SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — Ongoing construction is causing confusion and concern on a busy road in western Seminole County.

Carol Lanouette says newly installed roundabouts are making it dangerous on State Road 46 in the Sanford area.

“They decided to incorporate these circular loops right away and traffic doesn’t slow down enough,” said Lanouette, who moved to Wekiva Park on the far west side of Sanford in 2006.

FDOT is extending State Road 429, known as the Wekiva Parkway to Interstate 4. The addition of the tolled expressway has meant changes for State Road 46, which runs parallel to it.

Lanouette says eastbound State Road 46 traffic, coming from Lake County, is going too fast and causing hazardous conditions for her and neighbors.

 “You come off the bridge at 45 miles an hour, you cannot see the roundabout, there’s no heavy lighting at all, it’s very dark,” she said.

With poor lighting and a new design, State Road 46 has seen some close calls, said the resident. 

“We’ve had people drive the wrong way in the circular loop,” said Lanouette. “My daughter was trying to get in and she had a truck coming right at her in the circlar loop”

It has gotten so bad on State Road 46, Lanouette has found an alternative way to get to her home.

“We paid our neighbors $200 so they would add a gate so that we could actually park at their house and enter into our property, because there is only one entrance to our subdivision and it’s off Highway 46,” she said.

FDOT says they brought law enforcement out to assist with the traffic shifts.

“FDOT has been monitoring this roadway and actively implementing additional safety features,” said FDOT Public Information Director Jessica Ottaviano. “Since the roundabouts opened on State Road 46, more signage and pavement markings were installed to further notify motorists. Rumble strips are also now in place and additional measures are being considered to emphasize the speed limit in the eastbound direction.”

She says reflective barrels and temporary lighting have been placed at the roundabouts until crews can installed new LED lights for the Wekiva Parkway.

Lanouette cannot wait for construction to be done (still two years away) to make it safer to get to her home.

“That’s all we can hope, that it gets done and no one gets injured and that enough lighting gets out that people can see the signs well in advance,” Lanouette said.

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