LOWNDES COUNTY, GA — Valdosta's Five Points area looks very different after the completion of a $16 million roundabout project along State Route 7, but one week in, driver reviews are mixed.
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The Georgia Department of Transportation announced the project in July of last year. They said the new pattern could ease congestion along the busy corridor. The second roundabout was completed three years ahead of schedule.
Corey Sauer, the owner of Hometown Furniture, decided to turn the adjustment period into entertainment. Sauer and his business partner, Matt, set up rocking chairs in front of their business near the road and rated drivers as they worked their way through the new roundabouts. He believes some neighbors need to go back to Driver's Ed.
"We got a stopper! Keep it moving. Yeah, he's been sitting there for like five minutes," Sauer said.
Kimberly Sanders drives through Five Points every day to pick up her son from elementary school and get groceries at Winn-Dixie — which sits in the middle of the roundabouts. Sanders says the new layout has made an already busy stretch of road more difficult to navigate.
"You know, you got people like me dropping their kids off at school or just going to work, so the traffic be so backed up because now it's one lane going to KFC. And so it's hard driving down the road because now we got so much going on," Sanders said.
Despite the learning curve, Sanders says the roundabouts are an improvement over what came before.
"I'm happy because there's no more construction. No more stopping at the light every 2 minutes. Valdosta's getting better," Sanders said.
According to GDOT research, roundabouts reduce crashes of all types by over 40% and cut injury crashes by over 65%.
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