Town Council Approves $2.3 Million Study To Decide If Roundabouts Confuse Northerners On Purpose
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, SC — In a unanimous vote Monday evening, the Hilton Head Town Council approved a $2.3 million study aimed at determining whether the island’s roundabouts are deliberately designed to bewilder Northerners.
The study, which will be conducted by an outside consulting firm, will take 18 months to complete and include driver surveys, aerial mapping, and “a robust confusion index” measuring horn usage and abrupt braking.
“Roundabouts are a growing part of our infrastructure,” said Council Chair Marianne Pickens. “But we hear the feedback: Are they meant to improve traffic flow, or just to see how fast Ohio drivers panic when faced with multiple yield signs? This study will give us answers.”
Tourists from the Midwest welcomed the effort. “I was just trying to get to Sea Pines and somehow ended up back in Bluffton,” said Cincinnati visitor Jerry Kowalski, interviewed while gripping his 2019 Chevy Equinox's steering wheel with both hands. “At one point I circled the same palmetto tree seven times. My kids thought it was part of the attraction.”
The consulting firm behind the project, Lowcountry Infrastructure Partners, confirmed the study will also explore whether installing a “practice roundabout” at exit 8 of I-95 could help acclimate visitors before they attempt the real thing.
At press time, council members were considering an additional $1.1 million study to investigate whether confusing Northerners is “part of the island brand.”
