Construction of a roundabout at the intersection of Wilson Street West and Shaver Road is creating headaches for local drivers.

Laurel Court resident Gunter Born said turning from the north side of Shaver Road onto Wilson is "practically impossible" due to poor visibility and traffic congestion.

"It's asking for serious accidents," Mr. Born said.

Shaver Road is one of four thoroughfares leading to Highway 403. Mr. Born said he would like to see temporary traffic signals or stop signs installed on Wilson Street to give drivers a reasonable opportunity to turn from Shaver onto Wilson.

Multi-lane roundabout

Concrete barriers have been placed along the north side of Shaver Road at Wilson Street, the site of Hamilton's first modern multi-lane roundabout.

During the initial stages of construction, traffic on Wilson has been reduced to a single lane in each direction on the south side of the road.

Ron Gallo, supervisor of signals and systems for the City of Hamilton, visited the construction zone last week and recommended some minor sight line improvements.

Although Mr. Gallo found the intersection already meets minimum sight line requirements, a painted stop line on the north side of Shaver Road will be added to assist drivers approaching the Wilson Street intersection.

"We found a lot of people weren't stopping exactly where they should be," Mr. Gallo said.

Mr. Gallo also recommended moving concrete barriers on the northwest side of Shaver closer to Wilson Street to give drivers better visibility.

Though he acknowledged the ongoing construction will cause traffic congestion, Mr. Gallo said the city will not install temporary traffic lights or stop signs, as some residents have requested.

During the construction period, expected to last until November, the speed limit on Wilson Street within the construction zone has been reduced from 80 km-h to 50.

"(Drivers will) have to change their behaviour accordingly," Mr. Gallo said.

He said the city must follow legal drawings for each stage of the project. The addition of traffic signals would require revised drawings, potentially adding months to the construction schedule.

"Signals have to be justified from a feasibility standpoint," Mr. Gallo said.

The new roundabout will include two lanes on Wilson Street and a single lane north and south on Shaver Road.

Mr. Gallo said the traffic calming feature will have capacity for up to 5,000 vehicles per hour.

"It's really been designed for 20 or 30 years out," Mr. Gallo said.

Modern roundabouts are credited for major reductions in serious collisions versus conventional signalized intersections.

The Shaver roundabout is being built at an estimated cost of $1.9 million.