The Wisconsin Department of Transportation Northeast Region will hold a live, online public involvement meeting at 4 p.m. July 30 to show and discuss a proposed roundabout project and other improvements to a highway intersection north of Sturgeon Bay that has seen a number of severe, injury-causing accidents in recent years.
This map from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation shows the location of a proposed multi-lane roundabout at the intersection of State 42/57 and County BB/Gordon Road north of Sturgeon Bay. The DOT says safety improvements are needed at the intersection because of the number of accidents there and their severity.
The meeting will have staff for the project review its scope as proposed, its schedule and anticipated traffic impacts. The staff will show maps, displays and exhibits in a live presentation, and a public comment and Q&A period follows the presentation.
The project would take place at the intersection of State 42/57 and County BB/Gordon Road, in the town of Sevastopol just north of the Sturgeon Bay city limits and about a mile south of where 42 and 57 split into two directions. The highway often sees very heavy traffic and a Culver’s restaurant and the Door Stop convenience store are located at the intersection with their entrance just off 42/57 on BB.
The DOT justified the plan for a roundabout on its webpage for the project, saying it should improve safety at the intersection by reducing the number of severe crashes there while providing acceptable traffic operations. The page said the type, severity and frequency of crashes at the intersection are especially concerning.
It noted the intersection experienced 18 crashes from 2018 to 2022, eight of which were right-angle crashes that tend to be the most severe. Nine of the crashes resulted in injuries.
The DOT then created a temporary fix in 2023 by installing delineator posts – those tall, skinny poles standing in the road – to prevent vehicles on County BB from making a left turn across traffic to head north on 42/57. But from then to July 2025, three crashes happened near the intersection, including two with injuries, plus the delineator posts require continued maintenance and travel times can increase.
The proposed roundabout would have two through-lanes in each direction. It is intended to improve safety by decreasing speeds through the intersection and eliminating or at least reducing the right-angle and severe crashes. Replacement of a box culvert for Big Creek that was originally built in 1922 also is proposed, and the intersection would get lighting and a new storm sewer.
The DOT said it considered other solutions and dismissed them because they didn’t meet the project’s purpose and need as well as the preferred multi-lane roundabout. Those were:
A one-way-stop with restricted left turns, which would have the same concerns as the current temporary solution;
An all-way stop that would cause significant slowdowns and delays on the highway;
Traffic signals, which were expected to create queues of vehicles more than 700 feet long, and the intersection doesn’t meet DOT qualifications for this and the one-way and all-way stops;
A single-lane roundabout, which would create lines of traffic longer than 400 feet, even longer on weekends and holidays;
And a multi-lane roundabout with one lane exclusively for turning and the other for highway thru-traffic, which was expected to see increased weekend and holiday delays.
Under this proposal, 42/57 would remain open during construction with a temporary bypass. County BB would close to thru-traffic during construction with a posted detour, but access to Old Highway Road would remain open and local access to properties and businesses would be maintained. Construction is tentatively scheduled to begin in the spring of 2028.
Those who want to watch and participate in the public meeting, held on Teams, can do so on a computer or mobile device by visiting the project webpage at wisconsindot.gov/Pages/projects/by-region/ne/door42bb/default.aspx and clicking the “Click Here to Join Meeting” link. The public also can call 608-571-2209 to participate by audio; the phone conference ID number is 698 397 985#.
Public comment will be taken until Aug. 30. Those who wish to comment can fill out a form that can be downloaded from the project webpage and mail it to the DOT, call project manager Paul Brauer at 920-492-5629 or email paul.brauer@dot.wi.gov.
Contact Christopher Clough at 920-562-8900 or cclough@gannett.com.
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This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Online meeting set on roundabout for crash-prone Door County intersection