Nearly five months since the city of Aberdeen started construction on a roundabout project that used to host a five-way intersection at the corner of East Market Street, F Street, and Fuller Way, it is now complete.
The roundabout will open after a ribbon-cutting ceremony at noon on Wednesday, Sept. 14. After the ceremony, the adjoining roadways will be open to traffic.
“The existing traffic signals at the intersection of East 1st Street and North F Street, and at the intersection of Market Street and G Street will revert to their pre-construction condition after the roundabout is opened,” the release states.
The project, which started Monday, April 18, is finishing three weeks early, according to Nick Bird, city engineer for Aberdeen. The original timeline consisted of a completion date in October.
The roundabout should make the area safer, Bird said when the project was about to start. The project should make traffic flow easier, too.
The project improvements include removing two existing traffic signals, reconstruction of the roadway surface and subgrade, installation of stormwater conveyance and treatment, and new curbing and sidewalks, among other things.
“Project funding was provided through federal and state grants managed by the Washington State Department of Transportation and the Washington State Transportation Improvement Board,” the release states. “It is projected that upon completion of the project, all costs associated with construction will be paid by these grant funds.”
The project was ahead of schedule through most of the almost five months of construction.
Despite the roundabout project being “more challenging,” it’s finishing early.
With the new roundabout, the city has a few guidelines for drivers.
“Yield to drivers already in the roundabout (on the circulating roadway,) stay in your lane; do not change lanes, do not stop in the roundabout, and avoid driving next to oversized vehicles,” the release states.
For more information about using roundabouts in Western Washington, search https://wsdot.wa.gov/travel/traffic-safety-mothods/roundabouts.
