Roundabout takes shape in W. Rowan

Published 12:00 am Sunday, June 23, 2013

SALISBURY — Transportation department officials said crews are expected to begin asphalt widening for a roundabout construction in coming weeks.
NCDOT Resident Engineer Darin Waller said crews are finishing drainage pipe installation around the intersection of Sherrills Ford and Briggs roads.
“From there we’ll probably start doing the asphalt widening, getting it prepared to go into the circle phase,” Waller said. “That’s what’s probably going to happen in the next month.”
The proposed traffic circle pitted neighbors against each other after western Rowan County mom Mendee Williams petitioned transportation officials for some type of increased safety at the intersection.
Williams’ 18-year-old son, Greg, died in a wreck at the intersection in July 2009.
After more than a year of requests, the department surveyed the area and notified surrounding residents of a proposed traffic circle.
The circle is slated to be a one-lane roundabout and isn’t projected to interfere with transfer trucks traveling down Sherrills Ford Road.
Weather permitting, Waller said, crews are expected to finish installing a drainage system within the week.