Driver’s ‘roundabout slingshot’ trick has people divided
A cunning driver decided to beat heavy traffic by using something known as a 'roundabout slingshot' but it's left motorists split over whether it's a good idea or not.
Pretty much every driver has been in the situation where you've got somewhere to be in a hurry, but the queue of cars leading up to the roundabout is big enough to wonder if you'll simply die of old age waiting for your go.
That's where the 'roundabout slingshot' comes in, and it's a driving trick which you might already have tried for yourself even if you didn't know what it was called.
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The idea of the 'roundabout slingshot' is that, rather than queuing in the left-hand lane and taking your chance to turn off along with all the other cars queuing to do the same thing, you charge down the empty right-hand lane, go all the way round the roundabout and then exit onto the turning you always wanted to take in the first place.
This way you theoretically get to beat the queue, make it onto the roundabout and have your turning ages before everyone else waiting to actually get onto the roundabout itself.
The driver, TikToker @jobbertok, explained in the video it was the night before the Queen's state funeral and he was dealing with 'absolutely slammed' roads as everyone had the same idea to pop to the shops.
Using the application of the roundabout slingshot, he was able to drive right past a whole queue of cars also wanting to head in the same direction as him and dive down his turning in a matter of seconds.
However, his slick bit of car-work has caused a bit of a split among his fellow motorists, as some thought it was terribly clever while others did the internet equivalent of putting their hands on their hips and giving someone a stern look.
Though, someone who loved the roundabout slingshot said it was 'one of my favourite things to do' and that it was a 'great idea'.
Some were baffled that more motorists didn't do it, saying it 'makes sense' as they 'wouldn't wait in that queue'.
On the other hand, others took a rather more dim view of this move, which is not illegal on the roads but certainly goes against the spirit of how you're supposed to drive.
If you're taking the first exit from a roundabout you get in the left-hand lane and prepare to turn off, that's how it works, but if too many people start doing it they could lead to disaster.
Someone pointed out that when 'everyone starts doing it then it ends up blocking the other exits', and a second added that if everyone did it then it'd 'stop traffic' at all other junctions.
Other commenters pointed out that the car right in front of the TikToker had just done the exact same thing, noting that the roundabout slingshot was becoming more common with time.
Joe Harker