Practicing Safety In Circles

Roundabouts Keep Traffic Moving

Drivers travel through a roundabout in Rogers on May 25 on Whitaker Parkway, west of Exit 82 on Intertate 540.
Drivers travel through a roundabout in Rogers on May 25 on Whitaker Parkway, west of Exit 82 on Intertate 540.

— Plans for additional roundabouts in Rogers prompted police to review traffic safety of Rogers’ existing roundabout on Pauline Whittaker Parkway.

Traffic is flowing, said Keith Foster, public information officer for Rogers police, but the roundabout has logged eight accidents so far this year.

“As far as intersections go, that’s way down,” Foster said.

At A Glance

Roundabouts

One roundabout has opened in Rogers and five others are possible in the near future.

Complete:

• Pauline Whittaker Parkway and Pinnacle Hills Parkway roundabout

Under construction:

• West entrance to Regional Sports Park

Under design:

• Intersection of Dixieland Road and Laurel Avenue

• An intersection of First Street, Monte Ne Road, and Arkansas and Oak streets

Planned:

• Monte Ne Road and Amis Road

• Veteran's Park entrance

Source: Staff Report

A high accident intersection in Rogers will log 30 or more accidents a year. Last year, 36 accidents were recorded at the intersection of New Hope Road and Eighth Street. The intersection of Eighth and Walnut streets showed one of the lowest number of accidents during the same period with six.

Roundabout instructions are simple, Foster said.

“If you’re on that outside lane go right or go straight ahead,” Foster said.

The inside lane goes left or full circle for a U-turn. Accidents in the circular intersection were sideswipes or rear-end collisions, Foster said.

Crashes are more common in two-lane roundabouts, according to a guide from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Accidents typically include sideswipes or rear-end collisions like Rogers is logging.

Roundabout accidents are typically less severe than those in other intersections, said Lance Jobe, Rogers city engineer.

“You don’t have head-ons. You don’t have the T-bones. If you do have an accident, it’s at a lower speed,” Jobe said.

There are other roundabouts planned for the city, including a proposal that would join Monte Ne Road and First, Arkansas and Oak streets.

Roundabouts are a concept new to Northwest Arkansas, said Brad Hammond, president of McGoodwin Williams & Yates Inc. His firm designed the Pauline Whittaker Parkway roundabout. It was the first two-lane roundabout in Northwest Arkansas, Hammond said.

Fayetteville opened a two-lane roundabout near Washington Regional Medical Center last month.

Pinnacle Hills Parkway, the last spoke to the Pauline Whittaker roundabout, opened in mid-October.

The chief problem in a two-lane roundabout is when drivers in the outside lane begin to circle, Hammond said. The center lane is for cars that plan to make a U-turn. Merging cars join the outside lane. The traffic pattern is complicated by merging traffic and by the frequent failure of traffic in the outside lane to immediately exit.

Signs before the roundabout and pavement marking can help alleviate confusion, Hammond said, but there is a period of driver adjustment.

“Safety is the number one reason to choose a roundabout,” said Zane Lewis, project engineer at McGoodwin Williams & Yates Inc.

Several issues play into roundabout design, Lewis said. The circle’s center is most difficult for trucks, but a truck apron or flat area in the center of the circle allows loads to pass. Pedestrians cross outside the center circle and those areas must be highly visible so drivers and walkers can see each other. Cities save because there is no stoplight to maintain, but lighting is important.

Stoplights stop traffic, but a roundabout keeps it flowing, Lewis said. This should improve travel time and cut emissions from idling cars.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety guide said vehicle delays are reduced between 13 to 23 percent when traditional intersections are converted to roundabouts.

Drivers will see more of the circular intersections around the area, Hammond said.

“They're just now catching on in Northwest Arkansas,” he said.

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