Following the previous project of installing a roundabout over by the new Camas Dutch Bros at 6th and Norwood, the city of Camas has decided to make changes to the intersection of Lake Road and Everet Street. At a meeting at the Camas library on February 26th, the city of Camas talked about new changes to come in place of the stoplight at the intersection of Lake Road and Evergreen Street. There is always a good amount of traffic at that stoplight from people trying to get to work, and students trying to get to school on time. This open house proposed two potential options to help traffic flow a little better.
“Right now, we are in what’s called the ‘pre-construction phase,’ and we’re analyzing all the options for making the intersection safer and more efficient,” says the principal at HDJ Design, Greg Jellison. “These options include variations on two primary concepts: a signalized intersection and a roundabout intersection.”
The first option proposes certain improvements to the now existing traffic light. “These new changes would consist of two left-turn lanes, with 5 to 6 lanes of the roadway,” says Jellison. This would cause: a greater vehicle back-up at a signal than a roundabout would, higher speeds are common in intersections than roundabouts, and there would be potential impacts to property access, parking lots, and business.
The second option would be a roundabout intersection. The roundabout option consists of one lane of circular traffic, with one to two lanes of the roadway. Two upsides to this option are: shorter vehicle back-up entering the roundabout, and lower speeds through the intersection.
A helpful representative at the open house, Don Hardy, claims, “Tree’s are going to be impacted no matter what.” With both options, it looks as though the environment will be affected. “It’s a matter of listing [Pros and cons] by priority.”
Senior Brooke Howard illustrates, “I personally think that adding a roundabout to this intersection would be a mistake. It would not only change the entire layout of the area but create even greater congestion than we have now. We already have too much traffic!”
Tayyaba Naushab, another senior at CHS, explains, “Roundabouts are not that crowded and everyone gets a chance. Roundabouts seem better.”
“Right now we are getting information from you to be able to do our best job as we can for the evaluation,” explains Jellison. The people of the Camas community are highly encouraged to share your input on the existing options, by completing an online survey at www.surveymonkey.com/r/TJLR3TS, as well as online at www.cityofcamas.us/lakeroad. If students wish to contact the project manager, they may contact Jim Hodges by his email: [email protected]. Students can also contact the engineering manager, James Carothers, at his email address: [email protected].
Their next community open house is planned for late March 2019. All Camas residents will be mailed an invitation with all details on time and location.