By Emalee Henning

For months there has been talk of placing a roundabout at the intersection of 14th Street and Superior. A public meeting was held on October 12 from at the Belmont Recreation Center to discuss plans for the roundabout. During the meeting, city officials presented posters to the public showing construction plans, design plans, and the expected changes in traffic at the intersection.

After the meeting, I had a chance to speak with Devin Biesecker from the City of Lincoln Engineering Services.

Construction should take place between October of this year and last until March of 2013. Moving waterlines lower under the roads will be the first major project. 14th street and the roundabout are both expected to be two lanes.

The project was suggested for several reasons. For one, many citizens of Lincoln are convinced that the roundabout will increase the efficiency of the intersection and encourage traffic to move faster. Research also shows that roundabouts can reduce number of fatal accidents in an intersection if used properly.

During the construction of the new intersection, a few problems are going to occur that both city officials and residents are concerned about. They’re worried about how to get people out of neighborhoods to where they need to go, since 14th and Superior is a popular intersection – especially around rush hour and in the morning. Blocking off such an important intersection in North Lincoln for an extended period of time is going to cause a disruption in many people’s daily routines.

What about cross walks? Goodrich Middle School is placed on Lewis Avenue and Superior. What will students be using to get across such a busy intersection? Where they’re able to, officials say they will be building tunnels or underground cross ways for the students’ safety. For locations near the roundabout, traditional cross walks will be constructed.

Many North Star students are concerned about the closing of the intersection because it interferes with the route many take to school. Since the bridge on 14th Street is currently closed, many students have been taking Superior Street to get to school. Biesecker said students shouldn’t have to worry about getting to school on time once construction starts. The point of the roundabout is to move traffic through the roundabout faster, and Biesecker is certain that travel time will be reduced once the construction is over.

Another big concern of residents is how traffic will flow if there happens to be an accident within the intersection. Biesecker said traffic flow would depend on how severe the accident was. If an accident is minor enough, drivers will do as they normally would and move their cars from the intersection. If the accident were severe or fatal, traffic would be backed up. However, this is the case with any intersection in Lincoln, roundabout or not.

During the presentation, guests were allowed to come forward and state their opinions or share any questions they had concerning the proposed plan. More people seem to be against this project than are for it.

Lincoln resident Sharon Benes has her own concerns. Benes informed everyone at the public meeting that she had been using that intersection for the past twelve years. She says if this project goes through, she’ll consider moving neighborhoods. Benes predicts more accidents will occur and traffic will be twice as bad as it is now. She also isn’t convinced that children will be safer, since the roundabout will cause a constant flow of traffic. She’s also worried that people don’t know how to correctly use a roundabout, or that they’re just too lazy to do it correctly. It takes only the simple movement of your blinker to indicate whether you’re entering or exiting the roundabout.

Although the intersection will undergo what many people believe to be a major improvement, to some the construction doesn’t seem worth the time or the money needed to finish such a large project. To many residents of Lincoln, it seems as though we’re wasting time fixing something that doesn’t need to be fixed.