APPLETON — There's no such thing as a roundabout without curves.

For Appleton, the learning curve might be the most prominent among them as drivers get used to driving east of the College Avenue bridge.

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Kevin Jorgensen of Weyauwega maneuvered through the new roundabout Friday en route to the Fox Valley Thrift Shoppe. He figures it'll get a little hairy once bridge traffic finally enters the equation.

"It's a matter of deciding what lane to get into, and it's a quick position," he said. "That's the hard part."

Appleton's new multilane roundabout at College Avenue, John Street and Walter Avenue is open in three of four directions as crews near completion of the bridge. Police say the true test will come when barricades come down and downtown traffic hits the entrance and exit of the roundabout at the bridge within the next two months.

It's one of two multilane roundabouts in the city — the other at Midway and Lake Park roads opened last month — and navigating them is a new experience to many drivers. The traffic control devices feature a round median instead of a traffic signal and require drivers to enter the intersection turning right and circling to their destination street.

The single-lane versions are more common in the region, said Kim Rudat of the state Department of Transportation. Yet multilane roundabouts have been built at an increasing frequency since northeastern Wisconsin's first opened east of De Pere's Claude Allouez Bridge in late 2007.

Appleton Police Lt. Pat Matuszewski expects it will take some time before they become second nature to motorists.

"We do anticipate a little bit of a learning curve," he said.

The city distributed brochures this summer that illustrate traffic flow at the roundabout east of the bridge.

Police will keep a close eye on traffic in the initial weeks after the bridge opens. Matuszewski said motorists and their levels of patience would play a key role in eliminating headaches during the acclimation period.

"Be cautious the first few times you drive through and pay attention to the other traffic in there," Matuszewski said. "Drive defensively. If you're comfortable, remember that it might be another driver's first time coming through."

If the Midway Road roundabout is any indication, its College Avenue counterpart shouldn't pose much of a problem. Matuszewski could only think of one fender bender in the first few weeks there.

Roundabouts draw concerns from some and shrugs from others.

Make no mistake, they're here to stay, and drivers will see more roundabouts along Fox Valley travel routes in years ahead.

Plans call for a roundabout at the Plank Road and Midway Road intersection next year.

In Neenah, a $1.7 million construction project on State 114 will include a multilane roundabout at Winneconne and S. Green Bay roads.

In 2011, roundabouts will be built at States 114/55 and State 114/Calumet County N.

The DOT cites studies by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety in the movement to roundabouts. They eliminate T-bone crashes. As such, there are 76 percent fewer injury in circular intersections.

They're different than what we've had, but they make sense, Rudat said.

"People shouldn't be afraid of these. They really are safer."

Jim Collar: 920-993-1000, ext. 216, or jcollar@postcrescent.com