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Twinning of Hwy. 11 to see roundabouts at Sylvan Lake, Benalto and Eckville intersections

Five roundabouts are planned along Hwy. 11 as part of the previously announced twinning
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A roundabout is proposed at the intersection of Hwy 11 and 781. (Photo Courtesy of McElhanney Engineering)

With the twinning of Highway 11 from Sylvan Lake to Rocky Mountain House, the Province is planning five roundabout intersections at problematic intersections.

As part of the development for Highway 11, from Red Deer to Eckville, the Province has launched an online open house, where locals can give their feedback of the planned project.

Highway 20, Highway 781 and Range Road 15 at Sylvan Lake, Range Road 25A at Benalto and Highway 766 at Eckville are the five intersections planned for roundabouts.

According to a presentation given to Sylvan Lake Town Council Monday night, the intersection at Hwy 20 and Burnt Lake Trail had the highest number of reported collisions between 2008 and 2017, with 190 collisions during that time.

Fatalities have also been reported at Hwy. 20 and Hwy. 781 over the same 10-year period.

“Roundabout improvements are expected to reduce intersection delays, improving the overall intersection performance,” the presentation to council states.

A roundabout will reportedly reduce the potential for collisions, and help reduce the severity of collisions.

Putting a roundabout at the Hwy. 11 and 20 intersection would potentially see the closure of Rural Route 13 to create a bypass, according to Alberta Transportation.

“If RR13 was connected to Highway 11, the bypass is not feasible and it would require a full roundabout with less traffic improvement.”

The bypass lane will be dedicated to traffic heading to east Red Deer “to circumvent the roundabout for greater ease of travel.”

Alberta Transportation believes the roundabouts at the five intersections will help improve safety and mobility on the highway even as traffic demands increase over the coming years.

A roundabout a the Hwy. 781 intersection will allow those travelling from all directions to have access to Sylvan Lake.

The online survey is open until Nov. 30 and can be viewed at vertisee.mcelhanney.com/Highway11FPS/.

Alberta Transportation hopes to complete functional designs for the roundabouts by the end of the year, in order to move forward into design and construction in 2021.