The first sense of what the new roundabout on Rhinelander's west side will be about will soon be revealed.
The DOT held an information meeting last night to update the public on the roundabout at U.S. 8 and State Highway 47.
Project manager Dan Erva says the flow of traffic will move away from the current detour arrangement to the roundabout...
"...Motorists will start to utilize the roundabout itself. We are notifying the public ahead of time. Right now we're just starting our asphalt paving operations and finishing up some concrete paving operations to get the roundabout ready for traffic. We're notifying people of the upcoming stage change. Traffic will no longer be using the slip ramp where a lot of traffic will be using the roundabout itself...."
Erva says the completion date is still set for October 18.
The DOT says the roundabout will improve deteriorating pavement conditions and address safety issues. Between 2012 and 2016 there were 35 crashes at the intersection; 18 of the crashes were “T-bone crashes” involving left-turning vehicles not being able to see around the opposing left-turning vehicles. There were concerns about the ramps on each side of the road. The intersection will be raised approximately 2 feet to improve drainage.
