By: Jackson Walsh (Staff Writer)
The Cobb County Department of Transportation is constructing the new Skip Spann Connector Bridge to cut down traffic for Kennesaw State University students. The project aims to provide a better and safer route to not only KSU, but also Town Center Mall and other local destinations, according to the Cobb County website.
“KSU is growing, and Chastain Road becomes maxed out,” said James Hutchens of the Cobb County Department of Transportation (DOT). “So the bridge will offer an alternative to going down Chastain.”
Kennesaw State’s 25,000 commuter students no longer have to share the same route bringing motorists from Interstate 75 to U.S. Highway 41, causing a vast amount of congestion in the morning hours. The bridge is a $17.5 million project, which, according to the Cobb County DOT model, will reduce traffic on Chastain Road by 19 percent.
The Skip Spann Connector will be over I-75 north of Chastain Road. The bridge is also a roundabout at Busbee Drive and TownPark Lane, said Hutchens. Roundabouts have a history of being a safer way to drive. Reduced delay time for vehicles passing means less confusion about four-way stops.They also calm down traffic by slowing down the speed limit and directing cars in a little circle to their intended destination. Speeds at roundabouts are generally 25 mph or lower causing shorter break time and longer decision making time.
“When the South finally adopted roundabouts, Cobb County saw a huge decrease in traffic,” said Hutchens. “Now there are about five or six roundabouts in the West Cobb area.” He said in a roundabout “there’s no traffic light, and everyone moves at slower speeds.”
Some KSU commuter students are reticent to the development. “I don’t think that they would decrease it because in a roundabout people don’t signal or use it properly so people sometimes have no idea where they are going,” said Alyssa Wright. “Also, our roundabouts have plants or other things in the center so it makes it more difficult to see, therefore making it more dangerous.”
According to the Cobb County DOT Website, a 2002 study reflects these facts, reporting a 60 percent decrease in total crash rates, an 82 percent reduction in injury crashes, and a 100 percent reduction in fatality crashes. The roundabout also benefits from lower electricity and maintenance costs that come with traffic lights. They also add a very unique aesthetic look.
Roundabouts have also been known to be environmentally friendly by reducing air pollution. Because the flow of traffic is improved, fuel consumption and vehicle emissions are also reduced. They are also safer for pedestrians, who have a lot of walking room on sidewalks across the perimeter and cross only one direction of traffic.
