Pictured is a stock photo of a roundabout.

The Caltrans proposed Highway 126 four roundabout project between Fillmore and Santa Paula has been discontinued, according to the VCTC May 12 meeting minutes, “The SR 126 safety project is no longer on the list of programmed projects.”

Fillmore and Santa Paula along with the County of Ventura opposed the $62 million project. One of the big concerns was the roundabouts would slow emergency services response times.

A roundabout is an intersection where traffic travels around a central island in a counterclockwise direction. Vehicles entering or exiting the roundabout must yield to vehicles, bicyclists and pedestrians. Caltrans believes roundabouts slow traffic and significantly reduce collisions and injuries.

In a letter sent out by Carrie Bowen, Caltrans’ Director for Ventura and Los Angeles counties, it read, "Caltrans has decided to discontinue work on the proposed project," which also called for building a concrete median barrier on the highway, the agency wrote in a letter last month to the county and the two cities.

The letter also stated that the agency agreed with the county and the cities that safety improvements that were installed on the highway in 2012 "have been successful at significantly reducing accidents."

Those measures included rumble strips — corrugated pavement strips across the highway that cause noise and shaking when driven over to warn motorists to slow down — speed reduction signs and radar speed feedback signs, the letter notes.

The county's and the cities' "primary concern regarding the roundabouts is that they would reduce emergency response times by delaying emergency services, including police, fire and ambulance," John Zaragoza, chairman of the Ventura County Board of Supervisors, wrote in a Feb. 14 letter to Caltrans Director Malcolm Dougherty.

The Santa Paula and Fillmore city councils also formally opposed the roundabouts and wrote their own letters of protest to Caltrans, which held public workshops on the project in both cities in early 2016.

The Ventura County Transportation Commission took no position on the project.

And thus, the thoroughfare can no longer be called "Blood Alley," Gherardi wrote in a letter to The Star in March 2016.

Fillmore City Manager Dave Rowlands said he too welcomed Caltrans' decision.

“We were pleased to hear Caltrans is not pursuing roundabouts at this time along the 126 corridor," he said.

Caltrans will continue to monitor the Highway 126 corridor, Bowen's letter states.

"If further work is warranted, we would initiate a new project and explore additional alternatives that minimize the impacts to the community as much as possible," the letter states. "As always, Caltrans would seek input from local stakeholders throughout the process."