Roundabout at Ohio 48/Lytle Five Points planned in Warren County

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and ODOT Director Jack Marchbanks said the state is investing $73.8 million into 25 projects that will reduce the risk of crashes and increase safety on Ohio roads.

ODOT said the $3.66 million project in Clearcreek Twp. would be constructed in 2028. The intersection is currently controlled by a traffic signal.

“That would certainly be a good spot for a roundabout,” said Kurt Weber, deputy Warren County engineer.

Kathleen Fuller, a public information officer with ODOT’s District 7 office in Lebanon, said that crash trends were used to determine the need for a roundabout at that intersection. She said from 2020 through 2022, there were 23 crashes of which 30% resulted in injury crashes. Fuller said there was one serious injury crash and a fatal crash there over that time period and that the majority, 74% were rear-end collisions.

A ODOT’s analysis determined that left turn only lanes on Ohio 48 would have resulted in a 1.5 crash reduction while a roundabout would have resulted in a five-crash reduction, per year, she said.

“The roundabouts work better,” she said.

Matt Clark, Clearcreek Twp. administrator, said, “it’s been a dangerous intersection. The township identified that intersection as a priority five years ago.”

Clark said it’s an important intersection for anyone traveling north, south, east and west. “We’re very pleased the state and the county engineer are working on this,” he said.

Funding from ODOT’s Highway Safety Improvement Program will cover the various phases of project development, right of way, and construction of the projects between state fiscal years 2024 and 2029. Projects submitted for grant consideration are reviewed and selected by a team of safety experts, design engineers, and funding professionals.

ODOT said many of the projects receiving funding are focused on improving the safety of intersections, including 16 projects that will install crash-reducing roundabouts. As of October, 298 people were killed in crashes at intersections in Ohio this year. Studies by the Federal Highway Administration show that roundabouts reduce overall crashes by 44 percent and serious injury and deadly crashes by nearly 90 percent at two-way stop intersections. When roundabouts replace a traffic signal, studies show a 48 percent reduction in crashes and a nearly 80 percent drop in serious injury and deadly crashes.

“When we introduce roundabouts for the first time, folks are generally skeptical. However, as time goes by, they see the benefits of safety and improved traffic flow,” Marchbanks said.

Other projects announced for the Dayton region includes:

“Since 2019, we’ve worked to grow this program into one of the largest traffic safety programs in the country,” DeWine said. “Every project that receives funding will be constructed in a manner that puts the safety of those traveling Ohio’s roads at the forefront.”