Statistics also show that, over all, roundabouts are less dangerous for people than signal-light intersections (although the same can’t be said for the vehicles). The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety notes that entering a roundabout forces drivers to slow down, and because the vehicles are circling in one direction, deadly head-on and right-angle collisions are unlikely. When properly designed with sidewalks on the perimeter, they are said to be safer for pedestrians as well.
The Federal Highway Administration says roundabouts reduce crashes that cause serious injury by 78 to 82 percent when compared with traffic-signal intersections. Although many drivers are at first uneasy about negotiating roundabouts, their opinion of them improves with continued use. A
Washington State survey by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety showed that before construction, only 32 percent favored roundabouts, but after having driven them, 63 percent liked them.