Traffic signal added to Apex Road roundabout

The rules of the road for at least one traffic roundabout in Sarasota County are a bit different. As in, you might have to stop for a red light before entering the traffic feature instead of simply watching for coming vehicles and yielding.

Drivers heading east on Apex Road at Lakewood Ranch Boulevard must now pay heed to a solitary traffic signal, an effort to help alleviate backups at Fruitville Road, less than a football field to the north.

Sarasota County this week activated the traffic light, the first of its kind in a roundabout in the area, the county said.

The stop signal faced by drivers passing the Fruitville Library on Apex Road meters vehicles entering the roundabout, especially at high-traffic periods, which stand to become even busier when the nearby new county administration building fully opens.