The short drive between Midland and Penetanguishene will be a little bit longer for the foreseeable future.
Over the coming months, the County of Simcoe will be constructing a two-lane roundabout at the County Road 93/Golf Link Road/Vinden Street intersection.
“As an alternative to the existing signalized intersection, a roundabout option was considered and subsequently determined to be the preferred solution,” Simcoe transportation construction manager Julie Scruton said, referring to a 2018 study that was conducted in partnership with the Towns of Midland and Penetanguishene that gave the $7.8-million project the green light.
“Other municipalities have demonstrated substantial improvements as a result of the introduction of roundabouts.”
Midland Coun. Bill Gordon said he's happy to see the move away from traditional traffic signals.
“I think roundabouts are great,” said Gordon, noting he’d eventually like to see one constructed at the King Street/Yonge Street intersection.
Gordon said a roundabout is definitely needed on that particular section of County Road 93 due to poor sight lines.
“It was a poorly designed intersection,” he said, noting there have been numerous serious collisions at the location over the years that have resulted in both life-threatening injuries and fatalities.
Scruton said that similar to a signalized intersection, traffic will need to slow down in advance of the roundabout.
“The current speed limit of this section of County Road 93 is 80 km/h and 60 km/h on Golf Link and Vindin,” she said. “The speed limit will be reduced to 50 km/h from all four directions approaching the roundabout to ensure vehicles are approaching at a safe speed.
“The roundabout has been designed with two lanes of capacity to ensure it can handle the current and projected future traffic in the area.”
As an example, Scruton pointed to statistics from the Region of Waterloo safe roads website. On the site, it’s noted that for intersections where roundabouts have replaced traffic signals there’s been a 51% decrease in collisions with injuries and fatalities and a 35% drop in total collisions.
“There are many proven benefits to roundabouts,” Scruton told MidlandToday. “Roundabouts are commonplace across Europe, and they are becoming more and more common in Ontario, including in areas such as Waterloo, Hamilton and London.
“Many roundabouts have been constructed in the Collingwood area by the MTO. The Region of Waterloo now has 36 roundabouts on regional roads and constructed its first roundabout in 2004.”
Roadwork carried out by Georgian Construction on this project, meanwhile, is expected to continue through to Nov. 15 and start up again next spring with a targeted Halloween 2022 completion date.
During road reconstruction operations, traffic speed along County Road 93 will be reduced to 40 km/h through the work zone during construction. Bypass lanes will be utilized where the roundabout construction is taking place with a minimum of two paved lanes (one each way) remaining open at all times.
During various phases of the project, it will also be necessary to close portions of Golf Link Road and Vindin Street. Detour routes will be set up and advanced warning signs will be installed on the highway to warn motorists of the traffic disruption.
But in the long run, it should all worth it, according to the province’s Ministry of Transportation.
According to the MTO, some of the benefits of roundabouts include:
- Safety: lower speeds and fewer points of conflict between vehicles reduces the potential for serious crashes and injury.
- Lower speeds: unlike at a green light at an intersection, vehicles need to slow down to use a roundabout, reducing the likelihood of a serious crash.
- Higher capacity: a high volume of vehicles turning left is handled better by a roundabout than by a left-turn signal at a traditional intersection.
- Fewer stops and shorter delays: yielding at the entry of a roundabout takes less time than waiting for a green light at an intersection or for a gap in traffic at a stop sign.
- Less idling and air pollution: fewer delays reduces fuel consumption and improves air quality by reducing emissions.
- Lower maintenance costs: roundabouts eliminate maintenance and electricity costs associated with traffic signals.
- Aesthestically pleasing: there is an opportunity for landscaping within the central island of a roundabout.
