Lee County Commission moves forward on construction of Lehigh roundabout

 At the Oct. 9th BoCC meeting, the Board approved LeeDOT's request to proceed with the planned construction of a roundabout at the intersection of Beth Stacey Blvd. and Business Way in Lehigh Acres.

 News-Press also covered story. 

BikeWalkLee representative Ann Pierce spoke in support of the roundabout, along with a representative of the Lehigh Economic Development group.

This proposal is consistent with other components of the new redevelopment plan that has been created for Lehigh:

·       with roundabouts along Homestead Ave

·       to both calm and slow traffic while accommodating flow and volume

·       And, do so in a manner that is supportive of business development, and revenue generation.

1.   Ms. Pierce presented data that roundabouts are quite simply the safest of all possible intersection designs with dramatic reductions in accident and all serious injuries.

2.   

     She also presented the graph below, showing that although there is often significant initial community resistance to new roundabouts, what results is an equal or greater appreciation for them after  their installation and use.

Roundabouts also provide significant long-term equipment and maintenance cost effectiveness and reductions in pollution and fuel use. 

 Commissioner Judah applauded the Lehigh community for leading the county's move in this new direction, and said he hopes to see more roundabouts throughout the county.  He also thanked BikeWalkLee and the County's Sustainability Director, Tessa LeSage, for their advocacy and collaborative efforts in support of roundabouts and other transportation and sustainability-related innovations.