A roundabout west of Chatham is moving to the next step after Chatham-Kent Council voted 14-4 to hire an engineering firm to go ahead with final design of the project at Queens Line and Merlin Road.
The municipality clarified the project hasn't doubled in price, it just includes the cost of rehabilitating the bridge next to the roundabout, which was outside the original $2.1 million cost for the roundabout.
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Previous story below from October 27, 2023:
A roundabout near Merlin could clear another hurdle if an engineering contract is approved by Council Monday evening.
Councillors will vote on the $401,731 engineering services for the roundabout at Queens Line and Merlin Road.
A report going to Council said final design for the roundabout is to begin in November 2023 and the construction is expected to begin in Spring 2024 with a project completion date of November 2024.
The estimated cost of the roundabout has increased from $2.1 million to $4.6 million including the bridge rehabilitation.
The land was acquired in June 2023.
Chatham-Kent council gave the new $2.1 million roundabout the go ahead in March of 2022 after safety concerns surfaced, including drivers passing on the right-hand side of a left-turning vehicle, one of the most frequent occurrences reported to council following a traffic study.
