Community Corner
Report: MnDOT Says Roundabouts Are a Safer, Quicker Kind of Intersection
Traffic going in circles reduces crashes and speeds up the flow, according to the Minnesota Department of Transportation, as reported by the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Southwest Minneapolis has smaller traffic circles and has considered roundabouts.
Cities are headed in the right direction by putting in roundabout intersections, according to a St. Paul Pioneer Press article citing the Minnesota Department of Transportation:
"The data show that they are the safest intersections we have," said Ken Johnson, a roundabout expert at MnDOT. ... No one has proved a connection, but fatalities started falling four years ago, which is about when the state's roundabout building binge began. ... Besides safety, the other primary advantage of roundabouts is speed.
During rush hours, MnDOT's Johnson said, cars travel through roundabouts an average of 10 seconds faster. In nonpeak hours, traffic slows only slightly at a roundabout instead of making a full stop at a red light, night or day.
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Read the full article at twincities.com.
Southwest Minneapolis has smaller traffic circles on 43rd Street, and another pair of traffic circles were proposed last year for 54th Street at Drew and Beard avenues.
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