Marysville installing traffic circles in some neighborhoods

MARYSVILLE — Five neighborhoods that have been victim to speeding cut-through drivers will have traffic circles installed by the end of the year.

The circles are officially called “neighborhood traffic calming circles,” and are much smaller than the one on Shoultes Road.

Instead, these circles will be put on neighborhood streets that drivers have been using as short cuts to avoid lights or traffic on the major arterials, said city spokeswoman Bronlea Mishler.

“The goal is to start them this fall and have them installed by winter,” Mishler said, adding that construction would largely be dependent on the weather.

The speed limit on neighborhood city streets is 25 mph, but in several locations, traffic has been observed going as fast as 35 mph, said Jesse Hannahs, Marysville’s traffic engineer.

Likewise, Hannahs said, the city hasn’t determined what percentage of traffic on those roadways is local and how much is cut-through. It also hasn’t compiled accident statistics.

Many of the intersections for which circles are planned are on straight sections of roadway between two arterials.

For example, two traffic circles already have been installed in the Northpointe neighborhood on 71st Avenue NE where it crosses 71st Street NE at 67th Street NE.

At this location, 71st Avenue is a straight north-south shot that runs parallel to 67th Avenue NE between arterials 76th Street NE and 64th Street NE, making it an easy short cut, Mishler said.

Seven or eight more traffic circles are planned to be installed this fall:

92nd Street NE at 46th Drive NE;

92nd Street NE at 48th Drive NE;

56th Avenue NE at 130th Place NE;

56th Avenue NE at 56th Drive NE;

Beach Avenue at Short Street;

and 79th Avenue NE at two or three to-be-determined locations between 48th Street NE and 60th Street NE.

Hannahs said the city has prioritized the list based on traffic volume and speed, with the intersections on 92nd Street NE getting built next.

Most of the traffic circles are small enough and the roadways large enough that the city doesn’t need to lay any additional pavement, he said.

For example, 71st Avenue was wide enough with 12-foot-wide lanes, bicycle lanes and parking on both sides that it didn’t need any additional widening.

In addition, all of the circles will be landscaped.

“The desire was for them to fit into the neighborhood, not become an eyesore,” Hannahs said.

Chris Winters: 425-374-4165; cwinters@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @Chris_At_Herald.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Lynnwood
Crash in Lynnwood blocks Highway 99 south

The crash, on Highway 99 at 176th Street SW, fully blocked southbound lanes. Traffic was diverted to 168th Street SW.

The view of Mountain Loop Mine out the window of a second floor classroom at Fairmount Elementary on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County: Everett mining yard violated order to halt work next to school

At least 10 reports accused OMA Construction of violating a stop-work order next to Fairmount Elementary. A judge will hear the case.

Imagine Children's Museum's incoming CEO, Elizabeth "Elee" Wood. (Photo provided by Imagine Children's Museum)
Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett to welcome new CEO

Nancy Johnson, who has led Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett for 25 years, will retire in June.

Kelli Littlejohn, who was 11 when her older sister Melissa Lee was murdered, speaks to a group of investigators and deputies to thank them for bringing closure to her family after over 30 years on Thursday, March 28, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘She can rest in peace’: Jury convicts Bothell man in 1993 killing

Even after police arrested Alan Dean in 2020, it was unclear if he would stand trial. He was convicted Thursday in the murder of Melissa Lee, 15.

Ariel Garcia, 4, was last seen Wednesday morning in an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Dr. (Photo provided by Everett Police)
Search underway to find missing Everett child, 4

Ariel Garcia was last seen Wednesday morning at an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Drive.

The rezoned property, seen here from the Hillside Vista luxury development, is surrounded on two sides by modern neighborhoods Monday, March 25, 2024, in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Despite petition, Lake Stevens OKs rezone for new 96-home development

The change faced resistance from some residents, who worried about the effects of more density in the neighborhood.

Rep. Suzan DelBene, left, introduces Xichitl Torres Small, center, Undersecretary for Rural Development with the U.S. Department of Agriculture during a talk at Thomas Family Farms on Monday, April 3, 2023, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Under new federal program, Washingtonians can file taxes for free

At a press conference Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene called the Direct File program safe, easy and secure.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.