The safety of roundabouts in the Netherlands

Roundabouts have become increasingly popular in The Netherlands since the late 1980s: over a period of only 6 years, approximately 400 roundabouts have been built. At the end of 1992 a study of 201 new roundabouts was begun, with specific attention being devoted to the safety of cyclists and moped riders. This article describes the results of that study. The study focused on two subjects: 1) A comparison of the intersection situation versus the roundabout situation (before-and-after study; 181 locations); and 2) A comparison between roundabouts in the after situation (201 roundabouts); particular attention was devoted to engineering measures for cyclists and moped riders; a separate cycle path, a cycle lane on the roundabout, or no specific engineering measure for cyclists.