It’s like a tidal pool, sucking you in, making you wonder if you will ever make it out alive.
They come one after another, after another, as I try to pay attention to the traffic from the left, traffic from the right and the beep, beep, beep of my Garmin trying to tell me which exit to take on my bicicletta.
It’s harrowing enough when you are wrapped in four walls of metal, but being out there in the open, basically underpowered and overwhelmed it really gets the heart racing. Sure you can find the occasional roundabout in DC and there are even a few scattered about the Midwest, but in Europe they like one every couple of blocks. These little free-for-alls of the traffic world help focus the craziness of European driving.
I’m sure there is some mathematical equation that can help explain why these circular traffic hubs work so well, but for the life of me I can’t figure it out as I navigate on two wheels.
Somehow, I successfully make it through each and everyone of these puzzlers thrown my way. Traffic keeps moving at a smooth and orderly fashion. And after days of riding the roundabouts in Europe, I actually find myself hoping more of these euro-style traffic centerpieces make their way to the States to help us focus our own craziness.
