Drivers erupt at council's 'dangerous' new roundabout in busy suburb
Questions are mounting about how a bizarre diamond-shaped roundabout got approved in a dense suburban area, with one local councillor admitting he's as confused as residents, branding the strange new addition to the road "embarrassing".
Utterly baffled motorists are mystified over how to use it, with many opting to ignore it and drive straight over. Footage captured by Yahoo News Australia on Friday at the new Austral "intersection", in Sydney's southwest, shows several motorists driving right through the diamond-shaped roundabout, including a large truck and several SUVs.
"It's f**king sh*t," a local told Yahoo News. "I can't even turn onto my street because of the shape of the roundabout."
The man said that if he followed the road, he wouldn't be able to make it all the way around without either hitting another car or the pole on the side of the road.
"Because it's shaped like that, by the time I do swing it back around, I would hit those cars waiting there or the pole, so it makes it dangerous," he said.
"Getting around Sydney itself is already sh*t and then they add that little puzzle to the mix."
Vision appears to suggest there was ample space for a standard circular roundabout, with the diamond design seemingly chosen due to the angled layout of Twenty Eighth Avenue.
Yahoo News has sought an explanation from Liverpool City Council on the new roundabout. There are no visible signs directing road users how to properly use the diamond.
Councillor Peter Ristevski has now called for an urgent investigation into why the diamond shape got approved in the first place.
"My inbox last night was bombarded with over 300 responses asking, 'what is going on? You guys can't even build a roundabout'," Ristevski told Today. "They've pretty much lost confidence in the council, which is very concerning at the moment."
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Ristevski pointed to external contractors, and said he wasn't aware of the price tag of the roundabout.
"It's quite embarrassing," he said. "I'm in Canberra for the Australian Local Government Conference, where I've had every single councillor here in Australia rip into me about this roundabout."
Seven News reports Liverpool Council has acknowledged the confusing layout and is attempting to redesign it circularly.
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