I must have gotten out of the wrong side of the bed this morning: I have something nice to say about the Roanoke Times editorial page. Traffic engineers propose installing two roundabouts, as part of improvements to the 13th Street-Hollins Road corridor in Southeast Roanoke, with construction to start in 2010. Citizens have expressed safety concerns, but the Times assures them that roundabouts are OK:

Such fears are unwarranted. Other communities have found that once roundabouts are in place, they prove safer than traffic lights or stop signs. Moreover, because drivers must slow when approaching a circle, the few accidents that do occur are less severe.

Drivers end up liking them because traffic flows better, and there is no waiting at a red light. Neighbors end up liking them because they calm traffic on local streets.

As Bacon’s Rebellion readers know, (“In Praise of Roundabouts“) we like roundabouts for the very reasons enumerated by the Times. Now… if only we could persuade the Times to take a serious look at the many other strategies for improving traffic flow and managing transportation demand that could address Virginia’s transportation crisis without raising taxes.