Fredericton roundabout prepares for opening

Fredericton drivers will finally get their chance to drive the city's new $2-million roundabout.

The roundabout, which is on Route 8 and also draws in traffic from Smythe Street and Bishop Drive, is scheduled to open mid-day on Tuesday.

John Lewis, a traffic engineer in Fredericton, said the guide rail is being finished on Monday and crews will spend Tuesday morning taking down the construction zone.

The opening was delayed after an inspection showed the grade of the asphalt in a partofthe circle was"a little bit off," Lewis said. So that section had to be milled and repaved.

After all the talk about the roundabout, the traffic engineer said he's looking forward to having drivers actually using the new piece of highway infrastructure.

"I think people are starting to understand the five simple rules of driving the roundabout," he said.

The city has launched a public education campaign to show Fredericton drivers how to use the roundabout.

Along with the public education initiative, the city will also be relying on data being gathered from University of New Brunswick students.

A camera is being installed on a nearby water tower that will capture driver behaviour at regular intervals.

"This is useful in both from predicting capacity and potential safety issues and also if they are noticing common driver errors," Lewis said.

"That is something that we can come back out and modify or refocus our public education campaign. We will certainly be having a close look at it."