Bike/Pedestrian bridge removed from Main Road Segment A plans

CHARLESTON CO., S.C. (WCBD) – Long-awaited improvements in the Main Road Corridor are moving forward, but a change in the plans has raised concerns for the nonprofit, Charleston Moves.

“This all happened sort of last minute. I want to solve the problem,” said the organization’s Executive Director, Katie Zimmerman.

Zimmerman said she learned late last week that a proposed stand-alone bike and pedestrian bridge was no longer included in the Main Road Segment A project plans. The bridge would’ve been built next to the John F. Limehouse Bridge, connecting several parts of the bike-ped network in that area.

“This is a huge gap filler in this really important network and obviously providing bike-ped access is important for a lot of reasons. On one hand you’ve got people out there now biking, walking in unsafe situations. On the other hand, it’s really the only way that we’re going to be able to chip away at traffic congestion,” Zimmerman explained.

The Main Road Segment A project has been in progress since 2016 as part of the Half Cent Sales Tax Referendum, according to Charleston County officials.

Herbert Nimz is the project manager and said it consists of a multidirectional interchange system and a flyover bridge on Main Road over US 17. He explained the decision to nix the pedestrian bridge came after the South Carolina Department of Transportation rejected the county’s request to maintain it.

State law prohibits the use of transportation sales tax revenue to cover maintenance costs, according to county officials. Nimz said they are evaluating other bike-ped accommodations, starting with the Limehouse Bridge.

“We had planned on restriping that bridge to accommodate four travel lanes. So, we’re looking at maybe reducing that and including a bike-ped path on that bridge,” said Nimz.

On Tuesday, Charleston County Council will vote on awarding a design-build contract for the Main Road Segment A project. Zimmerman said she was planning to be there to advocate for the bridge.

“I want to make sure that they are willing to figure out a way where we aren’t completely shutting the door on the design. We can work together, figure out a funding source for maintenance or a different agency or entity who is willing to fund the maintenance,” Zimmerman told News 2.

SCDOT pointed News 2 to Charleston County when asked for a comment.

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