MASSILLON, Ohio — Construction for the City of Massillon's first roundabout will begin soon.
Crews will begin building the new roundabout in the next few weeks at the intersection of Main Avenue West and Tremont Avenue Southwest.
The city's engineer, Alex Pitts, said the transformation of this intersection into a roundabout comes down to safety concerns.
Pitts said there are geometry issues at the intersection, with streets entering at sharp angles. On top of that, many driveways connect to the center of the intersection, leading to confusion about who has the right of way. Pitts said eliminating the signal is the best solution.
The $1.2 million project is expected to be completed by November of this year.
This will not be the last roundabout coming to the City of Massillon. The city is also building a double roundabout at another busy intersection. The double roundabout will be built along Lake Avenue Northeast, at its intersections with State Route 21 and First Street Northeast. Pitts said the project is now in the design phase.
Pitts said the addition of roundabouts to the city is all about safety.
"It's just really improving our infrastructure exponentially," he said. "That's one of the reasons why we think that they're safer as well, less head-on crashes. There is just various benefits for converting an intersection into a roundabout."
Pitts said the double roundabout project is slated to start in 2028.
The city will share a new design of the project at another public meeting.
The meeting is set for Tuesday, June 23, at 5 p.m. at the Massillon Recreation Center.
