The Implications of Converting a High-Volume Multilane Roundabout into a Turbo Roundabout

With the growing number of vehicles utilizing roads in the city of Doha, Qatar, most intersections, particularly multilane roundabouts, have been facing traffic congestion dilemma, where traffic demand exceeds capacity. A new design for multilane roundabouts, known as a rotor turbo roundabout, was considered as an alternative to an existing highly congested multilane roundabout. The new design features spiral roadway markings and raised lane dividers which prevent maneuvering within the roundabout and eliminate cutting-offs and weavings. This design has achieved high capacity and low delay in many European countries. In this study, a traffic simulation program, VISSIM, is used to model the complex traffic operation of both the existing and proposed multilane roundabouts and to replicate the high traffic conditions and aggressive driving behavior prevalent among the Middle East countries. Three different rotor designs were examined in an attempt to have a valid comparison between the two types of roundabouts and to adhere to the standard design of the rotor roundabout without violating its essential features. The proposed designs performed slightly better on the minor approaches and managed to deliver an overall improved LOS compared to the conventional design. Major approaches, however, exhibited an increase in vehicle delay and queue lengths. The results showed that the capacity of the conventional three-lane roundabout was always superior to the capacity of the rotor roundabouts. It was concluded that rotor roundabouts may not be suitable for intersections with high demand volumes exceeding 4500 vehicles per hour, and whenever the traffic flow condition is oversaturated.