The city also approved an $80,000 Duke Energy contract for the installation and maintenance of the lighting for the roundabout.
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The roundabout is designed as “a traffic-calming device” as improvements and recreation expansions are underway along River Road, said City Manager Mark Wendling.
“The roundabout significantly will slow traffic in an area that experiences speeds well above the posted speed limit,” he said.
The roundabout, which was designed by The Kleingers Group, will also serve as an extension of the Great Miami River Trail through Marsh Park, which will cross River Road. The project is also being driven by the city’s first dog park, south of where the roundabout will be built and adjacent to the Great Miami River. The dog park is expected to be finished later this year.
The Ohio Public Works Commission is funding 57 percent of the project, which equates to approximately $376,000. The project will begin after Duke gas and electric lines, Cincinnati Bell and Spectrum cables are relocated. It should wrap up by the fall.
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The roundabout is similar to the modern roundabouts constructed by the Butler County Engineer’s Office. However, this will be a three-way roundabout as opposed to the traditional four-way roundabouts, said Fairfield City Engineer Ben Mann.
Construction of the upgraded intersection will include drainage improvements, curb and ditch improvements, an overlay of the entire road, and LED lighting by Duke Energy.
Mann said the Butler County Engineer’s Office has installed more than a dozen roundabouts around Butler County, which have reduced overall crashes by 60 percent, crashes with injuries by 80 percent and serious and fatal crashes by 100 percent — all better than the national averages.
“The county has experience with building roundabouts so what we’re trying to do is duplicate.” Mann said, “as closely as possible.”
Mann said even though the project won’t be an issue for school traffic, it will be an issue for truck transportation as this portion of River Road is a regular truck route.
“They’re going to have a long-distance detour,” he said.
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