Drivers manage roundabout

Only one fender bender during first days

By David Wallace
C & G Staff Writer

WEST BLOOMFIELD — The roundabout at Maple and Drake roads fully opened to traffic Sept. 1 with drivers for the most part managing the intersection’s new layout.

As of the late morning Sept. 5, West Bloomfield Police Sgt. Dave Zolna said that only one accident had occurred in the roundabout since it opened. Drivers navigated the intersection during the Labor Day weekend and got through the first rush hours Sept. 4 without incident.

The crash occurred after the morning rush hour Sept. 4, when a car coming into the roundabout failed to yield, Zolna said. Generally, the roundabout design intends for any accidents that might occur to result in low-speed fender benders, and that is how Zolna described the accident that took place.

“Fortunately, it’s going well,” Zolna said of the first few days.

The Road Commission for Oakland County did hear of some people having confusion in the roundabout, according to Craig Bryson, public information officer for the commission.

“Really, as far as we can tell, it’s working as it’s supposed to and drivers are getting the hang of it,” said Bryson Sept. 5.

The Road Commission has a lot of information about driving through a roundabout posted at www.nwconnector.com. Zolna noted that the roundabout is not the first one in metro Detroit, with smaller roundabouts nearby at the Jewish Community Center parking lot and at the shopping center on the east side of M-5, south of Maple.

“So for a lot of drivers, it’s not that new,” he said. “People are kind of getting accustomed to it.”

The Road Commission works with the Traffic Improvement Association to analyze crash data, and Bryson said the commission will follow up on the statistics once enough time passes for the TIA to have enough data to compare to the intersection’s previous crash data.

Zolna said the biggest problem, from his perspective, is the disruption in traffic from putting in the second roundabout at Farmington and Maple. Construction there has closed Farmington Road at the intersection. Maple remains open, though with possible delays.

“Avoiding the whole area is probably the best thing right now,” said Zolna.

His biggest worry, from a traffic-safety perspective, is that a motorist will try to cut through a parking lot to get around the construction and strike a pedestrian.

Zolna hopes the Road Commission is able to deliver a quick construction time.

“It’ll be open probably sometime in November,” said Bryson of the second roundabout.

Moving utilities delayed construction of the Maple and Drake roundabout. The Maple and Farmington intersection could have the same problem.

“There are some utility issues there,” said Bryson. “We’re hoping they will be worked out much more quickly than at Maple and Drake, but time will tell.”

Three disabled people have sued the Road Commission, claiming that roundabouts do not comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. That case remained in a holding pattern as of last week.

“We’re waiting for a hearing date to be set,” said Bryson.