ALLEN COUNTY, OH (WLIO) - Many people have made their opinions known concerning roundabouts, but transportation officials say if it can save just one life it has done its job. Holly Geaman has more on the addition of two roundabouts in eastern Allen County.
They were on the governor's list of the top dangerous intersections in the state and just over 4 million dollars in funding was made possible to change that.
"Roundabouts have a history of reducing fatal crashes by 90%, injury crashes by 75%, and total crashes by 40% and so we're excited about the possibilities that this is going to do to improve safety," stated Chris Hughes, deputy director of ODOT District 1.
The final striping is being done at Napoleon Road and State Route 309 and paving is being completed at Thayer Road and State Route 309 roundabouts. Allen East Superintendent Mel Rentschler says that residents in the area have been asking that something be done for years. He says there have been too many times he has run out from the office to assist with serious crashes.
"This is tremendous in the fact that this has been coming for many, many, years. And the fact that there have been people injured, maimed and hurt and put in the hospital, we had a child killed out here. So now the community has been in an uproar for years about it and they finally listened to us and they did something," said Mel Rentschler, Allen East School superintendent.
The Lima Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol says they have responded many times to these two intersections for devastating crashes and were asked for their input on the safety of the intersections.
"We had several traffic and safety concerns that were heard and engineered into this and I do believe that this will be a very purposeful intersection improvement that will reduce traffic fatalities, traffic crashes, and injuries for all involved in this intersection," said Trooper Scott Mershman, Lima Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
Everyone involved realizes there will be crashes at the roundabouts but they will be less severe and hopefully fewer injuries. ODOT says that the plans are to open both roundabouts sometime Friday, just in time for the opening of the Allen County Fair and a week before school starts at Allen East.
Press Release from ODOT District 1: LIMA, Ohio (Tuesday, Aug. 16, 2022) - The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) held an event today ahead of the opening of two, newly-constructed roundabouts, one each at Napoleon and Thayer roads on State Route 309, east of Lima.
Representatives with ODOT, Allen East Local Schools, and the Ohio State Highway Patrol led the event that was held at the intersection of State Route 309 and Napoleon Road.
State Route 309 between Pevee and Cool roads has been closed since June 1 during the construction of the roundabouts, and for the replacement of three culverts. Both the Napoleon and Thayer intersections, and the closed section of State Route 309 will open at the same time, hopefully by Friday.
"Both Napoleon and Thayer roads were consistently ranked high in crash rates when compared to similar intersections elsewhere in the state. We are confident we will see a significant safety improvement here as we have around the state where roundabouts have been implemented," said Chris Hughes, ODOT District 1Â deputy director.
"Having the intersections and the roadway open by the start of the school year was obviously important to us. It looks like that will happen and we're excited for it," said Mel Rentschler, superintendent of Allen East Schools. "We appreciate the efforts of ODOT and the contractor, Helms and Sons, to adhere to the promised schedule," he said.
ODOT held a public event in the spring at Allen East Schools where drivers were able to navigate through a simulated roundabout in a golf cart under the direction of ODOT engineers. Although roundabouts are growing in number in the state, they remain sparse in northwest Ohio.Â
"Roundabouts are proven to be exponentially safer than a typical two-way, stop-controlled intersection. Communities adapt well to the change and we expect the same to happen here," said Hughes.Â
According to Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) study results, converting a two-way, stop-controlled intersection to a single-lane roundabout can result in a 40% reduction in total crashes, 75% reduction in injury crashes, and 90% reduction in fatal crashes.
The intersections were part of more than 150 statewide that were selected by Governor DeWine for review and safety improvements.Â
