The Northern Distributer Road AKA Norwich Northern Bypass

[MBA Marine]

I took my first hurrah down this new eradication of our countryside,  I drove the new section from Aylsham road to Taverham.  I felt a bit dirty using it but the old road was no longer accessible  to use.  Fairly safe to assume all the old roads rather than being ripped up and returned to nature will slowly all get new housing built around them.   Does it show i'm not a fan!

[andy]

Ndr will be open from 6 am Thursday 21st December from Wroxham Road to Fakenham Road 

[TheQ]

Oh good I'll give the Wroxham rd to Coltishall road section a try tomorrow morning, it should have been open 15 minutes by the time I get there. It will save a couple minutes every day to work and one less trip through Coltishall evey day.

[TheQ]

Having driven a section.....

Ok which PRATT designed the roundabouts?.....

The roundabouts are 3 lanes, at the most any road coming into them has 2 lanes...

When you come onto the roundabout there is no Flow, if you are turning left it is a HARD left turn to go onto the outer lane.

When leaving the round about you have those who've done a hard left and those who are going to that exit  from the other entrances in the middle lane. How long is the merge area for the two? about a car length. I predict a LOT of accidents...

[grendel]

we used to have a turn like that in Ashford, two lanes going into the bend - one coming out, I was once accused of carving up a car going round the corner on my motorbike, it was actually trying to overtake me in the bend, as I was cornering I looked down at the road on my left and all I could see was the front wing of a car.

[Vaughan]

On more than one occasion I have had furious blasts from truck horns when navigating the lanes on the Barton Mills roundabout on the A11 and on that ridiculous Thickthorn roundabout at the top of the A11. On each of these occasions it was ME who was in the correct lane, and made the correct lane changes on the way round.

Maybe it was because I have French number plates?

[BrundallNavy]

It actually opened yesterday and I did the section from Coltishall road to Wroxham road, yes I agree with the roundabouts but the thing that astonished me was the poor quality of the tarmac you would expect a new road  to be like a billiard table this is definitely not.

Doug.

[grendel]

5 minutes ago, Vaughan said:

Maybe it was because I have French number plates?

more than likely - but try going the other way around the roundabouts and they will get very upset.

[Heron]

If everybody gets into the correct lane to navigate the roundabouts and obeys the rules, there should not be any problems. Sadly, being British, we are incapable of  getting this sort of thing right as we all must get past the vehicle in front at all costs.

Take a look at most of the roundabouts in Norwich, most have signage instructing drivers to merge in turn. Too  many drivers either do not understand what this means or think it does not apply to them!

[Jim]

6 hours ago, TheQ said:

Having driven a section.....

Ok which PRATT designed the roundabouts?.....

The roundabouts are 3 lanes, at the most any road coming into them has 2 lanes...

When you come onto the roundabout there is no Flow, if you are turning left it is a HARD left turn to go onto the outer lane.

When leaving the round about you have those who've done a hard left and those who are going to that exit  from the other entrances in the middle lane. How long is the merge area for the two? about a car length. I predict a LOT of accidents...

Proably the same P**** that came up with the Postwick Interchange!  Okay, I have been to the NNDR asphalt plant many times from the west and its a doddle, try from the east, I get lost on that junction.  When staying aboard back in July, to get to the plant I went to the A146 and turned back to head westbound..I swear it took less time!!

[TheQ]

12 hours ago, Heron said:

If everybody gets into the correct lane to navigate the roundabouts and obeys the rules, there should not be any problems. Sadly, being British, we are incapable of  getting this sort of thing right as we all must get past the vehicle in front at all costs.

Take a look at most of the roundabouts in Norwich, most have signage instructing drivers to merge in turn. Too  many drivers either do not understand what this means or think it does not apply to them!

Sadly with these roundabout markings, it's not one hundred percent certain which lane you should be in and with directions showing two lanes into one with only a car length to do it in it's just a recipe for disaster..

[grendel]

I like the french road signs they use at roadworks where traffic lanes merge, clearly showing two lines of traffic with one car from each taking a turn

[MauriceMynah]

French street signs are ok... but they keep putting them on the wrong side of the road!!!

[Jim]

2 hours ago, grendel said:

I like the french road signs they use at roadworks where traffic lanes merge, clearly showing two lines of traffic with one car from each taking a turn

They have that type of sign outside Poole, works well!

[Bound2Please]

1 hour ago, Jim said:

They have that type of sign outside Poole, works well!

In Guernsey they have 100's of filter in turn junctions marked by yellow cross hatching in the road, works brilliantly until a uk registered motor jumps a turn ...............

[Heron]

I wonder if the Highway Code might give some of us a clue about negotiating a roundabout?

[Jim]

1 hour ago, Heron said:

I wonder if the Highway Code might give some of us a clue about negotiating a roundabout?

In modern times Heron, it would seem that most drivers never read that book (or forgot what it said?)  To quote a police officer who stopped a friend of mine back in the early 70's ("sir when you passed your driving test did you read the Highway Code or bribe the examiner")

[TheQ]

The highway code is here, https://www.gov.uk/browse/driving/highway-code-road-safety

Which I've checked several times recently,.

Though there are those who need to read it, yesterday I had a car indicate right move across the front of me to the right hand lane of the round about, and then turn left off of the roundabout.. all in a 90degree left, entrance to exit

One of the problems with these roundabouts is their angles launch the car towards the middle / inner lane of roundabout and it is physically an uncomfortable effort to keep in the outside lane to turn left.

Also many modern roundabouts have in effect a spiral of lines so you join and then are fed by the lines to the appropriate exit. These have gone back to an old-fashioned three concentric circles.

[Heron]

The Q said

One of the problems with these roundabouts is their angles launch the car towards the middle / inner lane of roundabout and it is physically an uncomfortable effort to keep in the outside lane to turn left.

Could speed have something to do with this?

[TheQ]

Not particularly to do with speed, but if you want to go round comfortably you'd have to go round the roundabouts at about 10 mph.

[ChrisB]

In Australia it is the inner lane not the outer that merges to go back to single carriageway. Also if turning left at traffic lights you may have a green light but so may the pedestrians where you are turning in to, you must stop. Takes a bit of getting use to.

[TheQ]

Looking at the several roundabouts, i've used I'm not the only one with difficulties, there are many tyre tracks through the mud across the central islands and quite a few off the outsides.

 

Meantime the crossroads on the Coltishall Road at Spixworth is no more. Rackheath lane which went eastwards from the crossroads to the Wroxham road, has been blocked off for all through traffic. There is a gated access way offset from the old crossroads, but this is for properties on that lane only. Queue more tracks across the mud...

 

[TheQ]

On ‎23‎/‎12‎/‎2017 at 22:27, ChrisB said:

In Australia it is the inner lane not the outer that merges to go back to single carriageway. Also if turning left at traffic lights you may have a green light but so may the pedestrians where you are turning in to, you must stop. Takes a bit of getting use to.

Technically this is correct in the UK, vehicles turning into a road must avoid Vehicles or persons already in that road. Highway code rule 170

Rule 170

Take extra care at junctions. You should

• watch out for cyclists, motorcyclists, powered wheelchairs/mobility scooters and pedestrians as they are not always easy to see. Be aware that they may not have seen or heard you if you are approaching from behind
• watch out for pedestrians crossing a road into which you are turning. If they have started to cross they have priority, so give way
• watch out for long vehicles which may be turning at a junction ahead; they may have to use the whole width of the road to make the turn (see Rule 221)
• watch out for horse riders who may take a different line on the road from that which you would expect
• not assume, when waiting at a junction, that a vehicle coming from the right and signalling left will actually turn. Wait and make sure
• look all around before emerging. Do not cross or join a road until there is a gap large enough for you to do so safely.

[grendel]

44 minutes ago, TheQ said:

watch out for pedestrians crossing a road into which you are turning. If they have started to cross they have priority, so give way

do they still have right of way if they are crossing a road 30 foot from a pedestrian crossing, but nearer the junction where the driver should be looking right to be aware of oncoming vehicles. the amount of pedestrians I have had step out just in front as I turn left when the crossing is just 2 car lengths further along the road (ie just enough room to pull out safely then stop if there is someone at the crossing).

[BrundallNavy]

Last week someone decided to use the Coltishall road roundabout as a car park, it is very difficult to see these roundabouts in the dark it needs better lighting.