In our home town of Avalon we have a troublesome roundabout. Just as you come off the "Bilgola Bends" which take a twisting route towards Avalon Beach, there is a small but scary roundabout with roads coming in at odd angles. It causes all sorts of problems for visitors and locals alike. Every now and again the Council plants shrubs there in an attempt to make it attractive but they need to be very low profile. Inevitably they suffer and die.
The other Avalon roundabouts are nothing more than raised concrete circles at intersections of small streets. The local bus and any trucks need to drive over them because it is not possible to go around.
Colourful kites on the Gray roundabout
Here in France we have found that most roundabouts are much larger and allow those approaching more time to judge where other roundabouters are going. The other major difference is that many of these roundabouts are decorated, some with plantings of flowers and shrubs, others with feature displays. We were recently in the town of Gray and admired two roundabouts in the middle of town. Summer was about to start and a dragon boat carnival was being held. One roundabout was set up like a beach. Sand had been imported and blue striped bathing sheds, palm trees and beach umbrellas enhanced the beach effect. The second roundabout sported colourful kites. I'm not sure if the drivers approaching had time to admire them, but we pedestrians really appreciated the effort.
Summertime roundabout- Gray
Seeing these took us back to the first time we had noticed a roundabout feature in France. This was in the small town of Genlis in Cote D'Or, Burgundy. Each of the four approach roads featured a sculpture of a woman representing the agriculture and industries of the area. We were setting up Anja before we took possession, driving a rental car. We used to always come in from a particular direction and were tempted to drive round and round a few times to get a better look at them, but it was always too busy. In the end we just had to stop the car and get out to have a closer look.
Genlis Roundabout
Genlis Roundabout
Best Regards,
Penny and Dave