Surprise? FHWA finds roundabouts greatly reduce accidents

Roundabouts

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), under the umbrella of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), has released a study that finds that roundabouts, or traffic circles, can reduce fatal and serious injury crashes. By a lot.

Specifically, converting a traditional signalized intersection to a roundabout, the reduction can be as high as 78% and converting a two-way stop-controlled intersection can reduce fatal and serious injury crashes by 82%. Run a light or a stop sign anyone?

The image is an aerial view of a teardrop roundabout, in of Allen, TX, which extends over another highway.

I run through at least one traffic circle nearly every day, and I have to say that reading the report was a ‘duh’ moment. Of course they do! Its nearly impossible to approach a circle at the same rate of speed as happens with other intersection types.

And the Allen, TX intersection combines highway access with a cross road and looks like a stroke of genius. The FHWA says the roundabout is considered an operational and aesthetic success, having received the American Public Works Association Texas Chapter Project of the Year in 2023 as well as a Top 10 Road Award from Roads & Bridges Magazine. The interchange is the largest and most recent example, but five other roundabouts have been installed in the City since the year 2003 and they are considered a viable solution in the right context.

Visitors to the east coast of the U.S. who have never experienced a traffic circle are often frustrated by the experience, but this is pretty much only due to to the lack of experience with the intersection style. Once mastered, they are generally simple to navigate.

There are more complex types involving multiple lanes and sometimes multiple intersections, but even these can be handled with experience. And the FHWA, along with many state and local agencies, continues to advocate for roundabouts to reduce fatal and severe injury crashes at intersections.

Something that this publication can get behind. The full report can be found here.

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