The roundabout on University Blvd. and 1150 W. finished construction and opened to traffic on Thursday. The roundabout was open to walkers and skateboarders for a half hour before traffic.
“UDOT worked closely with SUU from the beginning of this,” said Southern Utah University president Mindy Benson. “We knew that traffic was an issue down here and hopefully this will help keep traffic moving, especially when students are on the way to class in a winter storm and backed up over that hill.”
Although some students had concerns about a roundabout instead of stoplights, Sam Grimshaw, an engineer for the Utah Department of Transportation, said studies were done to decide what was the best option for Cedar City.
“The roundabout actually made more sense safety wise, both for pedestrians and vehicles,” said Grimshaw. “I think you’ll be quite pleasantly surprised…at how well this works.”
Construction was supposed to end earlier this year but was delayed. Although the roundabout is somewhat small, UDOT workers say the low curb will accommodate big trucks.
“You can see the curb is pretty small and so if you’re a semi truck or, they worked with the fire department, they drive through,” said Lisa Beck who worked on the roundabout.
As for SUU, construction projects are far from being completed.
“We have so many projects going on,” said Benson. “We have our new business building expansion, the Burgess family business center, we have our music building, we have the softball field being reoriented. And there’s a lot more coming so stay tuned.”
Author: Hannah Clove
Photo credit: Paul Bardazzi
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