A typical four-way intersection has 32 conflict points — that’s nearly three dozen “accident zones” at any given time. On the other hand, roundabouts have eight conflict points, which is 75% less, shares Daniel Rodriguez, city engineer for North Ridgeville.
“By their nature, roundabouts slow down traffic. Not only does that reduce vehicle accidents, but the conflict points are also usually property damage type crashes with typically no injuries,” he adds, explaining why the city has two operating roundabouts and one ready for construction at Stoney Ridge, Mills and Avalon roads.
The new roundabout will be peanut shaped — essentially two back-to-back roundabouts because of the offset intersections. “It will allow traffic to flow much better,” Rodriguez says, relating that the existing roundabouts at Mills Road and State Route 83, and Chestnut Ridge Road and Alternate State Route 83, have proven to be highly effective in decreasing crashes and promoting overall driving safety.
Beyond roundabouts, the city is in the midst of several other engineering and infrastructure projects that will make navigating the roadways safer and easier. One is the Cypress Avenue extension, which is expected to spur development in an area of the city that affords highway access.
“The street was built a number of years ago and dead-ended at a point, so we are going to extend that roadway within a 70-acre area to Lorain Road so it will have more access to Interstate 480 and State Route 10,” Rodriguez says. “We are hoping that will bring more business into the city of North Ridgeville, which would be an asset to the community.”
The city acquired property to complete the project and developed roadway plans. It will soon go to bid, and depending on the results, the project could begin late fall.
The Stoney Ridge Road watermain project is before council and is a continuation of the road’s watermain improvements. Already, the city has removed and replaced the old watermain on the road beginning at Center Ridge Road to Schaefer Drive.
“This would pick up from there and go to Sandy Ridge Drive,” Rodriguez says, adding that the deteriorating watermain prompts breaks and needs replacement.
Meanwhile, realigning Barres Road and Ravenna Drive will correct an offset intersection and improve safety.
“Right now, there are a couple of left-turn lanes that are offset, and it would make that entire area safer to bring it to one location so all turn lanes are facing the same direction,” Rodriguez explains.
