Mankato’s new Highway #22 roundabouts set to ‘yield’ to holiday shoppers
The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) stresses that motorists planning to visit Mankato during the holiday shopping rush are reminded that the Highway #22 roundabouts require everyone to YIELD to all traffic already in the circle. And, for those who aren’t certain what YIELD means the dictionary definition is – “to give way.”
“Many of the crashes reported at the Highway #22 roundabouts at Adams Street and Madison Avenue are due to motorists not yielding and/or driving too fast,” according to Scott Thompson, traffic engineer at the MnDOT “The speed limit is 15 miles per hour.”
Crashes at the roundabouts have been minor property damage with no injuries reported to date. With about two months of crash records collected, each multi-lane roundabout on Highway #22 in Mankato has experienced about seven crashes each month since it opened. The roundabout at Madison Avenue has had a few more crashes than the Adams Street intersection.
“It appears most motorists, including truck drivers, are breezing through the busy roundabouts with no problems, but we do still have some drivers at the beginning of the learning curve,” said Thompson. “Yielding to all traffic in the circle and driving the speed limit will go a long way to prevent a property damage crash.”
In addition, snow and ice conditions in the roundabout are really no different than any other intersection. Motorists need to slow down and drive for conditions. MnDOT snowplow operators have already cleared the roundabouts and applied chemicals without problems for three snow events this season.
Anyone with concerns about using the roundabouts is encouraged to view videos and review driving diagrams at www.roundaboutready.com.
