Two more roundabouts are coming 'round the bend for Ann Arbor. This time the Michigan Department of Transportation is planning to build them at the Geddes Road exit for U.S. 23 on the city's east side.
The two roundabouts will replace traffic lights at the on/off-ramps for the exit. MDOT and local officials are still in the planning stages for how they will be installed, but have settled on the roundabout, a.k.a. traffic circle, as the answer to congestion problems in the area.
"It's a practical alternative right now to ease congestion and it's a very economical alternative," says Kari Arend, spokeswoman for MDOT.
She explains that the roundabouts are economical because they will allow the exit to handle more traffic without lengthening on- and off-ramps, widening the bridge or redesigning lanes. The exit currently handles about 20,000 vehicles per day on average.
"This is one of the busiest interchanges in the area," Arend says.
MDOT is currently speaking to local officials and residents about the plans. It expects to put the project out to bid in September and start construction in the spring of 2010, wrapping up the project the following fall.
Roundabouts have been popping up like dandelions around Ann Arbor in recent years. A pair of them were installed at the Maple Road exit for M-14 to accommodate increased traffic from nearby Skyline High School. Another is at the intersection of Nixon Road and Huron Parkway.
Modern roundabouts include a central island to guide the vehicular traffic and splitter islands at each leg of an intersection. One-way traffic moves around the central island where entering traffic must yield to the traffic already in the roundabout.
Traffic circles slow and calm traffic, resulting in fewer accidents. They also decrease delays and cut down on the number of idling vehicles, reducing air pollution.
They are common throughout Europe and have been appearing more frequently in North America in recent years. More common on the coasts, roundabouts and traffic circles have been popping up in southeast Michigan's suburbs in recent years
Source: Kari Arend, spokeswoman for MDOT
Writer: Jon Zemke
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