State delays highway roundabout

A federally funded roundabout proposed for the intersection of Montana Highway 200 and U.S. Highway 87 at Grass Range — opposed by some state lawmakers and seven county commissions — has been put on hold, Lori Ryan, a public affairs officer with the Montana Department of Transportation, said Friday.

“The project is not moving forward,” Ryan said during a telephone interview.

She said the $3.2 million proposed project would not be let for bid by contractors Feb. 9 as had been scheduled,

The decision to not go forward with the bidding was made Jan 23, Ryan said.

State Sen. Mike Lang, R-Malta, an opponent of the roundabout, said Department Director Mike Tooley told him last week they are studying alternative ways to improve safety at the intersection.

In an email Friday, Ryan said possible alternatives to the roundabout include a 2- or 4-way controlled intersection with an Intersection Conflict Warning System, larger stops signs and transverse rumble strips on either all or minor approach legs.

Lang said he does not know if the project is dead, but hopes to know before the Legislature adjourns in April.

Tooley was persuaded not to proceed with bidding after he attended a public information meeting at the Lewistown Community Center Jan. 18 where he “heard the opinions of the people,” Lang said.

The Fergus County Commission invited Tooley and other members of the Department to the meeting, where representatives from Blaine, Fergus, Garfield, Musselshell. Petroleum and Phillips county commissions were also in attendance.

Lang said he had letters from all seven counties, along with Valley County which did not have commissioners at the meeting, expressing opposition to the roundabout.

Critics of the proposed project have said it is too expensive and a roundabout is not right for the intersection. Though the roundabout would be in Fergus County, Lang has said many people in adjacent counties also use Highway 19 that intersects with Highway 200.

“I think they need to look at other options and for less dollars,” Blaine County Commissioner Dolores Plumage said Friday. “I am totally against a roundabout. It’s out of place on a highway in a remote rural area, and I think they need to go back to the drawing board.”

In all about 180 people were at the meeting, with those in attendance signing their names and note whether or not they supported the project, Lang said. He said that 171 said they opposed the project, seven others gave no opinion and two people voiced support for the project.

Several lawmakers from districts that encompass the affected counties have also signed letters against the proposal. The letters were delivered to Tooley and Montana Budget Director Dan Villa last week, Lang said.

Lang said though the department did abide by state law when they held a public meeting with the Fergus County Commission in 2014, he thinks subsequent meetings should have been held with them and surrounding counties, especially after the cost of the project increased from $2 million to $3.2 million.

Lang said he is now carrying legislation that would require hearings be held at least once a year for highway projects that cost $1 million or more until the request for bids is issued. The draft legislation says that another public meeting must be held no more than six months before the request for bids on the project is issued.

The proposed legislation requires the meetings be held in an area where construction would take place or that would be affected by the construction.