WSDOT seeks support for new Ephrata roundabout

EPHRATA — The Ephrata City Council voted unanimously to support state efforts to replace the intersection of state Route 282 and Nat Washington Way with a roundabout.

But that doesn’t mean construction is going to start any time soon.

“We’re looking at a roundabout, but we don’t have funding for it yet,” Ethan Rhodes, an engineer with the Washington State Department of Transportation, told the Ephrata City Council at a regular meeting Wednesday night.

Rhodes said that because the intersection of 282 and Nat Washington has a higher-than-average number of accidents, the state is looking for ways to improve safety. The intersection already has turn lanes, and traffic lights are expensive, Rhodes added.

“Roundabouts are generally preferred; they cost less than a signal and are easier to maintain,” he said.

Rhodes said the committee that chooses road safety projects will decide in March which projects to fund, and if the proposed roundabout makes the cut, it would not be built for another four to six years.

If built, Rhodes said, a full roundabout would cost about $2.4 million and take 55 days to build.

Last year, WSDOT replaced the intersection of Route 282 and Dodson Road/A Street Southeast with a roundabout utilizing the existing asphalt simply by reorienting the intersection. The process cost roughly $120,000, and construction took a week.

“The Dodson one went in pretty quickly, and we really appreciate that,” said council member Sarah McDonnell.

WSDOT traffic engineer David Kieninger told the council that any roundabout at 282 and Nat Washington would be “more of a traditional circle,” and would have to be larger than the roundabout at Dodson because the road speeds are higher.

However, he also said it is possible WSDOT could build a “compact” roundabout there using the existing road and space, which would save time and money.

“We’re learning what works,” he said.

Kieninger said they were not looking for a financial commitment from the council, since they were looking at funding “through regular channels.”

Council member Kathleen Alstott noted that the city paid WSDOT roughly $65,000 “in 2006 or 2007” for design work on a proposed roundabout at that location, something Kieninger said the city could mention in a letter of support to WSDOT.

“If you think that will bolster support,” he added.

Mayor Bruce Reim also swore in former police chief Mike Warren as the city’s new administrator, Capt. Erik Koch as the city’s new interim police chief and Zachary Smith as the Ephrata Police Department’s newest patrol officer.

Charles H. Featherstone can be reached at [email protected].