I was against the idea of a roundabout at first, but now I think it might be a good idea. I definitely agree that something needs to be done about that intersection, and maybe this is it.

As a young driver, I circled the roundabout in downtown Indianapolis several times before I could figure out what I was supposed to do and how I should do it. Frankly, I was scared.

More than 20 years later, I encountered many roundabouts during a trip to Australia and I could more easily see the benefits of the roundabout -- especially since all the other drivers knew what to do in it so it moved quite smoothly. (It should be noted here that I was a passenger and not a driver, which was probably helpful to the other motorists, as well).

Roundabouts are dangerous because people do not know how to use them. You have one driver who stays the same speed and thinks he/she has the rightaway regardless of what other cars are coming towards the roundabout. You have another who is scared and goes 5 mph into the roundabout. You have another who goes around-and-around several times before exiting (I've seen this at Hwy 13 and Cty Rd 2 near New Prague).

The best solution is a stoplight, in my opinion.

I drive through New Prague and the Hwy 13/2 intersections about daily and can say this. I have never seen a problem at any of the 3 in the county. Ray has said it....if you can figure out the signs at a roundabout you should not be driving at all.

A roundabout is a great idea for that intersection.

I think fear of the unknown is a basic human emotion, one many of us have difficulty overcoming. Many of my family and friends have overcome fears of seemingly complicated things like voicemail and email. Roundabouts are not going to be any different. Once you learn them, you can't un-learn them.

The biggest positive (and likely the major contributor to fewer accidents) is that as you enter you only have to watch for traffic from one direction, not three.

The roundabout also provides several benefits at this intersection:

1. we will potentially get co-op from MnDOT sooner (which we need or we can't afford ANY improvement to this intersection)
2. cross-traffic motorists will endure shorter waits than at traditional signals
3. studies have shown 70-90% fewer accidents

Traffic counts and funding are going to dictate whether this intersection even qualifies for a roundabout, but I think it is silly to pass it off simply because it's new to you.

I found this powerpoint from MNDot. It is a very interesting read about roundabouts. I find the pages about Vail, Colorado very interesting, plus the different crash statistics.

http://www.oim.dot.state.mn.us/PlannersWorkshop/Ken%20Johnson_Planners%2...