdle viaduct from the moment it leaves grade to moment it returns.  Almost every bridge on I-10 is that way in the Greater NO Area.

[jakeroot]

Roundabouts only work when people know to use them. A roundabout filled with people who have no clue what to do is a nightmare waiting to happen.

Studies have actually shown that roundabouts decrease accidents, one of the reasons being that people who have no idea what they are doing drive much more carefully.

Most of the studies out there are limited to just single-lane roundabouts.  The results are all over the place when it comes to multi-lane roundabouts.  I've thoroughly studied the statistics at a couple of the main ones in Oregon . . . the one at US-101 and OR-202 in Astoria more than doubled the occurrence of injury accidents long term, without reducing accident severity.  The one on MLK Pkwy in Springfield has had 182 accidents in the past 5 years, putting it in the 3.00 per MEV range, which is pretty terrible, and far worse than any other intersection in the city.  It's been there 9 years and they've done absolutely nothing to address the issue, in part due to cost ($9.3 million for initial construction), which highlights the problem if you botch a roundabout--it's prohibitive to attempt to correct it (or to remove it altogether).

Reminds me of a certain roundabout in Bend. Here is a Google Sateliite view (unfortunately no Street View of it): https://www.google.com/maps/@44.0909659,-121.2817749,70m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en

The left lane is clearly marked left turn only, with multiple signs and road markings. The right lane is right turn or straight. EVERY TIME I go through here, someone stays in the left lane and goes straight! It really pisses me off. And this is in Bend, where people are supposed to know how to use roundabouts...

I swear, I live in the only state in the union where roundabouts were implemented without collisions rising. Washington has about 300 roundabouts now, and I suppose you could compare the overall number of roundabouts with increased driver familiarity, but of greater interest (IMO) is driver attitude. Washington drivers are pretty calm and relaxed (much like British drivers where the roundabout came to fame); I think a state needs drivers who are calm and attentive in order to succeed in the construction of roundabouts (the other option is to just build hundreds of them and force drivers to learn the rules, a la Carmel, IN). I think Oregon drivers are enough like Washington drivers to succeed at driving through roundabouts (and I'd bet the Springfield and Bend examples are rare cases of increased issue). The problem is Oregon's slow roll-out of them. What they need to do is build like 50 of them, have a massive campaign (digital, physical, etc) and let drivers figure it out. Oregon doesn't have enough of them to force drivers to learn the concept of giving way to the left.

Perhaps we ought to try out the "yield at roundabout" sign?

EDIT: Add this to my list of least-favorite roadway features: dashed lines in roundabouts. Lane changes are prohibited within modern roundabouts -- don't use dashed lane lines!!!! Solid lane lines exist for this reason.

[NE2]

EDIT: Add this to my list of least-favorite roadway features: dashed lines in roundabouts. Lane changes are prohibited within modern roundabouts -- don't use dashed lane lines!!!! Double solid lane lines exist for this reason.

Corrected.

[bugo]

Speed limits.

[jakeroot]

EDIT: Add this to my list of least-favorite roadway features: dashed lines in roundabouts. Lane changes are prohibited within modern roundabouts -- don't use dashed lane lines!!!! Double solid lane lines exist for this reason.

Corrected.

True. Are there any roundabouts with double solid lane lines?

Speed limits.

Yeah, we heard.

[Darkchylde]

Through lanes on a road shifting to the left or right, such as with Bannister Road in both directions between US 71 and Blue Ridge.

This is a good example of it: https://goo.gl/maps/anwN6

Up to this point, the left two lanes are the through lanes. If you want to keep going on Bannister, though, you have to shift two lanes to the right from where you were here - the "through" lanes default into left turn lanes for local streets and for I-435 South.

[bahnburner]

Erased road markings/lack of any maintenance - this is for you, Chicago!

I mean, seriously, sometimes I wonder if a turn lane is there or not due to the erased road markings. Even where to stop if you're the first at a red light can be ambiguous.

4 way stop signs. What's worse? A consecutive series of blocks with stop signs. No wonder my friend and I get well below our EPA estimates for city fuel economy! :X Gimme roundabouts with yield signs!

Unclearly delindeated overly wide lanes on a 2 lane road. I want to drive in a lane, not a general vicinity. This allows idiots to wander left and right while driving. It rewards the incompetant and is a hell for the precise.

Fixed time signal lights. I think I have to wait at least three minutes at a red light everyday when there's no traffic perpendicular to me.

Manhole covers that are directly in the path of travel of your tires within the lane. I bet the tire lobby is behind that one!

Too short on ramps and off ramps. Cloverleafs with cramped designed. It just gets messy with too many conflict zones while entering/exiting the Interstate.

Unsmooth road surface in general. I drive a BMW with runflats. I feel everything.

[CNGL-Leudimin]

Although I usually don't mind about roundabouts, I don't like when there are too many of them in a small area. I hate badly timed traffic lights, too. And when you mix roundabouts and badly timed traffic lights, you get Zaragoza. I prefer to go around the city on the Z-40 beltway to get quickly to the area I'm going.

Also, some speed limits are silly. Last year I drove a straight road with a ridiculous (but legally mandated) speed limit of 56*. I went 75 all the way. Fortunately there are no speed cameras in the way.

* The reason of this weird speed limit is not that weird outside the US, being 90 km/h. I drove 120 there.

[DaBigE]

EDIT: Add this to my list of least-favorite roadway features: dashed lines in roundabouts. Lane changes are prohibited within modern roundabouts -- don't use dashed lane lines!!!! Solid lane lines exist for this reason.

It isn't just roundabouts, lane changes are prohibited in any intersection. Turn lane extension lines are also dashed (see Figure 3B-13 in the MUTCD), so it's not like roundabouts are setting a new precedent for lane lines within an intersection. Unfortunately, cross/entering traffic gradually wears away solid lines, turning them into dashed lines.

[odditude]

crappy drivers. even the most poorly-designed roadway is tolerable until you're stuck behind someone who doesn't know how to drive.

[freebrickproductions]

I'm not the biggest fan of roundabouts, although I don't mind them when they are implemented properly.

I also don't like traffic lights with non-black backgrounds.

Am I allowed to count people who don't use their turn signal when turning at an intersection and/or changing lanes as a "roadway feature" that I hate?

[texaskdog]

Am I allowed to count people who don't use their turn signal when turning at an intersection and/or changing lanes as a "roadway feature" that I hate?

No kidding.  Most people in Austin drive like they didn't have turn signals on their cars at all.

[empirestate]

...I think a state needs drivers who are calm and attentive in order to succeed in the construction of roundabouts.

That probably explains why there are virtually none in NYC.

Through lanes on a road shifting to the left or right, such as with Bannister Road in both directions between US 71 and Blue Ridge.

This is a good example of it: https://goo.gl/maps/anwN6

Up to this point, the left two lanes are the through lanes. If you want to keep going on Bannister, though, you have to shift two lanes to the right from where you were here - the "through" lanes default into left turn lanes for local streets and for I-435 South.

I agree it's probably annoying in an example like yours, but there's a similar situation on NY 17 that I actually like. Going over the Shawangunk ridges, there are several spots where there is a climbing lane on the right, but once you've gotten over the summit, it's this climbing lane that becomes the new right thru lane, and the left-hand travel lane ends. In this setup, traffic seems to flow more smoothly into the correct keep-right-except-to-pass configuration as the three lanes drop back to two.

For my part, I am always irked by protected-only left turn phases that stay in effect through the dead of night (i.e., green with a left red arrow). Orange County, CA seems to be fond of this. There's absolutely no reason I can't safely make a left turn at midnight when I can see there's no oncoming traffic for half a mile, just as I do everywhere else in the country.

[Zeffy]

I hate:

* Poorly timed traffic signals

* New Jersey traffic circles (more-so because the other people can't drive properly in one worth shit)

* Ridiculously sharp (90 degree) curves that require me to slow to nearly 10 MPH to avoid crossing the center-line'

* The idea of grooving a road so that you stop speeding on it, ignoring the fact that if that road is remotely icy you are fucked (*cough* CR 567 near Raritan)

* Extremely rough roads with no pavement markings whatsoever

* Speed zones that make you ride your brake down a hill to avoid getting popped

[mgk920]

Most of my peeves have already been mentioned, but I'll add:

-Munis that are too cheap to identify all of the streets at all of their intersections (this should be in the MUTCD);
-'ONE WAY' signs below the 'YIELD' signs at roundabout entrances (should use black-on-white graphic roundabout image signs, as is the normal practice in Europe);
-Those little islands that some munis like to use in the middle of their neighborhood side-street intersections for 'traffic calming'.  Hint guys - THEY DON'T WORK!
-Wordy signs at freeway entrances that are used to tell the World what is prohibited beyond the sign.  A WisDOT example: http://goo.gl/maps/DnnjN (College Ave (County 'CE') to NB WI 441 here in Appleton) - Use my avatar for that, DAMMIT!   
-'STOP' signs used where 'YIELD' signs, or no signs at all, will do just fine.  We all know munis that love to do that and they lessen the impact of 'STOP' signs that are used for legitimate traffic engineering purposes.

Mike

[1995hoo]

I'm not a fan of speed humps, but if they are of a design that you can traverse at the posted speed limit, I don't get overly annoyed by them. Speeding in residential areas is a real problem. But what I hate is that a lot of the time the speed humps are designed to make you slow to a crawl. Those aren't there to reduce speeding, they're there to discourage people from using the road at all. If the road is privately owned and maintained, I guess that may be the owner's prerogative depending on local laws, but if the road is publicly-owned and -maintained, I have a problem with the local authorities giving into residents who don't want other people driving through their little piece of paradise. I can think of a neighborhood out near Fairfax City (the Mantua neighborhood, for those who know the area) that went whole-hog on very sharp speed humps and excessive stop signs as a means of "mitigating cut-through traffic." You want to mitigate cut-through traffic, work with VDOT to improve the traffic light timing on the arterials that bypass your neighborhood!

[freebrickproductions]

How much you have to slow to go over a speed bump also depends on how your car is built, I believe. I can comfortably take these style of speed bumps at 25 mph while I've seen people (and been behind said people) who have to slow to an almost complete stop.

[TEG24601]

There is no logical reason for ramp metering.  This video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ux5ADlWXOvs - explains why it is bad.


I'm also not a fan of barriers between diamond lanes and the general purpose lanes.


Really dislike jersey barriers as the sole division between traffic directions.


Botts-dots as the only lane separators.


Lanes that end shortly after an exit... why is it not just an Exit Only lane?


Traffic signals, and rotate between directions of travel, instead of addressing traffic flow.


The lack of Michigan Lefts outside of Michigan.