The driver entering this intersection

Explanation

You must give way to both drivers, the motorcycle and the light blue van alike.

The round blue sign with circling arrows on the right of the picture is the "roundabout" sign and announces that ahead lies a roundabout with circular movement. The rule governing such a roundabout is: a driver entering the roundabout must give way to vehicles already circulating on it.

In the picture, both the motorcycle with its sidecar and the light blue van are moving on the ring from left to right; that is, both entered before you. So both take precedence, and you must wait before the entry line until both have passed. Your car's lit indicator merely announces your intention and adds nothing to your rights.

The safety reason for this rule is entirely an engineering one: a roundabout works when the internal flow never stops. If the entries had priority, every fresh entry would lock the ring, and within seconds the whole roundabout would come to a standstill. Besides, giving way lowers the entry speed, and that is what makes roundabouts safer than ordinary junctions against high-severity angled collisions.

Common exam trap: the motorcycle. Many see only the van and treat the motorcycle as a "negligible" vehicle. In the priority rules a motorcycle is precisely a full vehicle. In the real world too, most collisions at roundabout entries involve motorcycles, because they are not seen in the mirror or in a quick glance.

• This is precisely the reverse of the roundabout rule; an entering vehicle never takes precedence over the circulating flow. • This sees the van and ignores the motorcycle; but the motorcycle is also moving on the roundabout and has the same priority.

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