The specifics
The city has about 20 single-lane roundabouts, Capital Improvement Program Manager Blake Sills said in an email, but only one operational multilane roundabout.
The roundabout project at Ridge Road and Wilmeth Road was completed in late 2023. The three additional roundabouts are located along Wilmeth Road at the intersections of Lake Forest Drive, Taylor Burk Drive and Hardin Boulevard. These intersections are expected to open in the spring, Sills said.
Another single-lane roundabout is under construction at the intersection of Louisiana Street and Greenville Road in East McKinney, according to the city’s website. A single-lane roundabout at the intersection of East Virginia Street and Throckmorton Street is also planned as part of the improvements to roads around the new city hall project.
Diving deeper
Roundabouts are implemented at intersections in an effort to reduce traffic congestion and car crashes, according to the city’s website. Below are some tips from the city of McKinney’s website on how to drive in a roundabout, as well as signs and rules to know.
1. When approaching a roundabout, drivers should determine which lane to enter in based on their intended exit. Utilize markings on the road to determine which lanes allow drivers to exit on each of the roundabout exits.
2. When entering a multilane roundabout, the right lane enters and can continue through the roundabout or exit to the right. When entering a multilane roundabout in the left lane, drivers can continue through the roundabout and exit on a later leg of the traffic circle.
When entering a roundabout, drivers should yield to:
- Emergency vehicles
- Pedestrians or bicyclists in the crosswalk
- All traffic coming from the left
- Change lanes
- Pass other vehicles
- Obstruct emergency vehicles
- Slowing down prior to entering a roundabout
- Entering the roundabout when there is a “safe gap” in the traffic flow
- Allowing additional space for larger vehicles such as semi-trucks
- Considering traffic signs prior to entering and while traveling in a roundabout
- Utilizing turn signals when leaving the roundabout
