Oxford roundabout final striping set for Thursday and Friday

Drivers passing through Oxford’s North Lamar and Molly Barr intersection, known locally as the Three Way, were set to encounter final striping Thursday and Friday, April 9 and 10, with no closures anticipated. The city asked motorists to move carefully through the area, or avoid it if possible, as the roundabout entered what appeared to be its last visible stage before full completion.

The work capped a long-running project at one of Lafayette County’s most important traffic points, where North Lamar Boulevard meets Molly Barr Road at the western terminus of Mississippi Highway 30. For commuters heading into Oxford, shoppers traveling across town and drivers bound for points west, the intersection has been a daily bottleneck and a construction zone for months. Final striping is the last pavement-marking step that gives the roundabout its lanes, directional guidance and traffic flow cues, and it is also the stage that makes the finished intersection safer and more legible for drivers who are still adjusting to the new pattern.

Oxford first said roundabout construction would begin Monday, August 18, 2025. During the first phase, the westbound portion of Molly Barr Road was closed and the intersection operated as a three-way stop, with drivers relying on posted signs and message boards to get through the work zone. By March 25, crews had moved into milling and paving, a clear sign the project had advanced from major earthwork and roadway preparation into its final buildout.

The city and its leaders approved the roundabout last summer because of expected traffic growth tied to several new residential and commercial developments. In August 2025, Mayor Robyn Tannehill said the project was based on traffic studies and projected growth, pointing to development around North Lamar, Highway 30 and Colonnade Crossing as the reason Oxford was building ahead of congestion rather than reacting after the problem worsened. Tannehill also said the Highway 30 roundabouts were designed around future growth in Colonnade Crossing, where existing businesses, a surgical center, and additional projects including a restaurant, a grocery store and 514 multi-family units totaling 1,124 bedrooms were planned or under construction.

The latest notice suggested the finish line was close. With final striping underway and no closures expected, the intersection was moving from construction traffic control toward normal operations, bringing Oxford one step closer to fully opening a project meant to handle the city’s next wave of growth.