Roundabout construction on Highway 372 delayed
The long-talked-about roundabouts that are scheduled to be built at two areas along Highway 372 have been delayed.
The pair of roundabouts, which are slated to be built at Highway 372 and Pahrump Valley Boulevard and Highway 372 and Blagg Road are being put on hold due to right-of-way issues, according to Nevada Department of Transportation spokesman Tony Illia.
The cost of construction is estimated at around $3 million and NDOT still plans to advertise for project construction bids in April.
"We will conduct a public information meeting in April, too. Construction on roundabouts along State Route 372 at the intersections of Pahrump Valley Boulevard and Blagg Road will likely begin later this summer, with anticipated completion in the spring of 2017," Illia said.
The roundabouts were originally planned for completion this spring.
Roundabouts are one-way circular intersections with a center island where traffic flows freely without stop signs or traffic lights. They're safer and more efficient than traditional four-way signalized intersections since a roundabout has only eight points of potential conflict for vehicle collisions; by contrast, four-way signalized intersections have four times as many conflict points, according to NDOT.
The flow of roundabout traffic requires vehicles to enter and exit using rights turns at reduced speeds, thereby allowing for smaller gaps between circulating vehicles for increased traffic capacity with fewer delays. As a result, there are substantially fewer crashes than four-way traffic signals.
Contact reporter Mick Akers at makers@pvtimes.com. Follow @mickakers on Twitter.
