FRANKLIN COUNTY, Va. – Construction is well underway on a Franklin County road project designed to save lives. A traffic circle is going in at the corner of Hardy Road and Booker T Washington Highway.
In just a few months drivers will navigate this intersection in a new way and Gills Creek district supervisor Lorie Smith said it’s a long time coming.
“And they have had great success, you know traffic circles are in many, many localities. So we feel that this is a good solution for a very dangerous intersection,” Smith said.
The 3-way “T” intersection as it stands is notorious for stop-sign running and has been the site of an increasing number of T-bone accidents, sometimes fatal.
VDOT spokesman Jason Bond said rear-end collisions were numerous as well, but have since fallen out of the number one type of accident at the intersection. That caused planners to take a different look.
“Angle crashes tend to be more severe than rear-end type collisions so we looked at a different type of improvement for the intersection to address that crash pattern,” Bond said.
The roundabout is taking shape and crews will soon be ready to start paving. The project was fast-tracked after crash patterns became more severe in recent times.
“Roundabouts tend to be safer than traditional intersections, they encourage vehicles to slow down as they approach the intersection, and they also have lower maintenance costs in the long term,” Bond said.
Boat trailers will have no problem navigating through the new pattern. They frequently use the road due to the intersection being a gateway to Smith Mountain Lake. Smith said it will also go a long way toward growth in the area, which is designated as a target area.
“So we’ve got to make sure that we’re taking all the measures that we feel are necessary for working with VDOT to affect these changes,” Smith said.
VDOT has a target completion date of this spring. Until then you’ll continue to see construction workers and flagging in the area.