[Misdicorl]

How small can you make a roundabout? Where I live stop signs are common at very small intersections.

Alternating two way stops (n/s at intersection one, e/w at intersection two) seems like maybe an ok way to reduce the problem by half at little to no cost?

[hedora]

There's a configuration for bike safety that's basically a mini roundabout superimposed on a normal intersection. It doesn't significantly increase the size of the intersection, but the geometry works out in a way where bikes can go at near full speed, but it's impossible for a right turning car and straight going bike to get into a collision without seeing each other first (assuming both are looking forward while driving).

[aix1]

Is there a picture/diagram you could link to that would show this configuration in more detail?

[adhesive_wombat]

Pretty small: a mini roundabout isn't really any bigger than just the intersection: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roundabout#Mini-roundabouts

[pm3003]

Mini roundabouts are very likely to be confusing horrors, outside of low-speed residential zones, parking lots and the like.

See the city of Nantes in France (roundabout’s paradise), navigating the intersections is horrible. In a few parts of town they even have double mini roundabouts. The only reasonable explanation I found is “security by confusion” : if you have no idea how to drive through the intersection, you’re more likely to slow down. Well it doesn’t make the intersection really safer.

[Mountain_Skies]

I've seen some in Vancouver that are little more than an oversize planter with a scrub in it stuck in the middle of the intersection. As long as it deflects traffic to the side a bit, a slowdown is achieved and the main purpose fulfilled.

[fassssst]

Yea there are a bunch of those in Seattle neighborhoods, they work well.

[kn0where]

In my experience with the ones in Seattle, people who are turning left use the wrong side of the mini roundabout to save 3 seconds of driving time.

[ajb]

The UK historically has lots of roundabouts, the design guidelines are here : https://www.google.com/url?q=https://trl.co.uk/uploads/trl/d...

Basically they recommend 28m diameter if you are going to have a central island, otherwise it should be a mini-roundabout (capable of being driven over)

[alistairSH]

I’ll add that in my family’s home town (farming town in Perthshire) in Scotland, there are mini roundabouts that are just a spot of white paint in the middle of the intersection. It works fine.