Can you navigate a roundabout? ICBC says 30% of us don’t feel comfortable

The roundabout — a traffic calmer that exists in cities across the world, especially Europe — is giving drivers in B.C. a bit of a headache, ICBC says.

Single or multi-lane roundabouts can reduce injury crashes by up to 75 per cent, the province’s insurer explains, but drivers in B.C. seem to be uncomfortable when they approach them.

In a new survey by ICBC conducted by Ipsos, fewer than 30 per cent of drivers in B.C. feel confident navigating a multi-lane roundabout.

“The survey also shows that 15% of respondents find it difficult to know who has the right of way when entering a roundabout. This correlates with drivers’ biggest frustration when it comes to navigating roundabouts: other drivers not yielding to vehicles that have the right of way,” ICBC said in a statement Wednesday.

Drivers must yield to the left when coming up to a roundabout, and vehicles already driving in a roundabout have right of way, ICBC explains.

However, the insurance corporation did find that almost 60 per cent of drivers surveyed do feel confident entering a single-lane roundabout.

“Road design is critical to keeping everyone on our roads safe,” said Shabnem Afzal, ICBC’s director of road safety.

“Roundabouts are proven to be highly effective in reducing crashes. While common in Europe, they’re relatively newer to Canada. We’re here to offer a refresher and tips so that whether you’re walking, driving, or cycling, we all know how to safely navigate roundabouts and share our roads together.”

ICBC is now giving some tips for drivers when they navigate roundabouts, including slowing down, knowing where you want to go and which lane to use, yielding to traffic that is already in the roundabout, and signaling “right” before you exit.

The insurance provider says about 90 roundabouts have been built in B.C. since 2000.