The city will be installing another roundabout, this time at the intersection of Lewes Boulevard and Hospital Road.

The traffic-calming measure, according to the city budget released Monday evening, will cost $225,000 and will be built in 2007.

The roundabout is part of several million dollars' worth of new infrastructure funding announced by Mayor Ernie Bourassa at Monday night's council meeting.

Other roadwork and infrastructure projects earmarked in the city's budget include:

ï the reconstruction of bumpy First Avenue for $2 million (2006);

ï the refurbishing of the waterfront area between Strickland and Ogilvie Streets for $4.5 million (2006);

ï the complete revamping of infrastructure in the Takhini North subdivision for $8.3 million (2006/07/08); and

ï a bike lane extension on Fourth Avenue for $419,000 (2007).

In an interview this morning, Bourassa said he's excited about the new projects.

While he's aware that there is some resistance to the city's use of roundabouts, he said, he also believes there are a number of supporters in the community.

'Everybody's got an opinion on them,' he said.

City engineering manager Wayne Tuck said his department is gearing up for a busy year in 2006.

Tuck said he too is an advocate of using roundabouts over traffic lights because, he feels, they are more efficient in terms of public safety.

'I don't see a huge bone of contention with (roundabouts). Some people are afraid that they don't know how to use them ... (but) what we've found is that as a traffic-calming measure, they work well,' he said.

Over the last couple of years, roundabouts have been installed on Hamilton Boulevard and at the Fourth Avenue-Robert Service Way junction.

City officials have found in their research that motorists actually tend to slow down for roundabouts as opposed to the mad dash to make the yellow light that happens at traffic lights.

'Signals don't slow people down, they actually speed up.'

Tuck said from a cost perspective, roundabouts are cheaper to maintain than traffic lights and eventually paid for themselves.

Tuck said next year, motorists may find they experience some delays due to road construction, especially on First Avenue, but he didn't feel people will experience too much inconvenience.

Tuck said delays may also be experienced in Takhini North when their subdivision is revamped but that the reconstruction of the area's infrastructure is a city priority.

'The area was wartime housing that was created by Public Works Canada ... it's older infrastructure that wasn't put in very well (the first time),' he said.