Roundabout planned at scene of eastside Muncie crash

Douglas Walker, Muncie Star Press
·2 min read
The intersection of Jackson Street and Ohio Avenue in Muncie, where officials say a roundabout is scheduled to replace the current two-way stop eventually.
The intersection of Jackson Street and Ohio Avenue in Muncie, where officials say a roundabout is scheduled to replace the current two-way stop eventually.

MUNCIE, Ind. — State officials plan to install a "miniature roundabout" at an eastside intersection.

For decades there was a traffic light at Jackson Street and Ohio Avenue.

More recently, traffic only stops on Ohio. Because Jackson Street carries eastbound traffic on Ind. 32, state officials, rather than their city counterparts, are responsible for traffic control devices — or a lack of them — at the intersection.

At a Muncie City Council meeting on June 6, local resident Mary Stilts suggested the traffic light be returned.

"People are running that stop sign and slamming on their brakes to keep from wrecking," Stilts told council members.

Indiana: Ex-Jay County sheriff's deputy convicted of murder

A serious traffic accident was reported at the intersection on the afternoon of June 4.

According to a Muncie Police Department report, about 4:30 p.m. that day, a northbound Ford van driven by Bernard Joseph Kappe, 64, of Mooreland, ran a stop sign, leading to a collision with an eastbound Chevrolet Malibu driven by Taylor Routh, 28, of Muncie.

Routh reportedly suffered a broken neck and was taken to a hospital in Indianapolis.

Kappe — who suffered a head cut — and a passenger in his van were treated at IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital.

At Monday's council meeting, Adam Leach, city engineer and street superintendent,  said state officials were "looking at doing a miniature roundabout at that location in lieu of a stop light."

The roundabout would be at least the eighth in the Muncie area. Construction of a roundabout at the intersection of Nebo and River roads in Yorktown began May 31.

Construction is expected to begin in the summer of 2023.

The traffic light at the intersection was removed because the amount of traffic at the intersection no longer justified it, officials said.

Reporter David Penticuff contributed to this article.

STAY INFORMED AND SUPPORT LOCAL JOURNALISM: Subscribe today using the link at the top of this page.

Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: 'Miniature roundabout' planned for eastside intersection