It's official: Orange loves a good roundabout.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Orange's love affair with large, circle traffic management infrastructure has reached a milestone, with the city boasting 50 roundabouts in work across our Local Government Area.
Council has built new ones, improved old ones and ... there's plans for even more.
After the construction of a number of roundabouts across Orange throughout the COVID period, the latest of which was complete on the intersection of Clinton and Dalton streets, number 51 is already in the works after the federal government identified another blackspot on our roads last year.
Construction work on a roundabout at the Hill and Moulder streets intersection is set to begin in April, 2024.
Orange: the roundabout capital of the ... world?
Canberra is often labelled the roundabout capital of Australia, with locals and tourists alike consistently poking fun at the seemingly absurd number of traffic circles in the city.
But is it a title Orange could actually lay claim to ... even if it is based on a technicality?
Orange doesn't come close on sheer number of roundabouts with the city's tally at 50 compared to Canberra's estimated 410.
But comparing the two cities per capita tells a different story, one in which Orange sneaks past Canberra and blitzes the Central West's other main - and arguably more comparable - centres.
With the numbers crunched, and based on a population of around 41,000, Orange has roughly 820 people per roundabout compared to Canberra's 980.
Bathurst and Dubbo pale in comparison, at last count, with 31 and 34 roundabouts respectively both cities sit well above the 1000 people per traffic circle mark. The nation's other capital cities all boast similar, or higher numbers.
Of course, the point of roundabouts is to manage traffic flow and, in turn, increase safety levels for motorists.
As one of the people who uses Orange's plethora of roundabouts the most, Orange Driving School's Graham Kidson firmly believes they do just that.
"There does seem to be thousands in Orange," he said, with a laugh.
"They do manage traffic flow well in Orange though I think and that helps with safety, so it's a good thing [Orange City Council] keep building more around where they're needed."
For a driving instructor, the abundance of roundabouts certainly provides excellent teaching opportunities for Mr Kidson, who offered some sage advice relevant to not just learners but all drivers.
"The best advice for roundabouts, I think, is to approach them slowly," Mr Kidson said.
"When you approach a roundabout slowly it gives you a lot more time to react to what's happening around, a lot more time to stop or indicate or to make any decisions."
The new roundabout on Hill and Moulder is one of several major road projects planned for 2024 by Orange City Council.
Completion of the Southern Feeder is now due in September, following discovery of naturally-occurring asbestos.
Design work for the Western Feeder Road is also expected to be finalised this year.
Extensive repairs of potholes and footpaths across town is ongoing.