BECKLEY, WV (WVNS) — West Virginians are some of the best drivers in the nation, and they're also used to driving on some of the worst roads in the country, according to a recent study.
Will they be able to learn to deftly navigate the roundabouts, the roundabouts that some local drivers don't trust?
This roundabout is the first of its kind in Beckley. When West Virginia University Polytechnic Institute asked for public input on proposed traffic flow changes in February, many people in Beckley expressed concerns about the proposed traffic flow changes along Kanawha Avenue. in the University District, where he said he has doubts about learning how to use the roundabout that is part of the plan.
Plans for the WVU Tech Corridor project will be available for public viewing and comment on the WVU Tech campus during a community meeting on Thursday, March 28, 2024.
This traffic change will incorporate one-way flow and roundabouts to protect pedestrians and students.
“We are asking the community to come together in this ‘community’ project to better not only Beckley but the university,” WVU-Tech President Dr. T. Ramon Stewart said in March 2024 said on Wednesday the 27th.
Beckley doesn't yet have a roundabout, but WVU Tech President Dr. Stewart, a McDowell County native, said he and other mountaineers have learned to drive on winding mountain roads and have used eight lanes of traffic in other cities. He said he could. Roundabouts are unlikely to be an issue as this is when we have to do it.
But Dr. Stewart doesn't want Beckley residents to take a detour every time they turn around. Therefore, in the latest plans to redirect the university district's new traffic flow, roundabouts are specialized and used only once.
Previous plans called for two In the roundabout and original plan four.
There is only one roundabout proposed in the latest plan, at Beaver Avenue and Johnstown Road. It is “attachable” and can be driven by school buses and fire engines if needed. Dr Stuart said there were also very wide lanes to accommodate ambulances.
Dr Stuart said people were also concerned about how well emergency vehicles could navigate roundabouts, so traffic islands could be installed on these vehicles.
Dr. Stewart inherited traffic changes that were proposed four years ago.
He said he was encouraged that the plan would attract Congressional funding to the city, as it did under the late Sen. Robert C. Byrd.
He said he supports the plan and wants to develop a favorable traffic pattern for Beckley. It takes into account the needs of the university.
Other concerns shared by members of the public who saw the plan in February were an aversion to one-way streets and a preference for Beckley streets to remain the same.
Dr. Stewart said one-way traffic is necessary to ensure the safety of WVU Technical College students, many of whom are young, and campus visitors, some of whom are children and the elderly.
“Our campus is not just for college students,” Dr. Stewart said. “It’s for the whole community.”
Dr. Stewart invited the public to visit campus on Thursday, March 28, 2024, to view the new plan and ask questions or comments. He pointed out that change is necessary to grow, but most of us don't like change while we're experiencing it.
But he believes the transportation changes will benefit the city by adding bike lanes, keeping pedestrians safe and bringing in additional funding for the city.
WVU Tech has a $35 million impact on the local economy, and his goal is to make the community part of the university and the university part of the community, a concept he calls “community.” He said.
The meeting is scheduled to be held in the WVU Tech Neville Street Auditorium on Thursday, March 28, 2024 at 5:30 p.m.
