Magic Roundabout (Hemel Hempstead)

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Magic Roundabout , looking south with mini roundabouts 1,2 and 3 in view. The grassy bank at the centre of the picture is part of the central hub roundabout. Taken from part of the new Riverside development

The Magic Roundabout in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England is the familiar name given to a complex road junction also known as the Moor End or Plough roundabout. The name comes from a similar junction in Swindon, whose name is derived from the children's television series The Magic Roundabout.

1 Description
2 Early history
3 Other complex roundabouts
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Description

It was constructed in 1973 to reduce the congestion at the original standard layout roundabout where seven roads intersected, it was one of the first bi-directional roundabouts to be constructed in the UK. At the junction of each road with the roundabout a mini-roundabout is present and subject to the normal clockwise direction of travel for all traffic. Between these mini-roundabouts however traffic is permitted to travel clockwise or anti-clockwise around the larger roundabout, the expectation being that drivers would choose the shorter route with less stationary traffic.

The Magic Roundabout in Hemel Hempstead was voted the UK's second-worst roundabout in a 2005 poll held by an insurance company (the winner being its Swindon counterpart) ^[1]

[edit] Early history

When it opened in June 1973 a police officer had to be stationed at each of the mini roundabouts to prevent chaos.

When the new junction was first opened, a camera was placed overlooking the roundabout on the roof of the adjacent Kodak HQ building. It was noted many drivers would get 'lost' and make repeated reversals of direction between joining the roundabout and eventually leaving it.

Shortly after the opening the driver of an articulated lorry failed to understand the new junction so tried to drive straight across the middle. Given that The Gade passes through the centre, though not visible from the road, his vehicle got stuck in the middle of the roundabout.

The road labelled '2' is the dual-carriageway St Albans Road and provides the main access to Hemel from the M1 motorway.