Cambridge: Figures reveal collisions on Dutch-style roundabout

The Dutch-style roundabout gives cyclists and pedestrians priority over drivers

A Dutch-style roundabout has seen more collisions in the three years since it was built compared to its predecessor over the previous three years.

The new layout on Fendon Road, Cambridge, came into use in 2020 offering priority to cyclists and pedestrians.

There have been 10 collisions since then, three of them serious, compared to six minor incidents 2017-2019.

The county council said it carried out regular road safety audits at the site.

The roundabout is at the junction of Fendon Road, Queen Edith's Way and Mowbray Road in the south of the city, near Addenbrooke's Hospital

The roundabout is the UK's first, and so far only, one of its kind, popularised on the cycle-friendly streets of the Netherlands.

It provides an outer ring for cyclists and zebra crossings for pedestrians, requiring motorists to yield to both before entering.

Situated close to Addenbrooke's Hospital and the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, it was built by Cambridgeshire County Council in an attempt to improve on the safety record of its predecessor, which had seen 12 collisions between cars and cyclists between 2012 and 2017.

But within a few days of its opening in 2020, it had to close temporarily after a hit-and-run driver crashed into a zebra crossing beacon.

It has undergone three road safety audits since its installation.

The authority said 10 collisions since July 2020 included eight involving cyclists, and the other two involved a pedestrian and a driver respectively.

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However, the council said the number of cyclists using the roundabout had increased by almost 50% since 2017 to 11.4% of all traffic users in 2022.

Pedestrian use had also risen in that time by about 30%, the authority added.

Dr Neville Silverston, who founded the accident rescue service Magpas, said he found the roundabout hazardous

Regular user Neville Silverston said he found it to be "very hazardous" for cyclists and pedestrians.

Mr Silverston, 95, a retired GP and founder of the accident rescue service Magpas, said he drove his car around the roundabout every day.

"I don't think the design has any safety features for the people it was intended to be safe for," he said.

"It's a very busy roundabout and motorists use it at quite high speed.

"It's too much for even an experienced driver to take in, with cyclists and pedestrians coming from left and right, and vehicles from the right," he added.

"You would be looking for vehicles traversing in front of you while a cyclist can be coming at high speed from your left.

"I've witnessed motorists making emergency stops and getting into rear-end bumps."

Ken Riley said the prominence of e-scooters had made negotiating the roundabout trickier

Local resident Ken Riley, 86, said the council had not taken into account that "e-scooters would come into vogue".

"They approach this roundabout at full speed and they go straight on to the cycle track; motorists don't have time to look around before they whizz across in front of them or behind them," he said.

But Peter French, 69, a cyclist, said he found the roundabout "very safe".

"All of the traffic is watchful; everyone is on the lookout and stops for you," he said.

"As a cyclist, as long as you approach with caution yourself and are watchful it's fine.

"To me it is safe overall. I think it's an asset."

Peter French said he felt the roundabout was an asset

Alex Beckett, chairman of the county council's highways and transport committee, said the roundabout was installed "as part of its leadership in active travel".

"We have received compliments on its layout and had great interest from other local authorities who are looking to install their own Dutch-style roundabouts," he said.

"We have carried out regular road safety audits and recently commissioned a study to look at the nature of the incidents which will help inform any changes we might wish to make to this roundabout or any future roundabouts with similar design characteristics."

The county council said other local authorities were looking at introducing Dutch-style roundabouts