Roundabouts Reduce Traffic Fatalities

Chris Teale, Smart Cities Dive

- To get congestion, road safety and emissions issues under control, cities should consider installing roundabouts at intersections, Carmel, IN Mayor Jim Brainard told Smart Cities Dive last week.
- Since he took office in 1996, the city has installed more than 120 roundabouts, which Brainard said have been key in reducing traffic crashes and improving safety. Compared to national average traffic fatality rate of about 12 per 100,000 people, Carmel’s fatality rate is at two per 100,000. Brainard attributes that rate to the roundabouts having narrower lanes, forcing people to slow down. “It’s all about speed,” Brainard said on the sidelines of the U.S. Conference of Mayors Winter Meeting in Washington, DC. He said the city now only has about 14 stoplights.
- In addition to the improved safety and reduced congestion, Brainard also cited environmental benefits. He said engineers in Carmel have calculated that the city has saved over 25 million tons of carbon per year, due to a reduction of idling at stoplights and of cars speeding up after being stationary.