It seems that almost weekly, I am reminded how America, which is lagging the rest of the world in this particular area, is falling more and more in love with the “modern round-about” as the solution to traffic congestion problems at intersections. In fact I pulled a potato chip out of its bag the other day that I could have swore looked like a round-about. And if this isn’t bad enough, I remember an article in the ITE Journal a few months ago that I just had to read. The City of San Antonio, Texas is taking the concept of a round-about one step further at one particular problem intersection for them.
A little background: They have a location where three roadways and a heavily used driveway to a shopping center all intersect in one location, which results in count them, 1, 2, 3… yes 6 legs to the elongated intersection. As you can imagine to get 6 approaches in one relatively small area, they intersect at some pretty severe angles, and to make the matter worse, two of the roads are heavily traveled arterial streets through the city. The geometry was a problem yes, but the growing traffic volumes only increased congestion and travel time, which in turn leads to more green house gas emissions, more money lost, greater delays, and inevitably, frustration.
The Solution. Reroute one or two or three of the roadways? No. Eliminate the drive into the shopping center? Absolutely not. Revamp the signal operation? Wrong-o. A peanut-about, that is the answer, or at least that is what the City decided is going to be the answer.
Definition. Peanut-about – an elongated intersection that accommodates multiple approaches and directs traffic through the intersection in much the same manner as a round-about.
The Advantage. In this particular case, the peanut-about could be constructed within the existing right-of-way and would utilize the tried and true principles of the round-about to move traffic effectively and smoothly through this area, reducing congestion, delay, exhaust, and all of that stuff we are trying to eliminate in our green conscience world.
The Look. A peanut shell, of course. Actually, this particular one looks like Mr. Planters, with two arms, two legs, and two ears (unfortunately no cane or monocle), but I am sure some creative landscaping or architectural work could achieve this effect.
The Oversight. Nowhere in the article does it mention the entertainment value this peanut-about will give to the traveling public and the residents living along this area. I know that if I ever find myself in this area of San Antonio, I will be setting up my lawn chair in the median, popping my umbrella, getting out my cooler and just enjoy the site. I may even bring a bag of peanuts along with me. Only seems fitting.
Who knows? Maybe someday there will be a creative engineer with a willing City government that wants to try their hand at a pretzel-about. A traffic engineer can dream, right?
Monday, May 3, 2010
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