by Mark Lewing, Stevensville
Attention, Stevensville area drivers of the Eastside Highway! How many of you are aware that the Highway Department is poised to shove another roundabout down your throats? A couple of years ago they had a public meeting and told us that they had considered this monstrosity for the Ambrose/Eastside intersection but had decided not to. Well, now it is back in the plans.
As far as I, my family and everyone I’ve talked to are concerned, this is a bad idea. The Highway Department has a habit of designing these things, installing them and then walking away leaving them for us to deal with. Witness the one down at Eightmile. For one thing they lied to us when they said it would not impact southbound traffic. So what did they do? They molded that lane into it so everyone going south has to go into it. It is too small for the traffic that is longer than a pickup and it didn’t even include the Hidden Valley Road.
We have been in the largest roundabout in the world. It is eight lanes around the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. That is the place for roundabouts; urban high traffic areas, not rural areas. I’ll grant you calling the Ambrose area rural gets to be more of a tongue in cheek deal every day but it’s not a suburb of Missoula quite yet and we do not need that roundabout. All we need is a long turn lane for southbound vehicles. That’s it; simple. The majority of drivers have no problem signaling their intent when they come to the intersection from the west. With that courtesy, appropriate signing and the flashing lights, this is a safe intersection. What about all the accidents, you say? Like I’ve told the Dept., there is no way to design a highway that is perfectly safe at all times, not while there are people behind the wheel.
Roundabouts are actually dangerous affairs. The only reason they show less accidents is because they neck you down to fifteen mph but how many times have you seen someone almost lose it because they either didn’t know what they were doing or they couldn’t be sure what the other guy was going to do? And here’s another little sticker for you. They plan to make it a three lane road with a continuous turn lane in the middle from Eightmile to Moiese Lane. They have conceded that they will put in two segments that will allow passing but what about the half dozen or so other segments that you can pass on now but won’t be able to in the future? As long as there are drivers driving ten to fifteen mph below the speed limit and there is machinery going up and down that road, that is another bad idea. Bad ideas like that make drivers who think they are in a hurry pull crazy stunts; witness Hwy 93 through the SKT Reservation.
So now that the elections are over, if someone out there needs a cause please step up and get a petition going to drop all these bad Highway Department design ideas before it is too late. At least write or call them today. Please.
Wendy Gorski says
The statistics on roundabouts is clear. Roundabouts are safer. Not just because it slows traffic, but because you don’t have people running stop signs. They eliminate rear-end crashes and head on collisions. The worst accident that can happen in a roundabout is a side to side collision at lower speeds. They also keep the traffic moving and no one has to sit at a four way stop wondering whose turn is it next.
Back in 1998 through 2000, during the highway 93 reconstruction project, there were lots of nay-sayers. People fearing that the good people of this valley are just too stupid to figure out a roundabout. How insulting.
If you are unsure of how to navigate a roundabout, please consider taking additional driving courses to learn.
Formerly, Wendy Chandler, founder of the Bitterroot Valley Focus Group and board member of the Citizen’s Advisory Committee (1999).
Teresa Panko says
Not sure if you remember Mark, my husband and my child both almost died at this intersection in separate incidents just days apart. I disagree. Anything that will slow the out of area, left lane drivers is good for the 3 Mile area. Bring on the roundabout!