A roundabout proposed for Highway 2 to provide access for a new planned Costco store didn’t go over well with attendees at a public open house last night. According to the Spokesman-Review, the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) says a roundabout would be safer than a traffic light at the entrance to the new store, planned just outside Spokane City limits on land currently owned by Kaiser Aluminum.
WSDOT engineer Brian Walsh says roundabouts provide a safer and more efficient option when making left turns onto and off of a highway. Neighbors of the Costco development were skeptical though. Many who live nearby worry the roundabout will make it harder for them to enter the highway as cars back up at the stoplight at Farwell Road. Others were concerned about slowing traffic on a major highway. Walsh said the state has plenty of roundabouts on four-lane highways that operate smoothly, such as four roundabouts within 5 miles of Highway 539 in Whatcom County.
The Department of Transportation also has plans to eventually build a road leading into the west side of the roundabout, and re-do the intersection at Farwell Road and the highway, said Al Gilson, a department spokesman. Plans to build roundabouts along the highway at Day Mount Spokane Road and at state Highway 206 have been canceled, Gilson said.
As I understand it, drives are not supposed to change lanes in a roundabout. My question is, “Why is this one lined so that cars exiting Costco and going south are DIRECTED to change lanes” (by the way the roundabout is lined)? The center, instead of being round has a ‘nipple’ (?) that forces those exiting Costco to change lanes into the outer lane causing southbound traffic to yield to traffic from Costco.
This creates a hazard to southbound traffic. This problem could be solved by removing the ‘nipple’ thus creating an actual round(about) and relining so that cars exiting Costco would remain in the inside lane and would not impede southbound traffic in the outside lane.
I would appreciate an explanation (rational) why it was constructed in this way
Hi Robert – Thank you very much for commenting on this blog post. The roundabout on Highway 2 is a WSDOT designed and operated facility, so they will be able to address your questions. I will forward your comments to the WSDOT-Eastern Region Communications Director so they can respond to you directly.