Amie Windsor, PRESS DEMOCRAT
Round and round they go: Cotati voters will have their say on roundabouts after a citizens’ initiative to repeal a citywide ban on the traffic configuration has gathered enough signatures to be placed on the November ballot.
A ban against the love-it-or-hate-it road junction has been in place since voters passed a measure in 2012 prohibiting the construction of roundabouts and traffic circles within city limits.
That original ban was also a voter-driven initiative after the council planned to install two roundabouts on Old Redwood Highway as part of a $3.5 million redesign of its downtown. The plan was part of a long-planned revitalization intended to maintain Cotati’s small-town feel, spur economic activity and make the highway safer for pedestrians and cyclists.
At the time, opponents said the traffic circles would jam traffic, cause accidents and stifle business along the half-mile corridor. Ultimately, they were never constructed.
Eris Weaver, one of three proponents for the repeal, said the original arguments against roundabouts were false.
“I don’t know why people lose their mind about roundabouts. I think it’s fear of the unknown, maybe,” Weaver, who serves as the executive director for the Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition, said.
Read more at https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/news/cotati-traffic-roundabouts-vote/