On display were three options for improving the road. The first would widen and improve the intersection, but it would remain controlled by stoplights. The second option would install a roundabout in the intersection. Like the first option, it would also widen a portion of Highway 246 leading into the roundabout. The third option adds another roundabout at Alamo Pintado and Old Mission Road.
The estimated price tag for the project ranges from about $6.5 million to 10.1 million. The first option is the least costly followed by the second and the third. However, Brent Lemon of Quincy Engineering said the gap between the projects is really closer to two million. The reason for the $4 million dollar difference in the estimates largely depends on how much of an existing bridge they can use. Because of some bad concrete used when the bridge was last widened, it may require a complete rebuilding.
Opinions on the project ranged from enthusiastic support to adamant opposition. One of those supporting the project was Michele Bandinu. He grew up in a small town near Zurich. He says the town was very similar to Solvang with a population of about 28 thousand and an arterial highway running from the town to other major cities. In the late 1970s, he said, the town began a massive construction project to widen the roads and install stoplights. However, Bandinu says the town only got more congested and prone to accidents.
During the 90s, the town did away with traditional intersections and installed roundabouts. He said though the town’s population had doubled by this time, the congestion decreased dramatically and accidents became less frequent. Bandinu thinks roundabouts are a proven solution to traffic problems. “I feel 100 percent safer (with roundabouts); if it was up to me, I would put one in every intersection in Solvang.”
Not everyone agreed with Bandinu. “I’m interested because it’s a new idea for the Valley, but I’m concerned about an unprotected crosswalk,” said Leo Mathiasen. Many attending the workshop agreed that they like the security an intersection provided for pedestrians.
Many also were worried the continuous flow of traffic through the roundabout would cause jams at other intersections and make it impossible to enter the highway from side streets. Drivers of trailers and large trucks were concerned about trying to maneuver their vehicles throughout the intersection. Some in the crowd thought the proposed traffic solution would cause a traffic “fiasco” at other points on the Highway.
Brent Lemon of Quincy Engineering said he understood the concern but the study addressed many of the points already. While the crosswalks on roundabouts don’t have the advantage of signals, he said they have other advantages. Due to the high speeds of the highway, Lemon says stoplights give pedestrians a “false sense of security.” Cars approaching a roundabout are forced to slow to around 20 mph. The crosswalks are engineered to expose pedestrians to traffic for the shortest amount of time possible. Letting them enter a center island between lanes.
Lemon also said the design allows drivers to see people entering the crosswalk from a long way off. Most importantly, Lemon says studies have shown roundabouts decrease fatalities when compared to standard intersections. The traffic congestion as a result of doing nothing would be much worse than installing a roundabout, according to the study. Currently drivers wait around 25 seconds at the intersection. If nothing is done, the study says the wait could exceed 50 seconds per vehicle at peak hours.
Lemon said people shouldn’t be worried about learning to drive the roundabouts. He cited towns like Vale, Colo., as examples of towns with high tourist levels that have switched to roundabouts. He also said there would be a built-in “truck gutter” to allow big vehicles to make the turns. Whatever the final decision on the three options is, Lemon wants it to be soon. “Funding is limited and highly competitive,” he said. Because the project is so close to being shovel ready, it is a frontrunner for federal and state funds. Funding could also be set aside for the project from measure A.
No decision on the project was made at the workshop. The public comments will now be reviewed by the city and it will eventually be up to the council to give approval.