#10: Roundabouts

As a present-day Hamilton County dweller, I would be remiss to not rank the roundabouts that have traced traffic in circles around our town. Hamilton County, Indiana is the roundabout capital of the nation, boasting nearly 200 circular vehicle routes that slow traffic but don’t stop it, although ironically, the process of building the roundabouts across the county can halt traffic for up to an hour at a time. This rebuilding requires rerouting which results in bumper-to-bumper backups down 31 and Oak Road, making us wonder if the work is worth it but trusting the process nonetheless. 


My perception of roundabouts was not unlike my perception of dogs. First, I feared them. Then, I realized that if you get to know them, they’re not so bad. Next, I realized you must still proceed with caution, for they can be reckless and unpredictable. Finally, I decided that I don’t mind them…I get the point…I just don’t think everyone HAS to be all about them. This was reiterated by a letter to the editor in our Carmel Current newspaper, where an elderly woman was petitioning locals to stop honking at non-locals who mistakenly misuse a roundabout…it’s not their fault - most people don’t live in a town with ten dozen of them. She thought we should be more grace-giving. More understanding. Slower. 


Which brings me to my primary critique of this concrete construction: we are already zipping through a world ridden with hurry sickness, hardly slowing down enough to wave at our neighbors or smell the flowers. Roundabouts are convicting parallels to our own lives - full speed ahead, all gas no breaks. If you stop, you get slammed. The second I got comfortable with roundabouts, I flew through them, just as most people do. Occasionally we try to cross the street before a roundabout to get to the park by our house, and if one driver slows down enough to let you go, it’s quite likely that the driver in the next lane is flying too fast to even see you. Not necessarily problematic for safety-conscious twentysomethings, but I picture a 7-year-old trying to bike across, seeing one car let her pass only to be surprised by a car in the same lane that wasn’t thinking the same thing.


Dangerous. Too fast. I do think we should slow down - that the yield should not be optional - that we should rest and pause and look around us. A sabbath of the road, if you will. But I’m not just talking about roundabouts. While I exalt the productivity and efficiency, I condemn the potential for fatality. Most of all, I condemn the way it’s method mirrors the madness of my life. Moving too fast, not considering the path of carnage I am leaving in my endless cycle of hurry…We should be more grace-giving. More understanding. Slower. 


For all these reasons and more, roundabouts rank 10th.


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