The roundabout at the new Balgonie overpass has some drivers cheering, some concerned and others hitting the brakes and scratching their heads.
But the woman in charge of driver training at SGI insisted there is no need to feel intimated.
“Signal your intentions and yield to the inside,” Shay Shpak explained. “And then once you’re in the roundabout, you signal again when you want to leave the roundabout. It’s really simple.”
#FYI The pic we shared was from our Driver's Handbook & depicts a 2-lane roundabout. The ones on #SKHwy46 are one-lane & easy to navigate. pic.twitter.com/DBLK3wwoXM
— SGI (@SGItweets) July 26, 2017
However, at the SGI annual report a week ago, Minister Joe Hargrave, who had driven in Scotland the previous summer, wasn’t as confident.
“It is different for Saskatchewan for sure, but you do tend to focus stronger when it is something new to you,” Hargrave said.
Shpak reminded drivers to be courteous and cautious.
SGI was active on social media with diagrams to indicate to drivers what to do in a roundabout.
Keep in mind, roundabouts on #SkHwy46 are not multi-lane as presented in video. They're single lane like this: https://t.co/Pi8S0aIFyy
— Highway Hotline (@SKGovHwyHotline) July 26, 2017
Not all drivers are on board though.
“I will avoid this at all measures,” Les in Corning said on the 306-306 text line.
“I just followed a driver who came to a full stop at every exit of the roundabout. Scary and frustrating,” said Jack in Regina.
While roundabouts, or traffic circles as they are sometimes referred, are relatively rare in Saskatchewan, they form part of SGI’s driver’s handbook.