Early planning work for safety improvements at the intersection of Highway 305 and High School Road is now underway.

The pre-design stage allows the state Department of Transportation to gather public feedback and study how people travel through the area. WSDOT plans to convert the existing signalized intersection to a roundabout.

“The intersection has a history of fatal and serious injury crashes. A roundabout at this location will reduce crashes and is consistent with other improvements along the SR 305 corridor,” a WSDOT news release says.

The pre-design will also look at complete streets improvements for all users, including those who walk, bike or roll.

Over the course of the pre-design, WSDOT will meet with local partners and community groups, and will also host an online and in-person open house for people to ask questions and leave comments on the design concepts. The open house dates will be announced when they are scheduled.

The project is included in the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program and funded through the agency’s safety improvement program. It is separate from other improvements along the Highway 305 corridor previously identified in a 2017 Kitsap Transit study. Those projects are funded through the 2015 Connecting Washington transportation package.

A roundabout at the intersection of SR 305 and High School Road was not identified during the 2017 study. Collision data after the conclusion of the study identified the intersection as a priority for safety improvements, per the release.