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Attention, commuters and residents of the Samoa Peninsula! Caltrans is seeking public input on its plans to build a roundabout on Route 255, where the Samoa Bridge intersects with New Navy Base Road. 

An open house meeting is scheduled for Thursday, March 19, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Manila Community Center. 

Why build a roundabout on the Samoa Peninsula, you ask? Caltrans believes it will improve safety and reduce the risk of severe crashes at the intersection, while “maintaining efficient access for trucks, freight and local traffic.” 

Currently, drivers heading southbound on Route 255 have the right-of-way, with traffic passing across the northbound lane to get onto the Samoa Bridge. Caltrans hopes the “modular roundabout” would streamline the flow of traffic by reducing vehicle speed and channeling all drivers to move in the same direction. 

“Study after study in the U.S., Europe and Australia show that roundabouts improve safety,” according to a fact sheet from the Caltrans Division of Research, Innovation and System Information. “Even in cases where the number of collisions doesn’t go down significantly, the severity of the crashes goes down, resulting in far fewer fatalities and severe injuries.”

Construction on the new roundabout is slated to begin in the summer of 2027. More information on the upcoming open house can be found in the flyer below.

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