Big deal in a small town: roundabout officially opening Friday morning

In a small town, when the first roundabout opens, it's a really big deal.

Such is the case with the new roundabout across the river, the subject of much speculation on Milledgeville Facebook. Now, County Manager Carlos Tobar has announced that the new roundabout officially will open to the public on "Friday morning," although a specific time was not offered.

Despite that, some work will remain ongoing.

"Tree cutting on Kings Road continues for the next two weeks. That will complete all the right-of-way tree and brush clearing from the roundabout to Highway 22," wrote Tobar. "Sod will be placed next week at the roundabout Expect minor delays from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday."

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

Photos by Carlos Tobar, county manager

The new roundabout, as aforementioned, 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.

Tobar also gave some shout outs.

“Baldwin County also thanks County Engineer Brian Wood, Road Department Superintendent Keith Green, Road Department Assistant Superintendent Deryl Nelson and the entire road department staff for their hard work," he wrote.