Roundabouts, such as the one I use daily to get to and from my home in North Little Rock, are acknowledged to be safer than traffic lights and stop signs. They direct traffic in one direction around a central island. Drivers are expected to slow down, yield to traffic already circulating from the left, and exit to the right.

This sounds all well and good, but has not been my experience.

As I approach my neighborhood roundabout by heading west on Riverfront Drive, I can feel myself gripping the steering wheel more tightly. My anxiety rises as I scan my surroundings and contemplate the next few minutes of my commute.

That's because nearly every day, after I enter the roundabout from Riverfront, I risk getting smacked by fast-moving traffic arriving on the right from Pike Avenue. Despite a good deal of signage--perhaps too much, to the point that nobody pays attention to any of it--instructing drivers to YIELD TO CIRCULATING TRAFFIC, many of the motorists approaching from Pike show no interest in the concept. Passenger cars, pickups, enormous SUVs and towering delivery vans (many without license plates) bear down on the circle as though a yield sign is merely a roadside suggestion.

My husband chides me for braking when I see traffic flying........

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