Single-Lane Roundabout With a Pedestrian and a Fire Truck
You are westbound in the right lane of a two-lane road approaching a single-lane roundabout at 6:50 p.m. Light rain has just started, and the pavement is slick. A crosswalk is marked across your approach lane just before the yield line. A pedestrian is walking from your right to left in that crosswalk, already about halfway across. A silver car is circulating inside the roundabout and will pass your entry point in about 4 seconds. Behind you, a fire truck with lights and siren is closing fast. Your exit is the second roadway, and you have a 16-year-old passenger who is nervous because she has only a learner's permit. The roundabout has a truck-apron curb on the inside and yield signs at each entry.
1. Who has the right-of-way as you approach the yield line, and what should you do first?
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At the yield line, the pedestrian in the marked crosswalk has the right-of-way first. Stop before the crosswalk, not on it, and let the pedestrian finish crossing. The circulating silver car also has priority over entering traffic; you yield to it at the roundabout entry. The fire truck behind you does not cancel those duties. You should not stop in the crosswalk or block the circulating lane. If you can clear the entry safely, do so to open the path; if not, remain stopped before the crosswalk and let the emergency vehicle pass only when it can do so without hitting the pedestrian or the circulating car.
2. After the pedestrian clears, the circulating car will reach your entry in about 4 seconds. Should you enter? Show your timing reasoning.
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After the pedestrian clears, the silver car is about 4 s from your entry point. Entering a single-lane roundabout and reaching a safe exit takes several seconds, and the yield line requires you not to interfere with circulating traffic. A 4-second arrival is not a safe gap if your vehicle will be slow to accelerate, especially with a nervous passenger and a fire truck behind you adding pressure. Wait until the car passes and you have a clear gap, then enter smoothly. If the fire truck is still behind you, let it pass before you enter if that can be done without blocking the crosswalk.
3. The fire truck is now directly behind you with siren. What is the correct response if you are already inside the roundabout?
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Once you are inside the circulating lane, do not stop. Stopping in a roundabout creates a rear-end and blocking hazard, and it may block the fire truck. Continue around to your exit at a steady speed, signal right before your exit, and leave the roundabout. After you have exited, pull as far right as is safe and stop to let the fire truck pass. If you are still at the entry when it arrives, stay put unless you can clear the lane without entering the crosswalk or cutting off the circulating car.