Circling in on safer roads

Sept. 18, 2026

By Ryan LaFontaine

AUSTIN — Texas is going in circles — and that’s a good thing for roadway safety.

As National Roundabouts Week returns Sept. 21-25, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is highlighting the growing use of roundabouts and other innovative intersections designed to reduce crashes and improve safety and traffic flow.

Texas now has 679 roundabouts and more are being planned or built across the state.

Roundabouts are one tool TxDOT is using as the agency works toward its goal of reducing fatalities and serious injuries on Texas roadways. Nearly one-third of fatal and serious injury crashes in Texas occur at intersections, making intersection safety a critical part of that effort.

“​​If we want to get to zero deaths on our roadways, we have to look at all kinds of different innovative approaches to reach that goal and roundabouts are certainly one way to do that,” said Amanda Austin, TxDOT’s roundabout and alternative intersection lead.

A safer way through intersections

Unlike traditional signalized intersections, roundabouts are designed to keep vehicles moving in the same direction around a central island. Drivers entering a roundabout yield to traffic already circulating, reducing the potential for high-speed head-on and right-angle crashes.

The Federal Highway Administration has found that roundabouts can substantially reduce fatal and serious injury crashes compared with traditional intersections. National data shows a roundabout can reduce fatal crashes by up to 90% compared to a tradition signalized intersection.

TxDOT's experience at several recently constructed roundabouts also shows reductions in reported crashes.

· After TxDOT built two roundabouts in New Waverly in 2015 there have been no fatal or injury crashes in the past 11 years. Overall there has been a 79% reduction in crashes.

· In Allen, a two-roundabout interchange was completed in 2023. In the three years prior to construction, there were 12 crashes. In roughly the first two years after the roundabouts opened, there were just three crashes.

· At Chisholm Trail Road and RM 620 in Round Rock, there were 12 crashes between 2021-2022. Since 2024, there have been three reported crashes — a 75% reduction in total crashes over the comparison periods.

· The FM 967 and Marathon Road roundabout in Buda, completed in 2025, is a unique example. The location was previously a bend in the roadway rather than an existing intersection. A developer-led project created the new intersection and roundabout, and there have been no reported crashes at the location since it opened.

Future roundabouts in Texas

In Lavaca County, a roundabout is under construction at US 90A and US 77A, while another is under construction in Brazos County at SH 30 and Associates Avenue.

TxDOT is also preparing to deploy a different approach in Brazoria County at FM 523 and County Road 44, where a “rapid deploy roundabout” is planned. The concept uses temporary or bolt-down features, including curbing, delineators and pavement striping, to quickly convert an existing intersection into a roundabout.

Additional roundabouts are in various stages of design in Harrison, Hill, Madison and Jackson counties.

More than just a circle

When building roundabouts, engineers must account for vehicle speeds, traffic volumes, pedestrians, bicyclists and the size and turning movements of large trucks and other vehicles.

“There is a lot more to installing a roundabout than the simple circle would suggest,” Austin said. “You need it just big enough to accommodate trucks but not so big that people can drive too fast through it.”

TxDOT also considers roundabouts as part of a broader toolbox of innovative intersection designs. Other treatments, such as restricting certain left turns and providing U-turn opportunities, can reduce potential conflict points and improve safety.

For drivers, the basic rules are straightforward: slow down, choose the correct lane, yield to traffic already in the roundabout and follow posted signs and pavement markings.

Celebrating National Roundabouts Week

National Roundabouts Week, observed Sept. 21-25 this year, is an initiative of the Federal Highway Administration to raise awareness of roundabouts and their potential safety benefits.

With hundreds of roundabouts already operating and additional projects advancing across the state, TxDOT continues to evaluate where innovative intersection designs can improve safety, traffic operations and the long-term performance of Texas roadways.

To learn more about roundabouts and how to safely navigate them, visit TxDOT's Roundabouts and Innovative Intersections webpage.