The Latham Circle is the intersection of
U.S. Route 9 (US 9) and
New York State Route 2 (NY 2) within the
town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an ori ...
of
Colonie, New York in
Albany County.
Description
The circle is a roundabout. US 9 travels north–south under the circle while one-way access roads on either side carry traffic to the circle for connection to NY 2, which travels east–west.
The circle takes the name from the
hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
of
Latham, of which the circle is close to the exact center.
History
The circle was originally built as a large
traffic circle
A roundabout is a type of circular intersection or junction in which road traffic is permitted to flow in one direction around a central island, and priority is typically given to traffic already in the junction.''The New Shorter Oxford Eng ...
in 1934. In 1958 an underpass was built to give motorists the option to skip the circle and continue on US 9. The underpass opened to traffic on December 12, 1958.
The traffic circle was remodeled in 2002 to have true
roundabout
A roundabout is a type of circular intersection or junction in which road traffic is permitted to flow in one direction around a central island, and priority is typically given to traffic already in the junction.''The New Shorter Oxford En ...
characteristics. Prior to the 2002 work, the accident rate at the circle was about one per week, but were of low severity. After the reconstruction the accident rate dropped by 60%. The work on the circle included improving pavement markings, narrowing the US 9 access roads entering and exiting the circle to one lane, realigning the approaches from NY 2, reconfiguring the lanes within the circle, and improving signage. This work won the
New York State Department of Transportation
The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) is the department of the New York state government responsible for the development and operation of highways, railroads, mass transit systems, ports, waterways and aviation facilities in ...
the 2003 National Roadway Safety Award.
Traffic counts for US 9 in 2002 and 2004 showed over 26,000 cars passing under the Latham Circle daily.
Latham Circle's access roads formerly had two
Texas U-turn
A Texas U-turn, or Texas turnaround, boomerang, or loop around, is a lane allowing cars traveling on one side of a one-way frontage road to U-turn onto the opposite frontage road (typically crossing over or under a freeway or expressway). Typical ...
s, allowing for traffic on the access roads to cross US 9 to the opposite access road without passing through the circle.
The name Latham Circle has since been used in the name of many local businesses, including a
shopping mall
A shopping mall (or simply mall) is a North American term for a large indoor shopping center, usually anchored by department stores. The term "mall" originally meant a pedestrian promenade with shops along it (that is, the term was used to refe ...
, soccer team, diner, and taxi service.
References
External links
{{Attached KML
Roundabouts and traffic circles in the United States
Colonie, New York
Transportation in Albany County, New York