New Roundabout on Standifer Gap

After several months of construction the Standifer Gap/Ooltewah Ringgold Road Roundabout is up and helping people get to their destinations safely.

The project began in September of last year.

It was a locally managed project by Hamilton County Engineering Department, said Todd Leamon Administrator of Public Works & County Engineer.

“We opened the intersection with temporary paving and then we completed the intersection first of this month with final paving during spring break.”

Leamon said they had several issues in the area before adding the roundabout.

” Standifer Gap was offset about 10 or 15 feet. so you had oncoming traffic facing each other.”

But they say the new roundabout will help eliminate many of those issues.

“You do have merging conditions. but we did have some serious accidents in that intersection prior to this and typically if you have accidents with a roundabout they’re not as serious injuries because typically they’re at lower speeds.

Many residents in the area are happy to have it.

“This intersection was so incredibly dangerous before the roundabout. I hated crossing Ooltewah-Ringgold. The roundabout is so much better it was defiantly much needed,” Angie Harris said.

20% of the funds for the project were local and 80% came from federal.