I am so done waiting for “the powers that be” to come up with a sensible solution to the Stickle Road intersection debacle. Meantime yet another accident has occurred there (Oct. 27th).
Destroying the wetlands by expanding 20th Street is not the answer, and I also understand why a traffic light is not a safe option, due to the close proximity to the 27th Street merge lane.
As far as I am concerned the most practical, least expensive and safest option is to put in a large roundabout. This serves two purposes, it slows down the traffic and lets everyone from all directions enter and exit the highway safely, (eliminating the need for left hand turns).
Research has shown that roundabouts reduce collisions by as much as 72 per cent and reduces fatalities and serious injury collisions by up to 87 per cent when compared to intersections with traffic lights or stop signs. They are environmentally friendly, attractive as a landscape feature and use no electricity to operate. Roundabouts can be designed to accommodate the turning radius of large trucks and the area at Stickle appears to me to be large enough for such a solution.
Kathy Drew
