City of Omaha
Public Works Department

This letter is in regard to the proposal to require traffic signals at the pedestrian crossings in roundabouts.

The City of Omaha is against this proposal to signalize the pedestrian crossings in roundabouts. This would defeat the whole purpose of a roundabout. Also, it would be very difficult to signalize it in such a way as to prevent traffic from exiting a roundabout and if traffic was forced to stay in the roundabout, it could cause a capacity problem.

Before a roundabout is constructed, factors such as the number of pedestrians crossing and the age/type of pedestrian at that particular intersection needs to be part of the overall decision to design a roundabout. In the City of Omaha, roundabouts are not used at all locations. They are used more as a traffic calming devise on low volume roads in residential subdivisions. Signalizing these types of intersections would not make any sense.

Also, it would be against the current Uniform Manual on Traffic Control Devices that states that a traffic signal and a stop sign/yield sign cannot be installed at the same intersection.

If you would like to discuss this further, I can be reached at [...].

Sincerely,

Charlie Krajicek, P.E.
Traffic Engineer