If you are a driver in the city - it probably isn’t news to you that there are two new roundabouts on the north side. The traffic circles are costing the city nothing but some say they are already causing chaos. Mayor Zenaida Moya strongly disagrees. She told us why roundabouts are the way to go.
Keith Swift Reporting,
Is it a WMD, an IED, a ballistic defense missile or possibly a stunt double for the world’s largest diamond? Whatever it is – it is now a part of the city’s semi-permanent landscape and the centrepiece of a new roundabout at the intersection of St. Thomas Street and Princess Margaret Drive. A second roundabout is already under construction where St. Thomas Street meets Freetown Road.
Zenaida Moya, Mayor of Belize City
“The roundabouts will be completed very shortly and they are being constructed primarily to self-regulate traffic, ensure that the accidents, because there have been a number of accidents that have happened particularly right here, that those are reduced, hopefully even eliminated and it would also beautify the place. So after the yield signs, because what is being constructed here will also have to have the yield signs, all the relevant traffic signs, the markings, some of the islands will be cut just to adjust it so there’s a wide enough drive around the roundabout. So all of that is being done to ensure that there is proper traffic management at these particular cross roads.”
Mayor Zenaida Moya says they chose roundabouts over traffic lights because
roundabouts are cheaper and safer – and in this case - these are costing the council nothing.
Zenaida Moya,
“Roundabouts are cheaper, I’ll be frank with you and easier to maintain. Traffic lights, when you place them, they are good but if anything happens, if you don’t have the relevant personnel to get out there immediately, that can pose some problems and we’ve seen those happen other areas where we have traffic lights. All in all, it is cheaper and it does a very good job at the same time.”
Keith Swift,
Do you think that it won’t be effective because it is smaller than most other roundabouts, do you think size might affect its effectiveness?
Zenaida Moya,
“Well what I have noted in other countries is that they use a lot of roundabouts in other countries and the areas where they have the roundabouts, sometime the smaller roundabouts, sometimes the areas are even smaller and so I see no problem with the size.”
And as for the design – your guess is as good as the mayor’s.
Zenaida Moya,
“The persons from Hans and Nandini Foundation came up with the upper design. The foundation, they got their own architects to decide what would go up on top so the design that is up there, they are the ones who came up with it.”
The roundabouts would have cost the city about $30,000 each. The Mayor says they are contemplating placing a roundabout at the northern end of the swing bridge. She is unsure where the fourth will be placed. She says the decision will be made by the Traffic Advisory Board. For context, earlier this year when the Orange Walk Town Council announced plans to install three sets of traffic lights – the cost was reported to be $100,000.
And we would be remiss, if we didn’t end this story with some City Council controversy. The Mayor says she got the idea for the roundabout on a recent trip to New Zealand, while Councillor Dean Samuels, who is backing Anthony Michael, told us a few weeks ago that it was his idea from months ago.
