Plans for fixing South Ave. likely to contain roundabouts

Three of four plans contained them, while
others widened street and added bike lanes.

The plan for South Ave. road fixes appears to be heading toward multiple roundabouts.

The La Crosse steering committee believes that would cause the least disruption, eliminating most left turns.

Four plans have been proposed for the road and three of them contain roundabouts to some degree.

In one plan, “only” eight buildings would have to be removed. Other plans required more demolition. One option called for widening South Ave. by as much as 25 feet. Another plan included bike lanes.

Construction is not scheduled on the project for another five years yet, as the Wisconsin Dept. of Transportation prepares to rebuild the Hwy. 14 corridor.

The committee said it would like to prevent sharp increases in speed on the north-south street.

Also at the meeting Wednesday, the committee elected officers, and retiring council member Fran Formanek was chosen as chairman.

Formanek says traffic on South Ave. routinely goes above the posted 30 mph now and changes in the street could encourage drivers to go up to 50.  

The committee also pointed out that many crosswalks on have faded paint or almost have no paint at all.

Parks was also an issue. Formanek told planners on the DOT project that if changes on South Ave. divert too many cars onto side streets, the neighborhoods will be busier than ever before.

Formanek points out that one reason the city chose to move a playground from Powell Park on West Ave. to Trane Park was because there was less traffic there, near South Avenue.