SANTAQUIN — Santaquin faces a few political speed bumps as city leaders gear up to drive a roundabout project past planning stages.

A roundabout may be the key to solving traffic woes at a busy intersection in Santaquin.

The city is thinking about a roundabout design for the intersection just east of I-15 because a semaphore intersection simply is not working.

Chief among the concerns: Crashes are common at the intersection.

Driving toward Santaquin from Payson, U-198 comes around a 90-degree downhill turn immediately into an area where motorists could be either getting on I-15 or exiting.

Additionally, Highland Drive merges into the mix at about the same point, just east of where U-198 becomes U-6, which in turn becomes Main Street.

"It's a public safety disaster," Santaquin City Administrator Roger Carter said, referring to the intersection. "I'm not concerned what the solution is, as long as there is one."

City and state officials think a roundabout may ease the congestion. But construction, if finally approved, could be as many as five years away.

"It's just at the dream stage," said Lori Dabling, a project engineer with the Utah Department of Transportation.

Civil Science, a local engineering firm in American Fork, recently completed a study that indicates the European-style road design could work at that site.

The idea for the roundabout came from a larger UDOT interchange study for Utah County.

The first hurdle: public support.

The second: Convincing the Federal Highway Administration that a roundabout near two freeway accesses is a good idea. It needs federal support before it's even a project, Dabling said.

Without federal approval, the just-completed $15,000-state funded study won't need the next step — a public hearing.

Some people like roundabouts, Santaquin City Engineer Shon Fullmer said.

And others don't.

While UDOT gave a thumbs up on the idea, officials want public support, said Santaquin City Engineer Shon Fullmer.

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