Rain postpones roundabout opening; new timetable now "hopefully by this weekend"

Overnight rain has pushed back the opening of the Kings Road/Stembridge Road roundabout, which previously was tentatively scheduled to open this evening. 

Striping work remains, and the contractor responsible for striping the roads must wait for the asphalt to dry out, according to County Manager Carlos Tobar. 

Compounding matter, the sod was scheduled to be laid today, but that too was rained out. 

"Hopefully by this weekend" is the new general target opening date, according to Tobar. 

The new roundabout will be the very first in Milledgeville/Baldwin County. Some locals are skeptical, which is natural. The idea, however, is to reduce the risk of serious and fatal accidents. According to the DOT's roundabout web page, "roundabouts reduce severe crashes at intersections by about 80 percent."In theory, someone is significantly less likely to be seriously injured in an accident when the speed limit is 20 or 25 miles per hour as opposed to 55 miles per hour.