Roundabouts

Americans struggle with roundabouts. While roundabouts offer much greater efficiency for traffic flow, fuel savings etc. they present conflicting right of way rules and instincts. In an English roundabout, traffic on the right remains privileged, but with American right hand traffic, the right of way in the roundabout changes to vehicles in the roundabout, on the left. The French overcome this problem by building wide diameter roundabouts with multiple lanes. Doing so, makes the larger roundabout easier to navigate. The large size furthermore offers beautiful space for gardening, fountains and art, as with the Fountain de La Rotonde in Aix en Provence with its three sculptures representing agriculture, justice and art, Designed and built in 1860 by Theophile de Tournadre where the roads from Avignon, Nice and Marseille meet.

I can’t think of a better place for a roundabout like this one than in the abundant space between McDonalds, the wetlands below Beluga Lake and the open space below the white styrofoam roofed gift shop, replacing the traffic light and a lot of ugly. Homer has sculptures, guarders, and plenty of water. What beauty, and why not borrow from the old masters

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