Scott Neal, Eden Prairie City Manager

This is a sign coming to a city near you in the Twin Cities metro area:

The sign indicates that you are driving into a road intersection that is controlled by a Roundabout, or what others might call a Traffic Circle. The purpose of the Roundabout is to control the traffic flow in the intersection of two or more roads in a manner that is both efficient and safe. The Roundabout allows for the continuous movement of traffic safely through an intersection. The Roundabout allows continuous movement of traffic without the use of traffic control signs, such as stop signs, and without the capital and ongoing expenses of traffic signals. They are a much, much less expensive to traffic signals. The big question for Americans is: Will American drivers adapt to the Roundabout and make it work as intended? Roundabouts have been used widely in Europe for years, but they are just now starting to work their way into street projects here in the United States.

Here is a photo I snapped of a Roundabout in Rochester, Minnesota, earlier this week. This Roundabout controls traffic at the intersection of two streets that intersect in a park/recreational complex area. The signage is plain, but understandable. The interior of the Roundabout itself is also somewhat plain. It’s ordinary grass. You will notice the “wake-up” rumble strips that have been installed in the surface of the Roundabout. This reminds drivers to stay in their lane while rounding the circle until they are ready to exit.

This is a photo of a Roundabout in Medford. It was installed as part of the exit ramp system from Interstate 35 at the exit you use to get to the Medford Outlet Mall. I think it is also easy to understand when you’re in it. It has nice plantings and landscaping too in the interior of the Roundabout.

This is a plan sheet of a Roundabout that might be coming to Eden Prairie and Edina. There are actually three intersections in this plan controlled by Roundabouts. This is the plan for the intersection of Valley View Road and Washington Avenue. This intersection is near the access ramps for Valley View to Hwy 169. The Roundabouts at the top of the access ramps would be in the City of Edina. The one at the intersection of Valley View and Washington would be half in Eden Prairie and half in Edina. This project is being considered right now for grant funding. It was originally developed as part of the Hwy 169/I-494 Intersection Redesign Project. Funding for that project has stalled recently, but the grant funding for the Roundabouts might still come through. If it does, we will coordinate a final design for the project with the Edina.

The purchase and installation costs of traffic signals at a standard four-way intersection can easily run more than $500,000. Plus, there are the maintenance and energy costs of operating the signals forever. If the American driving public can become more comfortable with Roundabouts, we can begin to incorporate more of them into our standard road designs, and have safe intersections with lower construction and ongoing maintenance costs.