Region's biggest roundabout gets rave reviews in Stouffville

Yorkregion.com
December 6, 2018
Simon Martin

The new roundabout at Bloomington Road and Hwy. 48 in Whitchurch-Stouffville is up and running after months of construction at the intersection. And while there were initial concerns that the largest roundabout in York Region would be a traffic nightmare, initial reports have been positive.

“So far everything is OK,” Zubir Mohamed said.  The manager of the Esso Station on the southwest corner said there always used to be major accidents and traffic lineups at the intersection which had a four-way traffic signal. “The traffic really keeps moving,” he said.

Ward 3 Councillor Hugo Kroon said his residents have been impressed with the new configuration of the intersection. “I think it’s the greatest thing since sliced bread,” he said. “The roundabout makes everybody slow down. Gone are the days of someone getting slammed.”

Kroon was impressed that the intersection stayed open throughout construction except for select weekend closures.

While the roundabout won’t eliminate accidents, Kroon said in all likelihood it will just be cars trading paint and not the more serious T-bone collisions.

Still, there is need to educate residents and businesses on how to use a roundabout, Kroon said.

The Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville launched a roundabout education campaign earlier this year to help combat the problem led by Communications manager Glenn Jackson.

Jackson said roundabouts are popping up in municipalities all over the GTA; Whitchurch-Stouffville now has more than half a dozen.  These circular intersections don’t have stop signs or traffic signals, yet they have been proven to be substantially safer. Some highlights from the town’s education campaign include: when entering a roundabout always approach slowly and be aware of any pedestrians or cyclists. When inside the roundabout, be alert for entering traffic, drive in a counter-clockwise direction and never pass another vehicle or stop within the roundabout. When exiting a roundabout always signal, be aware of pedestrians and cyclists and continue down the street being aware to not stop too close to the roundabout.

Plans for the Hwy. 48 and Bloomington Road Roundabout started in 2016 after the Ministry of Transportation said the intersection was operating at capacity with its old traffic light.

Four signal alternatives with different lane configurations and one roundabout alternative were evaluated as part of the environmental assessment. After considering factors such as safety, operation, cost and environmental impacts, the two-lane roundabout was recommended by the MTO. The study received clearance in November 2016. The two-lane roundabout will continue to operate well into the future as traffic demand continues to increase

Bloomington is known as a dump truck route and the MTO assured that the roundabout is designed to accommodate large trucks by providing a mountable truck apron the inside lanes and semi-mountable curbs on the outside lane. The lane widths are designed to allow a passenger vehicle and large truck to traverse the roundabout together. The MTO said the geometry of the roundabout will force vehicles to slow down before they enter the circle.