The Dudelange roundabout on the N31 between Bettembourg and Forge du Sud has been operational since the end of April 2021, but the recent addition of a traffic light system has created problems that nobody anticipated. In the two weeks since the lights were switched on, traffic flow at the second largest roundabout in the country has been anything but smooth, and complaints have been flooding into the Dudelange municipality.
"We are receiving feedback from residents and the police that during peak hours and beyond, there are backlogs at the roundabout when entering or leaving Dudelange," said mayor Dan Biancalana. "In part, these lights have also created new danger points."
The National Roads Administration is equally unhappy with the current state of affairs, acknowledging that the system is highly complex and has yet to perform as intended. Roland Fox, Head of the National Roads Administration, explained the scale of the operation. "We have 42 signal generators, which means that traffic light are placed in 42 spots, and around 58 detectors," he said. "Initially, the lights were controlled by a fixed-time programme. Since Thursday morning, all the elements have been fully activated and we are monitoring whether the system is now functioning as it should."
Fox appealed for patience from frustrated road users. "People are often upset, and we understand that. We are in the process of optimising the system and are observing the flows carefully."
The situation is further complicated by a second roundabout on the N31, not far from the main Dudelange junction, which is struggling to cope with the volume of traffic being redirected through it. "It is causing traffic jams on the section near the new roundabout at the National Laboratory," Biancalana noted.
The Dudelange roundabout at the National Laboratory (LNS), is in fact just one piece of a larger infrastructure puzzle. Its full benefit will only be felt once the A3 motorway between Bettembourg and Dudelange has been fully expanded to three lanes in each direction, a project not expected to be completed until 2030.
