Roundabouts are among nervous drivers’ most feared junctions.
They require skill and judgment as to when to safely pull out, get in the correct lane and then exit, all while remaining aware of other vehicles, which may be all around you.
Scotland-based road safety consultant Neil Greig gives his assessment of ten of the country’s most notorious roundabouts, with additional comments from AA motoring group staff based north of the Border - performance leader Bob Drummond and patroller John Carroll.
There’s also collision data from analysts CrashMap
Mr Greig said: “In general, roundabouts have been shown to be safer than traffic light intersections, but they have their traffic design limits, and these busy junctions show what happens when you exceed them.
“Regular peak time congestion and long delays if minor disruptions occur leads to unneeded pollution and cost to the Scottish economy.
“The Scottish Government has now abandoned its ridiculous traffic reduction targets, but need to provide solutions for these key junctions as they are only going to get worse.”
Nicholas Lyes, director of policy and standards for motoring group IAM RoadSmart, said: “When constructed well and properly maintained, roundabouts tend to be a far more efficient way in managing traffic at junctions than lights.
“But in recent years, poor maintenance hasn’t only resulted in more potholes on Scotland’s roads, but also faded line markings, which can cause a few issues for vehicle positioning when approaching and merging into roundabouts.
“Anticipation and positioning are two key skills for safely navigating roundabouts, but poor maintenance has made the latter far more difficult.”
A spokesperson for the Scottish Government’s Transport Scotland agency, which is responsible for roundabouts on trunk roads, said: “The second Strategic Transport Projects Review considered the need for major investment across the whole of Scotland’s trunk road network as part of the accompanying transport appraisal that was completed in 2022.
“The conclusion of the appraisal did not recommend any significant upgrade to Broxden, Inveralmond, Hermiston Gait or Stoneymollan junctions.
“Instead, and in line with our Sustainable Investment Hierarchy (SIH), the recommendation was that future investment should be focused on maintaining the existing assets.
“This is in line with the SIH rationale for investment in transport infrastructure projects, which is to prioritise maintaining and make best use of our existing transport assets, over building new infrastructure.”
9. Bridge of Dee - A92 in Aberdeen
The dual carriageway main route into the city from the south narrows over the historic river crossing at the start of the inner ring road, seen from the A92 northbound. The Crashmap collision analysis website recorded one incident between 2019 and 2023 (latest available data). Neil Greig: “Sadly, this has not really changed throughout my entire 30 year plus career in motoring public affairs. But the new bypass has helped reduce some of the delays. The whole intersection is long overdue for an upgrade and a final solution to relieve the poor old Bridge of Dee.” Aberdeen City Council said no improvements or upgrades were planned for the roundabout. | Google Street View
10. Hillington Road/M8 in Renfrewshire
The junction links Hillington Industrial Estate and Braehead with the M8 just west of Glasgow, seen looking south. The Crashmap collision analysis website recorded one incident between 2019 and 2023 (latest available data). Neil Greig: "Mainly a peak-hour issue but the juxtaposition of industrial estate vans and lorries and Braehead shoppers makes for some interesting driving conditions. I used to actively avoid this one after 4pm." Renfrewshire Council said no improvements were planned. | John Devlin/The Scotsman