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Wednesday, December 13, 2017 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Public can weigh in on proposed roundabouts
By Sue Stafford
Correspondent
Drivers in Sisters may nav-
igate two or three more round-
abouts in the future, according
to proposed refinements to the
2010 Sisters Transportation
System Plan (TSP).
Citizens have until
December 15 to provide
feedback on the proposed
refinements.
A standing-room-only
crowd filled Sisters City
Council chambers last week
to view the proposed options
and hear Matt Kittleson of
Kittleson & Associates, trans-
portation engineering and
planning firm, explain the
refinements. Kittleson was
joined by Paul Bertagna,
Public Works director and
representatives of the Oregon
Department of Transportation
(ODOT).
The proposed refinements
are all aimed at addressing
traffic circulation on the east
side of town, which was iden-
tified in 2010 as an area need-
ing improvements. The spe-
cific areas identified are the
junction of Highway 20/126,
including the intersection
with Buckaroo Trail in the
FivePine development, and
the intersection of Highway
20/Locust Street near the
elementary school. Bike and
pedestrian traffic is part of
the consideration (see sidebar
story on page 23).
Feedback from the citi-
zens will help finalize the
revised concepts that will be
incorporated into the TSP and
presented to the City Council
for final approval. This week
is the public’s opportunity to
weigh in. The PowerPoint pre-
sentation made by Kittleson
and comment forms can be
found on the City website
(www.ci.sisters.or.us) with
links to both. Forms are also
available at City Hall.
Those who attended the
open house and picked up
comment forms can drop them
off at City Hall or email them
to Nicole Abbenhuis, Public
Works operations coordina-
tor, at nabbenhuis@ci.sisters.
or.us. The deadline for com-
ments is end of business day
on Friday, December 15. For
questions, contact Abbenhuis
at 541-323-5220.
The largest roundabout
— probably larger than the
current one at Highway 20/
Barclay Drive — is proposed
for Highway 20/126 and
Buckaroo Trail. The concept
drawing locates its placement
in the currently treed triangle
of land owned by the Oregon
State Parks and Recreation
(OSPR) department, with the
Highway 126 arm swinging
into the OSPR property on
the north side of the high-
way, which would necessitate
tree removal. Buckaroo Trail
would form the southern arm
of the roundabout. The truck
scales would remain in its
current location.
Kittleson purported this
roundabout would provide
significant traffic circulation
improvements and safety
benefits, including reduc-
tion of vehicle speeds and
better bicycle and pedestrian
access. By building it within
the triangle and off the current
highway, there would be less
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impact on traffic during con-
struction. Some rights-of-way
would need to be attained;
a majority of the necessary
property is owned by OSPR.
The bridge on Highway
20 over Whychus Creek
would have two travel lanes
with pedestrian/bike paths on
either side. Jefferson Street
would possibly be a right in,
right out only at the intersec-
tion with Highway 20.
The largest hurdle for this
project, which has a three-to-
five-year timeframe, is find-
ing sufficient funding sources.
Installation of the roundabout
would markedly change the
look of the currently forested
southern and eastern portals
into town. It is designed to
address the travel demands
expected by the year 2030.
The congested Highway
20/Locust intersection has
both short-term and long-
term options proposed. In
the short-term (one to three
years), the idea is to find a
low-cost solution that could
be built quickly, requiring no
acquisition of rights-of-way
or major reconstruction. It
would function like a round-
about by helping vehicles
enter into traffic safely, slow
vehicles down on their way
into and out of town, and help
pedestrians cross safely in the
crosswalks to already devel-
oped property.
The Highway 20/Locust
small roundabout would be
PHOTO BY JIM CORNELIUS
A large roundabout may be built on the triangle of land near the current
junction of Highway 20 and Highway 126.
“mountable,” meaning trucks’
rear tires would be able to
drive over the center, aiding
their travel through the round-
about. The mountable round-
about would be the first of its
kind in Oregon; they are cur-
rently used on the Washington
state highway system.
The small roundabout
provides a low-cost improve-
ment that would improve
mobility and safety and yet
doesn’t preclude one of the
three long-term options, each
of which have a 10-plus-
year time-frame and some
trade-offs.
Option one would be built
as close to the middle of the
present intersection as possi-
ble, providing for small right-
of-way needs. However, some
of the tight turns could prove
challenging for trucks.
Option two provides for
the roundabout to be “squared
up” and built off the highway
on Locust, allowing for high-
way 20 traffic to continue
through the intersection dur-
ing construction. The tradeoff
is the need for greater right-
of-way acquisition, which
increases the time and cost of
the project.
Option three changes the
shape of the roundabout,
which addresses the turning
limitations of option one but
its larger size might increase
the costs.
The timeframes on these
projects are only estimates
because finding the neces-
sary funding will determine if
and when a project could be
built. Citizen feedback will
also influence the projects.
Comments must be submit-
ted by December 15 to be
considered.
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