Billingsley-Middletown roundabout will lead to road rage, accidents

I have lived on the two lane part of Billingsley Road for more than 30 years now. I pass through the three-way stop at the intersection of the two lane part of Billingsley and Middletown Road at least twice a day, almost every single day. Imagine my complete surprise when I recently saw the large sign stating that they were going to put in a roundabout at this intersection. My question is, whose brilliant idea was this? A couple of thoughts for whoever it was that decided this was a good idea.

First, as currently configured, all traffic from all directions has to come to a stop at this intersection before proceeding. In all my years of passing through this intersection, I cannot recall ever seeing an accident, nor ever hearing of one, except for one occasion when someone coming north on Middletown Road apparently missed the stop sign and crashed into the house on the corner.

Yes, during the middle of morning and evening rush hours, there can be a significant back-up of cars waiting to get through the intersection, however, this back-up usually only lasts for perhaps 30 minutes, twice a day, and the actual time to get through the intersection during rush hour is still only a matter of a couple of minutes.

Now, imagine the effect a roundabout will have. Two thoughts on this. First of all, even with the roundabout, the cars approaching the intersection will have to slow down, almost to — if not completely to — a stop anyway, to see if it is clear to enter the roundabout. Second thought, based on the way most people seem to drive nowadays, with everyone seemingly thinking their time is more valuable than anyone else’s, I can foresee people further ignoring the rules of courtesy and etiquette, and “racing” to beat everyone else into the roundabout.

The ultimate result, in my humble opinion, is that there are going to be a lot more road rage incidents by people who feel “they” had the right of way, and resultantly, a lot more accidents at this intersection. Bad idea for everyone who travels through this intersection.

I am 99 percent certain that if the residents who travel through this intersection on a regular basis were asked, almost all of them would say the occasional wait during rush hour is not an issue for them, and the installation of this roundabout is a very bad idea, which will lead to many, many more accidents than the current three-way stop set up.

When our schools are underfunded, and our teachers have to come out of pocket for basic teaching necessities, can someone please explain to me why we are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to fix something that is not broken? And, more importantly, why are we making the intersection that much more dangerous? I will ask again, whose brilliant idea was this?

Bill Beavers III, White Plains