Op-Ed Article

Roundabouts Whose Time Have Come

Why wouldn’t Windsor and the surrounding municipalities embrace the concept of roundabouts replacing the traditional traffic light?  Is it because its simply easier to keep doing the same old thing? How many of us have sat at a traffic light at off hours with no other vehicle in sight while our vehicles waste both time and fuel?

Think of the wear and tear on our vehicles’ brakes by adhering to unsynchronized stop and go traffic light commands every 100 meters?  France has about 30,000 roundabouts, nearly a third of the world’s total.  Roundabouts preclude the need for any stop signals and they cut hydrocarbon emissions at intersections by over 40 per cent.  Depending on traffic congestion a single roundabout can save tens of thousands of liters of gas a year by avoiding idling.  Roundabouts can ease traffic delays by an average 65 per cent and significantly reduce traffic accidents, injuries and fatalities while costing less to install and maintain than a traditional traffic light.  

Tecumseh is in the process of installing one or two roundabouts.  It’s a start but we need about a thousand more here in Canada South. 

Mickey Moulder