City of Hiawatha – 12th & Boyson Rd Design

Located in Hiawatha, IA

The City of Hiawatha, Iowa, had a safety problem on busy Boyson Road. Cars trying to turn left from the car dealerships, gas station and hospital near the I-380 interchange had to wait for a gap across two lanes of traffic; this was a challenging task that led to daring jumps into traffic or cars giving up and making a right turn then having to U-turn down the road. A traffic study showed that the safest and most efficient way to manage traffic would be to install a roundabout, which would keep traffic flowing but allow vehicles to safely enter Boyson Road from these side streets.

After receiving a $500,000 Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT) grant for safety improvements, Hiawatha was ready to implement the roundabout. Breaking the project into two phases ensured continual access to the three businesses and the hospital throughout construction, a critical step to gaining their approval of the project. The first phase of the project was building the north half of the roundabout, where the two car dealerships were located. Two temporary drives were built for the dealerships, and the south side of Boyson Road was widened to maintain two-way traffic. During the second phase of the project, the south side of the roundabout was built, and hospital patients were able to get in through a temporary drive and short detour.

In addition to trying to reduce the impact on the four stakeholders, the project also needed to stay on schedule so that the Iowa DOT’s reconstruction of the Boyson Road bridge and I-380 interchange would not be delayed. Coordination was necessary with the Iowa DOT designers to ensure that elevations of the two projects would match. It was also necessary to coordinate with local utilities and Iowa DOT so that poles and underground utilities would only need to be moved once for the projects.

The single lane roundabout includes a truck apron to allow buses and semis through, and a center grassy area is set up for future landscaping. The project finished on schedule, which allowed the Iowa DOT to begin their project early. Customers leaving the businesses now have a quick, easy, and safe way to make their way onto Boyson Road.