Getting There: Spokane officials consider building a peanut on the Palouse Highway

Mon., March 30, 2026

The city of Spokane envisions the oblique intersection of Freya Street and the Palouse Highway, now controlled by a four-way stop, will someday be a moderately large roundabout to smooth the traffic, which is growing from the large number of apartments being built nearby. (Jesse Tinsley/THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW)

By Emry Dinman emryd@spokesman.com (509) 459-5472

Spokane officials are considering building the city’s strangest roundabout at the southeastern gateway to the city to prepare the intersection for future population growth.

The exact shape hasn’t been finalized for the Palouse Highway and South Freya Street intersection – the Spokane City Council will consider a $500,000 contract for design of the intersection at Monday evening’s meeting – but early mockups show a roundabout that looks more like a peanut or a butternut squash than a bowling ball. The odd shape is necessary to accommodate not just Palouse Highway and Freya, but also East 51st Street, which currently meets Freya roughly 100 feet north of the intersection.

“We knew it would be odd -shaped because the intersection itself is not a perpendicular four-way type intersection that your standard roundabouts handle,” said Spokane Public Works spokeswoman Kirstin Davis.

Construction isn’t expected any sooner than 2027, though delays in acquiring the necessary property surrounding the project may push the start date to 2028, according to documents prepared for the council’s consideration. The project isn’t exactly responding to an urgent safety concern, however, Davis noted.

No crashes have occurred at the Palouse Highway and Freya intersection this year, and only one crash each in 2025 and 2024, according to data from the state Department of Transportation.

But the city anticipates major growth in the area in coming years and wants to get ahead of future traffic problems, Davis said.

“Roundabouts are safer because you’re not risking a T-bone collision, so the impact is different and you’re not going to have as much impact between vehicles,” Davis said. “And in general, a roundabout is going to reduce speed. You might blow through a stop sign because you didn’t see it or whatever, but if you blow through a roundabout, different things are going to happen to your vehicle.”