RURAL RIGHT HAND TURNS

(NOTE: SINCE NEW ZEALAND EMPLOYS THE LEFT-HAND DRIVE SYSTEM, THE TERMS "LEFT" AND "RIGHT" IN THE PUBLICATION HAVE BEEN TRANSLATED, IN THE FOLLOWING ABSTRACT, INTO "RIGHT" AND "LEFT", RESPECTIVELY, TO FACILITATE COMPREHENSION BY READERS ACCUSTOMED TO RIGHT-HAND DRIVE. -- ABSTRACTOR) THE NEW ZEALAND TRAFFIC REGULATIONS STATE THAT THE APPROACH TO A LEFT TURN WITHIN A 30-MPH ZONE MUST BE MADE ON THE RIGHT OF, BUT AS CLOSE AS PRACTICABLE TO, THE MIDDLE LINE OF THE ROADWAY FROM WHICH THE DRIVER IS TURNING, WHILE OUTSIDE SUCH A ZONE THE APPROACH MUST BE MADE AS FAR AS PRACTICABLE TO THE RIGHT OF THE CENTER LINE. OWING TO THE LARGE NUMBER OF DRIVERS EITHER IGNORANT OF OR CONFUSED BY THIS REGULATION, RESEARCH WAS UNDERTAKEN TO DETERMINE WHETHER, OUTSIDE 30-MPH ZONES, IT IS MORE DANGEROUS TO TURN LEFT FROM THE RIGHT SIDE OR NEAR THE CENTER OF THE ROAD. OPPOSING FLOWS WERE EMPLOYED TO OBTAIN A MEASURE OF ACCIDENT EXPOSURE, FIELD STUDIES WERE CONDUCTED TO QUANTIFY CERTAIN OF THE PARAMETERS, THE WEIGHTED EXPOSURES THEREBY OBTAINED WERE DIVIDED INTO ACTUAL INJURY ACCIDENT FREQUENCIES, AND THE RESULTING NUMBERS, CALLED "INJURY ACCIDENT RISKS," WERE COMPARED FOR THE TWO CASES BEING STUDIED. IT WAS CONCLUDED THAT IT IS MORE DANGEROUS TO TURN LEFT FROM THE CENTER OF THE ROAD THAN FROM THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE ROAD IN RURAL AREAS, I.E., OUTSIDE THE 30-MPH ZONE.

• Corporate Authors:

  Ministry of Transport, New Zealand

  38-42 Waring Taylor Street, P.O. Box 3175
  Wellington,   New Zealand 
• Authors:
  • Houghton, D G
• Publication Date: 1972-3

Media Info

• Pagination: 4 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Left turns; Rural areas; Turning radius; Turning traffic
• Uncontrolled Terms: Turning movements
• Old TRIS Terms: Turning path
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00226412
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Apr 2 1973 12:00AM