ORONO, Maine — The Maine Department of Transportation is holding a public hearing to engage residents about a proposed roundabout it wants to put at the Rangeley Road entrance of the University of Maine.
The public meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 2, in the Orono Town Council chambers.
The roundabout at the junction of Route 2 and Rangeley Road and one recently installed at the junction of Stillwater and Forest avenues was requested by the town of Orono as a way to eliminate what state transportation officials have deemed a “high-crash location.”
The Department of Transportation rates intersections by the number of accidents that occur in a three-year period. Any more than eight crashes leads to a “high-crash location” designation. The actual number of crashes at the University of Maine entrance was not immediately available.
The roundabout, estimated to cost $1.65 million, was one of 425 state Department of Transportation capital projects listed for 2014. Roundabouts are a road feature designed to keep traffic moving while minimizing the risk of motor vehicle collisions. Unlike rotaries, which involve several lanes of traffic merging in a circular motion, roundabouts are just one lane.
Those who would like more information can contact Rhobe Moulton, senior project manager at the Maine Department of Transportation, at 624-3391 or rhobe.moulton@maine.gov.