If you've ever tried to turn left onto Old Highway 99 from 79th Avenue and been frustrated by speeding traffic in both directions, you'll be glad to know that a roundabout is coming.
The Tumwater City Council authorized Mayor Debbie Sullivan on Tuesday, April 18, to sign a service provider agreement to support the city in designing and developing a roundabout there. The contract is with HDR Engineering Inc. and is not to exceed $735,000.
The Nebraska-based firm would use traffic and projection data from the Old Highway 99 Corridor Study to determine the roundabout configuration. Documents prepared for the meeting stated that the roundabout would have bike lanes, a 3-feet buffer strip, and a 10-foot shared-use path.
The service agreement also requires the firm to construct frontage improvements for the proposed City of Tumwater operations and maintenance facility to be constructed on 79th Avenue at Trails End Road. Improvements would match existing frontage and include stormwater improvements.
According to the scope of work attached to the agreement, the firm would help the city with project management, public outreach support, advertising and bidding support, preliminary engineering, and design documents. HDR would also subcontract with MTN 2 Coast LLC for a topographic survey and right-of-way mapping, as well as Landau Inc. for geotechnical investigation and reporting.
The firm expects to complete the project by January 2024, but the service agreement runs until the end of that year.
The roundabout is part of the city’s 2036 Transportation Master Plan, which included plans for improving Old Highway 99 from 73rd Avenue to 93rd Avenue. Documents prepared for the meeting explained that the roundabout construction was moved ahead to address traffic concerns related to the proposed operations and maintenance facility.
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Kruz81
So basically a stop sign for most the **** ass drivers around here.
Friday, April 21, 2023 Report this
Southsoundguy
This is so obviously scam to shuffle around money. The money is in the roundabouts.
Friday, April 21, 2023 Report this
Southsoundguy
Bike lanes…for all the bikers. And the city can’t eve use a local firm to do this study. What a joke.
Friday, April 21, 2023 Report this
JW
The amount of whining in these comments is pathetic. Would you rather have a traffic light here? Or nothing at all?
This is a "scam"? Get real.
This is a great project and long overdue.
Friday, April 21, 2023 Report this
Southsoundguy
JW, yes, nothing at all worked just fine.
Sunday, April 23, 2023 Report this
JW
You obviously haven't sat at the stop sign on 79th at Old 99 trying to take a left turn.
Sunday, April 23, 2023 Report this
52237123abc
A roundabout is long overdue. We are only getting it for convenience of the Operations and Maintenance Facility they are dumping around 5 neighborhoods and 1000+ homes. This will bring a lot more traffic and heavy equipment to an already crowded area.
Monday, April 24, 2023 Report this