Line painting and some landscaping remains as the main to-do items left on the City of Nanaimo's list at Mary Ellen Dr. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Alex Rawnsley

round she goes

New Mary Ellen Dr. roundabout substantially complete

Apr 16, 2023 | 5:27 AM

NANAIMO — A major traffic flow change for a busy north end street is now substantially complete.

Vehicles are navigating through a new roundabout along Mary Ellen Dr., connecting the northern end of the Woodgrove Centre complex with the Woodgrove Crossing strip mall.

The intersection was a frequent trouble spot for vehicles looking to enter or exit the shopping areas, due to a high volume of cars at faster speeds as they came off both Hwy. 19 and Hwy. 19A. During busy holiday season shopping, flaggers were on site helping direct traffic.

“This project has gone smoothly and the feedback has been very positive,” Jamie Rose, City manager of transportation, told NanaimoNewsNOW via email. “The biggest improvement I have observed is the lower speeds coming off the highway.”

Full road closures ended earlier in April with only surface level work remaining.

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Road markings and landscaping will be completed in the coming weeks as they are both weather dependant, according to Rose, who said any further disruptions “should be minimal.”

Aside from the roundabout making it easier for vehicles to turn off and onto Mary Ellen Dr., a major aspect to the upgrade was improving pedestrian safety.

Previously the crossing span was five lanes wide, which was not only unsafe but further clogged traffic flow.

The new design limits the span for pedestrians at the crosswalk on Mary Ellen Dr. to just two.

Rose added they will continue to review flows and any incidents at the intersection to ensure it’s working as intended.

“Observations over the coming months will give us true insight into the overall impact as it usually takes several months for drivers to fully adjust to a new situation.”

Vehicles now flow freely along Mary Ellen Dr., with a new roundabout making it easier to get in and out of the shopping areas on both sides. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

The installation of a roundabout along Mary Ellen Dr. was not surprising to ICBC road safety community coordinator Karen Klein.

She told NanaimoNewsNOW the devices are becoming much more popular all over B.C. because of their ability to effectively juggle safety and traffic flow.

“Roundabouts have proven to reduce the frequency and severity of collisions when compared to stop control and signalized intersections because they reduce the conflict points. They eliminate the right angle or left turn type of conflict.”

She added roundabouts became popular beginning in the 1990’s and are a continued preference for governments when re-doing intersections.

It’s not only a smoother travelling intersection type, but one which is better environmentally as well.

“Rather than having vehicles piling up and stopped and waiting for a light to cycle through…we also have less idling time, less driver frustration because the traffic is in this continued slower movement as it moves through.”

The new roundabout at Mary Ellen Dr., midway between both highways, is designed to allow better access in and out of Woodgrove Centre and neighbouring Woodgrove Crossing. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

–with files from Ian Holmes

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