Malta residents unhappy with plans for two roundabouts — one near an elementary school — voiced their opinions at a Monday, Dec. 3, public hearing.
Before public comments were made, Malta Supervisor Paul Sausville assured residents the board would be taking public opinion into consideration.
“We want to hear all comments, especially any alternatives you may suggest, including stoplights and turning lanes instead of roundabouts,” he said. “We will evaluate all your comments before we make a final decision.”
Paul Cummings of the Chazen Companies gave the public an overview of the proposal and acknowledged there has been a lot of concern over the roundabouts, but the engineers were trying to find a solution that would benefit everyone.
“We are trying to preserve the neighborhood feel to the area,” he said. “No one here wants another Wolf Road.”
A study commissioned by the town calls for the installation of two roundabouts on Round Lake Road off of Exit 11 of the Northway. One would be at Chango Drive (near Chango Elementary School) and the other at the intersection with Raylinski Road.
Approximately a dozen speakers voiced their opinions, and all of them were against building the roundabouts.
The first speaker, Ellwood Sloat, is a New York State Trooper, and questioned the improved safety of roundabouts.
“These intersections where the roundabouts are proposed have had virtually no accidents with injury,” said Sloat. “I don’t know how we’re going to improve on those safety statistics. No roundabouts will be constructed with those safety statistics.”
The majority of the speakers were concerned for the safety of children walking home from Chango Elementary School, who would have to cross the roundabout without the aid of a traffic light.
“I don’t understand, there’s not a place to cross safely,” said resident Tim Downey. “In my mind that means a red light. There is constant traffic in a roundabout. How will kids get across? A red light stops traffic so they can safely cross. I don’t see how to improve on that.”
Resident Christine Bader agreed with Downey.
“When you are entering a roundabout, you are looking to see if any cars are coming,” she
said. “You are not seeing pedestrians, especially children. They will have to play ‘Frogger’ to get across.”
One resident touched on the difficulty of navigating roundabouts in a vehicle.
“There is no roundabout school on how to drive in a roundabout,” said Val Manley. “I feel much safer with a red light.”
Resident Kathy Fitzmann brought up the fact that if the roundabouts were built, residents would be expected to contribute 20 percent of the cost.
“If we have to pay 20 percent for the project, we should have 20 percent input,” she said.
Mark Spataro perhaps summed up the feelings of the most speakers best.
“You are asking drivers and pedestrians to make difficult decisions,” he said. “Roundabouts are a system that rewards movement that almost borders on aggression.”
The Round Lake Road Corridor has been growing by leaps and bounds. With the addition of several new businesses, including a Hannaford Supermarket, Malta officials have been looking at ways to address growing congestion and traffic problems. In order to prepare for the planned renovations, The Town Board formed the Round Lake Road Corridor Advisory Committee in April of 2011. The committee recommended a study be conducted of the corridor to determine what improvements were needed. In October of 2011, the town hired the Chazen Companies at a cost of $36,000 to do a study of the corridor and make recommendations.
The resulting Round Lake Corridor Plan includes upgrades to six intersections, including the two roundabouts, along Round Lake Road and would take $4.75 to implement. That cost would be mitigated by a federal highway grant the town recently received that will cover 80 percent of the cost.
In the report, it was concluded the two recommended roundabouts are a good choice and would reduce vehicle speeds, thereby reducing the number of accidents. It cites a study by the US Federal Highway Administration showing that there is a 78 percent reduction in severe crashes at roundabouts, a 48 percent reduction in overall crashes and a 40 percent reduction in pedestrian collisions.
Prior to the Dec. 3 public hearing, several residents along the Round Lake Road Corridor submitted to the town a petition with about 250 signatures opposing the roundabouts.
Town residents who added their signatures to the petition question the safety of a roundabout so close to the school. They are concerned about the ability of school children to safely cross to the other side of the road without a traffic signal bringing cars to a complete stop. The petitioners also recommended the study of traffic light controlled intersections and turning lanes.
Following the public hearing, Sausville said the next step will be to decide whether to incorporate the roundabouts into the master plan. That decision could come as soon as January, but no final decision on even going ahead with the project has been made.
“We have not decided on roundabouts, intersections with lights or even another alternative,” said Sausville. “We are still fact finding. Tonight’s public comments were very informative.