‘Embarrassing’ Sydney roundabout leaves drivers in a mess

Residents in Sydney’s southwest are fuming over what might be one of the most chaotic intersections in the country.

Residents in Sydney’s southwest are fuming over a strange new diamond-shaped roundabout that has left drivers in a mess.

The oddly-shaped intersection at Austral’s 28th Avenue has been branded “embarrassing” by Liverpool City Councillor Peter Ristevski, who admitted he’s just as baffled as the public.

“My inbox last night was bombarded with over 300 responses asking, ‘what is going on? You guys can’t even build a roundabout’,” he told Channel Nine’s Today.

“They’ve pretty much lost confidence in the council, which is very concerning at the moment.”

Footage captured by Yahoo News Australia on Friday shows a steady stream of motorists ignoring the layout altogether and simply driving straight through the roundabout — including a large truck and several SUVs. There are no visible signs explaining how to navigate it, and residents say it’s dangerous.

“It’s f**king sh*t,” a local man told Yahoo.

“I can’t even turn onto my street because of the shape of the roundabout.”

He added that turning through the intersection without hitting a waiting car or nearby pole is nearly impossible.

Residents in Sydney’s southwest are fuming over a strange new diamond-shaped roundabout that has left drivers in a mess.

“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.”

Liverpool City Council CEO Jason Breton announced in a video posted to the council’s LinkedIn page the roundabout would be dismantled this weekend.

“We’ll put the road surface back to its original position,” Mr Breton said.

“And then we’ll work with the state and federal governments about the state road and how we can improve it.”

Despite what appears to be ample space for a standard circular roundabout, the diamond design was reportedly chosen due to the angled layout of the intersecting street.

The controversial roundabout is part of a series of upgrades on Fifteenth Avenue, which will eventually connect to the new Western Sydney Airport.

Councillor Ristevski blamed external contractors and said he didn’t know the cost of the diamond-shaped layout.

“It’s quite embarrassing,” he admitted.

“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.”

Originally published as ‘Embarrassing’ Sydney roundabout leaves drivers in a mess