COLUMBUS – Saturday will be a good day for Dublin-area drivers and anyone who has struggled to navigate the construction zone around the intersection of Riverside drive and State Route 161 for over a year.
The roundabout, which is replacing a previously confusing and frustrating traffic-light and turn-lane configuration, is tentatively scheduled to open sometime between 7:00 p.m. on Friday and 8:00 a.m. on Saturday with an “event” that is part ribbon-cutting, part grand-opening scheduled for 10:00 a.m. at the Montgomery Inn restaurant, 4565 Dublin-Granville Rd., Dublin city spokeswoman Lindsay Weisenauer said.
All lanes of the roundabout are expected to be open after a complicated traffic switch occurs. The traffic switch will include more than just opening the new roundabout. It also includes:
The opening of the roundabout (SR 161 expected to be open to two lanes of traffic in each direction)
The opening of the new, realigned Riverside Drive
Closures of old Riverside Drive and the Riverside underpass for approximately 60 days
Opening of John Shields Parkway
Permanent left turn prohibitions at Tuller Road and Riverside Drive (right turns only)