Public still can comment on extension proposal
The big meeting may be over, but residents still can have their say on the hot-button issue of the proposed Mark Clark Expressway extension for about another week.
Residents can comment until April 25 by visiting www.scdot.org/i526.
After that, the S.C. Department of Transportation will use the comments and suggestions to identify what the current problems are and come up with alternatives.
Not that some haven't come up with differing routes already that don't include a cross-island expressway, which would stretch from the James Island connector to Citadel Mall.
For instance, the Coastal Conservation League is submitting to DOT alternatives garnered from a design charrette held earlier this year. The league hopes that the department's project team will take them into consideration as it develops the environmental impact statement.
"They mainly focus on taking the local trips that congest our main throughways ... taking traffic off of them and putting them on secondary streets," said the league's Lisa Jones-Turansky.
These alternatives include revamping the U.S. Highway 17/S.C. Highway 61/Wesley Drive "intersection" by making the roads and on-ramps two-way. Alternatives that urban planning firm Glatting Jackson Kercher Anglin Inc. offered include a grid system of streets so drivers could select different routes to take. The firm even created a design that adds pedestrian paths, crosswalks, a bike lane and trees lining Savannah Highway.
"Our alternative has the least amount of impact, it costs less and it actually improves the quality of life," Jones-Turansky said.
The meeting on the expressway extension, which was attended by more than 400 residents, was held April 10 at Murray-LaSaine Elementary by DOT to gather input from the public.
Dan Hinton, a member of the I-526 project team who works with the Federal Highway Administration, said at the meeting that the team would look at the public's comments and develop its alternative routes from that input and environmental impact studies.
"We develop our own, but we already know what's out there," he said. "I think improving our roads may be part of our alternatives."
The Coastal Community Foundation is holding weekly meetings with community groups and neighborhood associations to talk about how its members think the alternatives would be more beneficial.
If you would like to schedule a meeting with the foundation, call 723-8035.
After DOT develops the draft version of its environmental impact statement, more public meetings and opportunities to comment will follow.
Reach Sophia Rodriguez at 937-5538.
E-mail this story 
Printer-friendly version
Notice about comments:
The Post and Courier is pleased to offer readers the ability to comment on stories. We expect our readers to engage in lively, yet civil discourse. The Post and Courier does not edit user submitted statements and we cannot promise that readers will not occasionally find offensive or inaccurate comments posted in the comments area. Responsibility for the statements posted lies with the person submitting the comment, not postandcourier.com. If you find a comment that is objectionable, please click "suggest removal" and we will review it for possible removal. Please be reminded, however, that in accordance with our Terms of Use and federal law, we are under no obligation to remove any third party comments posted on our Web site.
Full terms and conditions can be read here.
Comments
This article has 1 comment(s)
Posted by icbmman on April 17, 2008 at 12:17 p.m. (Suggest removal)
The CCL's plan is hilarious. The group is so intent on trying to inhibit new roads and road widening, the alternatives they suggest, such as for the US 17/SC 61 intersection, are not just half-assed...they're absolutely stupid. Savannah Highway has plenty of trees in that area, and fixing one intersection isn't going to solve the traffic congestion that extends to Glenn McConnell and the mall. In addition, their "solution" will create a more restricting bottleneck; by creating 2-way roads and ramps, traffic will go from 2-3 lanes on US 17 and SC 61 to ONE lane.
They're solution focuses on aesthetics and not traffic flow. They're primary objective is to make the primary thoroughfare a "pretty street". Idiots. Lunatics. I'd like somebody to sue the CCL for incompetance, stupidity, and negligence...the US 17 widening in Colleton County would be Exhibit A for these morons.