Project to widen Interstate 26 to get under way in August
Tyrone Walker
The Post and Courier
Construction to widen Interstate 26 to eight lanes between the Interstate 526 and Ashley Phosphate Road will begin in August.
The Post and Courier
Get ready for a lot of orange barrels, concrete barriers and lane shifts on your interstate commute for the next three years.
Widening Interstate 26 to eight lanes from the Mark Clark Expressway to Ashley Phosphate Road in North Charleston is about to start.
Workers are expected to come out on the road Aug. 4. Lane closures will not be allowed during the daytime, though the contractor might seek South Carolina Department of Transportation permission for possible closures during weekends to pour concrete when there is less traffic.
Prep work already has begun, and the first piece of the project is in place — a Web site that will give construction updates and let motorists sign up for e-mail traffic alerts.
The widening "will be the most radical transformation of an interstate in the Lowcountry that anyone has ever seen," said Earl Capps of the U.S. Group Inc., which won the construction contract for the $66 million project.
The 2.9-mile project will include
nearly a complete makeover of both the Aviation Avenue and Remount Road interchanges with new on- and off-ramps and collector lanes beneath the bridges.
"It's going to be complicated with two interchanges close by," said SCDOT district construction engineer Tim Henderson.
The improvements are expected to alleviate the rush-hour, stop-and-go traffic that bottlenecks near the Mark Clark Expressway.
"This will improve capacity of the highway and improve safety at the interchanges," Henderson said.
Only a temporary fix
Despite this project, the area's growth is so strong that traffic tie-ups likely will build soon after workers finish. A recent Post and Courier Watchdog analysis found that if traffic grows at the same rate it has during the past 15 years, I-26 will have waves of stop-and-go traffic in just eight years even with the new lanes.
Gail Hale of Moncks Corner commuted by car to the Medical University of South Carolina for 14 years before catching the Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority bus at Kmart on Rivers Avenue in January.
While she is saving money on gasoline and would like to see a commuter rail line, she sees the growth coming to outlying areas of Berkeley County and knows more cars soon will spill onto the freeway.
"I think they still need to do (the widening)," she said. "Charleston is growing so much and if gas ever comes down, then there will be more people on the road. It will help with traffic and accidents."
The number of vehicles on the targeted stretch of highway already exceeds capacity during rush hour.
The traffic count on I-26 between Remount Road and the Mark Clark Expressway is 140,800, based on 2007 SCDOT figures.
A six-lane road's maximum capacity before failure is 117,800 vehicles per day, said Tony Sheppard, a SCDOT traffic engineer. Adding an additional lane will bring I-26's capacity along that stretch to 157,000 vehicles per day, he said.
While orange barrels and concrete barriers will go up along the entire stretch at the onset of construction, initial work will focus on land clearing and demolition and then reworking the Remount Road interchange first, Capps said.
The Remount Road overpass will be replaced with a wider bridge, and the road will be accessible to I-26 in all directions with new exit and entry ramps.
Currently, I-26 has an on-ramp for eastbound traffic from Remount Road and an off-ramp for westbound commuters going to Hanahan or Rivers Avenue. Additional ramps will allow motorists to access I-26 westbound and lead drivers off I-26 eastbound onto Remount Road.
After that, work will shift to the Aviation Avenue cloverleaf, which will lose two of its loops but gain new on- and off-ramps as well as a new, wider bridge.
"The Aviation interchange will be radically redrawn," Capps said.
New merging lanes called collector-distributor lanes will be added to the interchanges of Remount Road and Aviation Avenue, similar to one added a few years ago at the Ashley Phosphate Road interchange leading to Goose Creek and the U.S. Highway 52 connector.
The conflict of motorists entering and exiting the freeway on top of each other under Aviation and Remount bridges will go away.
"That's going to make it a lot safer," Capps said.
While bridges at Remount and Aviation are being torn down at night, traffic will not be allowed on the interstate and motorists will be directed to side streets, such as Rivers Avenue, to bypass the roadwork, Capps said.
The speed limit will be reduced to 45 mph through the work zone when there are lane closures at night, Henderson said.
"Motorists can count on that being enforced," Capps said.
Reach Warren Wise at 745-5850 or wwise@postandcourier.com.
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Comments
This article has 24 comment(s)
Posted by UrGatorbait on July 13, 2008 at 1:23 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Prepare for the clusterbang of a circus. Three years they say...Hmmmm
Though it's about time they decided to add merge lanes and not the suicide entry/exit ramps they have now. Should help improve safety.
Posted by TacrolimusAddict on July 13, 2008 at 2:22 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Those orange barrels installed in areas where no work is being performed cause some drivers to obey the 45 MPH speed limit. Most other drivers, not seeing workers, will continue to drive the normal speed,65 or 70 MPH. I have always thought the contractors should only install safety barrels where work is being performed and then I believe 95% of drivers will obey the 45 MPH limit.
I know the contractors will complain about the cost,but I think getting most drivers to maintain the same safe speed where it's really needed would save more contractor lives and also reduce car wrecks in the work area.
Posted by ForPnC on July 13, 2008 at 4:45 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Do what Germany does - 24 hour work crews will get the work done is less than half the time.
Posted by metallic on July 13, 2008 at 7:51 a.m. (Suggest removal)
It still won't do anything for the biggest morning traffic jamb area -- in the East-bound lanes, from the Exchange Park/Ladson exit to the Ashley Phosphate interchange.
Posted by drp7773 on July 13, 2008 at 8:03 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Lets see is this a cost plus job where it never ends like the Greenville project. Was the low bid taken knowing they couldn't do it for that price? Sound like if you get a bicycle you will get to work quicker going around all the stopped traffic and lord help ya if one car breaks down or a wreck occurs....
Posted by moonpie on July 13, 2008 at 8:28 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Adding a lane on both sides is going to fix the traffic issues we have? I don't think so! I need to be an engineer with SCDOT. Your gonna go from 6 lanes to 8 lanes for roughly 3 miles only? Does anyone think the Ashley Phosphate exit is suffice?
I drive to AP every day and never take I-26 UNLESS school is out for the summer or hoildays. Right now I can go from my house TO WORK IN 15 MINUTES. WHEN SCHOOLS IN IT TAKES 30 TO 45 MINUTES.
Posted by lexylady on July 13, 2008 at 9:03 a.m. (Suggest removal)
By the time they complete the project, it will be obsolete.
Posted by Brant on July 13, 2008 at 9:14 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I have only three words to say: "Oh, good grief!!" Such a move as this might make me rethink any plans of visiting Charleston in the near future. I can't stomach the possibility of sitting in traffic on 26.
Posted by robbybobby on July 13, 2008 at 9:44 a.m. (Suggest removal)
you could go to 80 lanes and the idiots coming onto I 26 from the on ramp would still run into other cars because they don't get the "stay in you lane and merge later" concept. Cancel all road projects, no more roads, no more lanes, nothing. Let it back up until folks discover that I 95 runs north as well.
Posted by Brutus1 on July 13, 2008 at 9:48 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Always seems to forget about the worse traffic area, 17-A to Ashley Frustrate Rd.
Posted by rollnwflo on July 13, 2008 at 10:20 a.m. (Suggest removal)
If you could pave your way out of traffic congestion, cities like Atlanta, Los Angeles wouldn't have any traffic jams. We never seem to learn from others mistakes. Restrict development, plan for the entire tri-county region, and then build accordingly. Good luck with that I-26 thing.
Posted by moonpie on July 13, 2008 at 10:25 a.m. (Suggest removal)
rollnwflo, right on. More roads mean more traffic. No law no northerners can move here ever again!
Just kidding my northern friends, but how about no liberals and no illegals?
Posted by rollo on July 13, 2008 at 10:58 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The prob with exiting '26 West at Remount, Aviation, Or AP isn't with getting off the I, it's that once you do, you've nowhere to go. It seems to me that driving off an expressway to a red light will have the same result, no matter how many lanes the expressway has.
'526 West to '26 West has 5 lanes, which become 4 @ the overpass. That does not prevent traffic from backing up onto '26 from the red light at Rivers.
Posted by onedeep on July 13, 2008 at 10:59 a.m. (Suggest removal)
There are two trouble spots.
Going east in the morning, from the Midland Rd overpass back, usually to 17A
Going west in the afternoon, from Aviation back, usually to Montague.
Widening is not going to be enough for either one, especially the first, since it isn't really in the scope of construction.
There is one thing that I think would help the west bound problem - they need to put a barrier between the two inside lanes and the two outside lanes. That barrier needs to run from Montague all the way past Aviation.
If you are on 26 headed west, and you want to get off at Montague, 526, Remount, or Aviation, you get into the outside lanes, and you have to deal with the traffic that is merging on.
Those of us who are starting before those points and going past those points get into the inside lanes, and don't have to mess with merging traffic.
Something similar could be done east bound as well, though it would have to be for a much longer stretch, so I don't know how feasible it is.
Please, if there are DOT people reading this, realize what we need are express lanes. The barrier essentially creates those for west bound traffic, and I am sure there is a viable option for east bound traffic in the problem areas. More generic lanes are not going to solve the problem.
And if any CARTA people are reading this, please, for the love of God, cut some of the inner city routes and use those buses for more Express routes.
Posted by KidYendor on July 13, 2008 at 11:06 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The westbound bottleneck quickly disappears after Aviation. The 526 and I-26 merge of 2 lanes into 1 needs a bit of work but I usually just stay in the right lane and cut over at the end of the lane in front of a nice motorist. It is amazing how the left laners will back up there over the interstate bridge but you can go another quarter mile or more in the right lane. Eastbound traffic woes help promote N.Charleston commercial business real estate rental by avoiding downtown. Make all government workers ride CARTA. Use the airport road to get to Aviation, Midland Park, and A.Phos.. Wrecks and rubbernecking are the biggest problem in backing up roads. All cities have some rush hour problems that never go away no matter what. Our roads are relatively clear and safe except for rush hour.
Posted by scienceguy on July 13, 2008 at 11:24 a.m. (Suggest removal)
So, Political Consultant Earl Capps also works for the company that has been given the contract to build this boodoggle of a road. Seems like a sweet deal--easy access to legislators.
This road will not solve our traffic problems and will just bring more traffic to a port facility we do not need.
Let's do the intelligent thing and use this money to build roads to the Jasper County Port and to build the Jasper County Port itself. We do not need more pollution and commercial traffic on either the West bank of the Cooper or the West bank of the Wando.
Everyone who thinks that this is a sound economic idea ought to remember that Al Parrish was the source of the economic information that supported expanding the SPA at the Old Navy Base.
Posted by hartley8184 on July 13, 2008 at 11:33 a.m. (Suggest removal)
This widening of I-26 AGAIN is a huge waste of time.
Widen Hwy 61 and build three bridges across the river between 61 and Dorchester Road. One at ShadowMoss Bees Ferry, one in Summerville near 17A, and one between, that jumps across to the Air Base main gate. It will solve the problem.
Posted by clyoushaete on July 13, 2008 at 11:55 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The east-bound collector lane needs to run all the way to 526 if its purpose is to eliminate the bottleneck at that area! Try getting on 26E at Remount and you have to look for the idiots who merge from the far left lane to get on 526 at 65mph! Knowing that all cars are equipped, they could at least use a signal! A collector lane from Aviation to Remount won't fix this problem!
Posted by omcwilliam on July 13, 2008 at 1:09 p.m. (Suggest removal)
As a Florida resident from Pensacola, I travel working contract jobs for DOD.
I have also been through as many hurricanes as you can count.
Therefore, I wonder why you would start an I-26 widening project at the height of hurricane season.
Owen McWilliam
Posted by rollo on July 13, 2008 at 6:34 p.m. (Suggest removal)
"Posted by omcwilliam on July 13, 2008 at 1:09 p.m. (Suggest removal)
As a Florida resident from Pensacola, I travel working contract jobs for DOD.
I have also been through as many hurricanes as you can count.
Therefore, I wonder why you would start an I-26 widening project at the height of hurricane season.
Owen McWilliam"
Owen, Maybe you missed it, but the project is expected to take @39 months. there will be at least 3 hurricane seasons pass before the project is completed, no matter when it starts. Do you moonlight for SCDOT as well? Maybe you're an civil engineer?
Posted by STREETLAW on July 13, 2008 at 9:52 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Well folks you thought it was bad before. Get ready for a nightmare. Unless you can get the crew that is working on the new Ellis Creek bridge on Folly Rd.
That construction has done little to add to traffic tie ups, so far as I know.
The I-26 project is a necessary evil. If they can pull it off without years of monumental traffic jams and accidents, God bless them everyone.
Posted by jifdeng3 on July 14, 2008 at 6:07 a.m. (Suggest removal)
3 years=6 years at the pace of workers around here. Look at the Folly Road Bridge.
Posted by suec on July 14, 2008 at 11:06 a.m. (Suggest removal)
all some of you do is complain.
The same ones complaining about CARTA are now compalining about road construction.
Compare it to home renovation, except on a MUCH larger scale. if you are renovating your kitchen, you will be inconvienenced for a while but in the long run it will be an improvement.
I agree with McCAin- we have become a nation of whiners.
Posted by aptlytitled on July 14, 2008 at 1:38 p.m. (Suggest removal)
DO ROADS PAY FOR THEMSELVES....NO BUT THEY COULD
http://www.propeller.com/viewstory/2007/...