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South Carolina

Started by wriddle082, January 30, 2011, 07:53:11 PM

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wriddle082

Now that I'm a resident of the Palmetto State, I figured I should go ahead and begin a general thread for this state since there hasn't already been one created.

Since I've been here, for the past four weeks I had been commuting back and forth from West Columbia to Augusta, GA for work (for the next two weeks I'll be working locally, then possibly back to Augusta or somewhere else in Eastern GA after that).  Anyway, here are some of my general observations about I-20 and other roads west of Columbia:

* The I-20 weigh stations (WB in Lexington Co. around mm 54, EB in Aiken Co. around mm 41 I thnk) have never been open any time I pass by them (yes I passed by them during "business hours"), but the I-26 weigh stations NW of Columbia seem to be open fairly often.

* I really dislike SC's practice of resurfacing only one direction of interstate at a time.  :pan:  It seems like WB I-20 has worse pavement than EB I-20 b/w Lexington and I-520.  From SC 6 to the Aiken Co. line WB, there are work zone signs, but it appears that very little work has taken place.  From US 1 to just before I-520, the WB pavement appears to be not that old, but it's deteriorating a a pretty rapid pace.  Most of the time I had to stay back from most semi trucks so I wouldn't get my windshield cracked, and stay in the left lane to avoid the worst spots.

* I-520 in SC is a great road, and gets you from I-20 to Downtown Augusta very quickly, but the 60 MPH speed limit is a bit too slow for now.  They could stand to maybe make it 65 MPH until development (if it ever happens) justifies lowering it to 60.

* I-26 pavement in Laurens Co from I-385 to the Newberry Co line is terrible in both directions!  It's only marginally better through Newberry Co.  Lexington and Richland Cos seem to have decent pavement.  Looking at SCDOT's upcoming projects list, they don't have any resurfacing planned for I-26 in Laurens Co for the next couple of years.   :pan:

* Went up I-385 towards Greenville a couple of times.  The pavement rehabilitation appears to have been a success.  Four smooth concrete lanes with full concrete shoulders from I-26 up to (I think) SC 101.  :biggrin:

* Columbia traffic, in general, flows A LOT better than Nashville traffic.  I find it very refreshing.

* Paying personal property taxes on my vehicles to the county clerk before picking up license plates from the SCDMV really really sucks! (and it's expensive)

* Having reflectors on most of the state secondary roads is nice, especially since I've been doing a lot of driving before dawn.

I could go on for a while, but I'm curious to hear what others have to say about their Palmetto State experiences.


Alex

Quote from: wriddle082 on January 30, 2011, 07:53:11 PM
Now that I'm a resident of the Palmetto State, I figured I should go ahead and begin a general thread for this state since there hasn't already been one created.


There was one originally, but it got partitioned into various route-based threads...

Was last in Columbia last October. Drove around downtown for a bit on a Sunday and was amazed at how light the traffic was:


wriddle082

A week ago, SCDOT issued a press release to seek public comment about two proposals:

1) Widening of I-26 in the vicinity of I-20 (a.k.a. "Malfunction Junction") including the usage of express lanes

2) Interstate resurfacing projects throughout the state using OGFC (Open Grade Friction Coarse) asphalt

For my part, I commented that I-26 needed to have a local/express setup starting west of St. Andrews Rd (or further west) and ending east of I-126.  Keeping traffic trying to get from I-20 to I-126 (and vice versa) away from the I-26 through traffic wold solve the bulk of the problems, and they could even leave the 20/26 interchange as a cloverleaf if they wanted to since I don't think any one particular movement justifies a flyover, but I could be wrong.

http://www.scdot.org/ArtMan/publish/article_1173.shtml

Mapmikey

You should've seen how bad 26 was in the 1980s...

West of I-20 the interstate was still configured in its original 1950s design (drive today's I-85 Bus through Spartanburg for an idea of what that is like).  Traffic was horrible all the time especially around I-20 and US 378.

Flyover could be useful for I-20 WB to I-26 EB (although with I-77 now finished this is less choked than it once was) and possibly I-26 EB to I-20 EB.

Mapmikey
SC Resident 1974-91; 93-95

Henry

#4
Quote from: AARoads on January 30, 2011, 09:43:24 PM
Quote from: wriddle082 on January 30, 2011, 07:53:11 PM
Now that I'm a resident of the Palmetto State, I figured I should go ahead and begin a general thread for this state since there hasn't already been one created.


There was one originally, but it got partitioned into various route-based threads...

Was last in Columbia last October. Drove around downtown for a bit on a Sunday and was amazed at how light the traffic was:


Looks more like Nevada than South Carolina! :-D

Please remove large images when quoting.
Go Cubs Go! Go Cubs Go! Hey Chicago, what do you say? The Cubs are gonna win today!

brownpelican

#5
Quote* Paying personal property taxes on my vehicles to the county clerk before picking up license plates from the SCDMV really really sucks! (and it's expensive)

Tell me about it. I spent four years in Greenwood and another year in Greenville (2000-2004). You think those car taxes are high, they were really high when I was there (10 percent of car's value. I think it's 5 percent now). If you have ride that's six years old or younger, you will feel it.

agentsteel53

10% of a vehicle's value every year??  that's incredibly high!  I thought it was bad enough that I had to pay 8.75% sales tax once!
live from sunny San Diego.

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brownpelican

Try paying 8.5 to 9.5 percent (my neck of the woods). The trade-off is that I don't pay car taxes...just $20 every 4 years for my car tag sticker.

S.C.'s sales tax is 5 percent statewide. That's why car taxes are so high.

wriddle082

Quote from: brownpelican on February 11, 2011, 06:08:41 PM
S.C.'s sales tax is 5 percent statewide. That's why car taxes are so high.

7% now, same as neighboring Georgia, but they eliminated the sales tax on groceries.

And I had to shell out over $500 total for taxes and tags for both mine and my wife's vehicles.  Mine is a 2005, hers is a 2011.

Anyway, back to roads...  I had to drive to Augusta again yesterday, and it looks like my "favorite" stretch of I-20 westbound is about to get remedied.  Right before US 1 in Aiken Co westbound, there was a portable VMS stating "ROAD WORK BEGIN / 2/14 NEXT 16 MILES / EXPECT DELAYS", which would take it to the I-520 interchange, this fixing the worst part of I-20.

This tells me that SCDOT is not so good at updating their website because it's not listed in the Aiken Co Active Projects list.  They only list the I-20 EB resurfacing from US 1 to the Lexington Co line, which currently does not have the final layer of pavement on it and has been that way all winter (though they did slap some reflectors down on it a couple of weeks ago).

Alex

Carter passed along two bits of road news:

Fixing Malfunction Junction
$400 million overhaul eyed for perilous I-20-I-26 intersection

QuoteAlthough specific plans have not been drawn up, officials are already discussing ideas of how to make the corridor safer and more efficient, including:

-  Creating an express lane that would take westbound I-26 motorists who plan to remain on the highway past local interchanges faster. That is, a motorist could leave Columbia on I-126 and shoot out to the Irmo area on a special interstate lane separated from other traffic.

-  Widening I-26 from St. Andrews Road to Broad River Road.

-  Radically changing or enlarging the cloverleaf where I-20 meets I-26. These days, it's far safer to build elevated ramps, known as "flyovers,"  at such intersections.

Its $400-plus million estimated price tag for an overhaul puts the Malfunction Junction proposed work into an elite state group of only three mega Interstate projects, each expected to cost $400 million or more. The other two are in Charleston, on I-26, and in Greenville, on I-85.

Read more: http://www.thestate.com/2011/02/05/1679904/states-top-priority-fix-malfunction.html#ixzz1HcupzQq9




He also wrote that six laning of I-385 has began between South Carolina 146 and the I-185/U.S. 276 interchange. This is being done as part of a massive rebuild between the I-85/385 and SC 146 (Woodruff Road) interchange:

http://www.scdot.org/public/pdfs/meetings_I-85_I-385_handout.pdf


wriddle082

Just spotted Clearview for the first time in SC.  All of the BGS's along I-95 from the GA border up to I think Exit 38 have been replaced.  The shield numerals still use FHWA fonts.  The signs are very clean looking and pretty much follow SC standards.

Oh yeah, those blue-on-white median-mounted signs warning of the Ridgeland speed cameras are in Clearview.  Not sure if they were put up by SCDOT or by Ridgeland, but I would think SCDOT put them up to warn of the scam since the state is on the record as being against this practice.

agentsteel53

Quote from: wriddle082 on March 29, 2011, 11:14:49 PMNot sure if they were put up by SCDOT or by Ridgeland, but I would think SCDOT put them up to warn of the scam since the state is on the record as being against this practice.

in that case, they should make the warnings much more obvious and blatant.  Yellow diamond "SPEED TRAP AHEAD", maybe repeated twice, confirmation of speed limit, and then, once you are past the camera van, "SC DOT, LOOKING OUT FOR YOU" or something similar.
live from sunny San Diego.

http://shields.aaroads.com

jake@aaroads.com

Bryant5493

I will be traveling to Myrtle Beach in the next few weeks, coming from the Atlanta area. What's the best way to go: I-20 East to Florence then U.S. 76 East to U.S. 501 South, or through Savannah? Applicable speed limits and "speed traps," please.


Be well,

Bryant
Check out my YouTube page (http://youtube.com/Bryant5493). I have numerous road videos of Metro Atlanta and other areas in the Southeast.

I just signed up on photobucket -- here's my page (http://s594.photobucket.com/albums/tt24/Bryant5493).

brownpelican

Savannah is WAY out of the way. US 76 to US 501 is the most direct route...although it will have lots of traffic on it.

Revive 755

^ I always thought the I-20/I-95/SC 327/US 76/SC 576/US 501 route was the best, though its been many years since I've tried any route between Columbia and Myrtle Beach.  That route should be 70 mph interstate, and then stoplight infested divided highways.

NE2

I assume US 378 is traffic-clogged on the two lanes east of Lake City?
pre-1945 Florida route log

I accept and respect your identity as long as it's not dumb shit like "identifying as a vaccinated attack helicopter".

1995hoo

Quote from: wriddle082 on March 29, 2011, 11:14:49 PM
....

Oh yeah, those blue-on-white median-mounted signs warning of the Ridgeland speed cameras are in Clearview.  Not sure if they were put up by SCDOT or by Ridgeland, but I would think SCDOT put them up to warn of the scam since the state is on the record as being against this practice.

I drove through there two weeks ago (heading north) and the blue-and-white signs are gone, probably because (from what I've read in the news) the speed cameras are gone. The Ridgeland speedtrap was in full force, though; one cop up on an overpass shooting radar and using a handheld radio to communicate to four cop cars located further down the road. I knew of Ridgeland's reputation and had my cruise control set to 70, but plenty of other people didn't and were all dancing on their brakes and going 55 mph (in a 70-mph zone) when they saw all the cops. I kind of wish the cops would ticket those people for obstructing traffic!
"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
—Olaf Kolzig, as quoted in the Washington Times on March 28, 2003,
commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

wriddle082

Quote from: 1995hoo on July 18, 2011, 05:08:37 PM


I drove through there two weeks ago (heading north) and the blue-and-white signs are gone, probably because (from what I've read in the news) the speed cameras are gone. The Ridgeland speedtrap was in full force, though; one cop up on an overpass shooting radar and using a handheld radio to communicate to four cop cars located further down the road. I knew of Ridgeland's reputation and had my cruise control set to 70, but plenty of other people didn't and were all dancing on their brakes and going 55 mph (in a 70-mph zone) when they saw all the cops. I kind of wish the cops would ticket those people for obstructing traffic!

I noticed that too, they are gone.  I had been meaning to look back at news reports to confirm that Ridgeland had the cameras done away with (before they did away with Ridgeland), but haven't had a chance to do that.

I will still never stop at any Ridgeland exit for motorist services, on principal.  Whenever I go through that area (these days it's at least two round trips per month), I make sure to get my gas in Hardeeville, or closer to my home along I-26 where it's a lot cheaper.

1995hoo

Quote from: wriddle082 on July 20, 2011, 11:26:28 PMI noticed that too, they are gone.  I had been meaning to look back at news reports to confirm that Ridgeland had the cameras done away with (before they did away with Ridgeland), but haven't had a chance to do that.

I will still never stop at any Ridgeland exit for motorist services, on principal.  Whenever I go through that area (these days it's at least two round trips per month), I make sure to get my gas in Hardeeville, or closer to my home along I-26 where it's a lot cheaper.

I hadn't seen the news reports about them being gone before I drove through there, so I just slowed down to the speed limit in order to play it safe, and then after we got home I did a search and found that they were gone. But in a town that pulls a stunt like that I figure that they're still going to be out of control in trying to write tickets, and I guessed right!

I agree with you regarding not stopping there. Our trip earlier this month was the first time I had driven through there since 1991, and my gas gauge was starting to get low and my wife was getting hungry, but I said I would not stop in a chickenshit town like that and she understood my point.
"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
—Olaf Kolzig, as quoted in the Washington Times on March 28, 2003,
commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

Bryant5493

I'm in Myrtle Beach. Does anyone know what the speed limit is on U.S. 17 (Bypass)? I drove on it today between 38th Avenue (I think that was the street name) and U.S. 17 Business, but didn't see a speed limit sign until the reduced speed limit signs (50 mph) at U.S. 17.


Be well,

Bryant
Check out my YouTube page (http://youtube.com/Bryant5493). I have numerous road videos of Metro Atlanta and other areas in the Southeast.

I just signed up on photobucket -- here's my page (http://s594.photobucket.com/albums/tt24/Bryant5493).

mtantillo

Quote from: 1995hoo on July 18, 2011, 05:08:37 PM
Quote from: wriddle082 on March 29, 2011, 11:14:49 PM
....

Oh yeah, those blue-on-white median-mounted signs warning of the Ridgeland speed cameras are in Clearview.  Not sure if they were put up by SCDOT or by Ridgeland, but I would think SCDOT put them up to warn of the scam since the state is on the record as being against this practice.

I drove through there two weeks ago (heading north) and the blue-and-white signs are gone, probably because (from what I've read in the news) the speed cameras are gone. The Ridgeland speedtrap was in full force, though; one cop up on an overpass shooting radar and using a handheld radio to communicate to four cop cars located further down the road. I knew of Ridgeland's reputation and had my cruise control set to 70, but plenty of other people didn't and were all dancing on their brakes and going 55 mph (in a 70-mph zone) when they saw all the cops. I kind of wish the cops would ticket those people for obstructing traffic!

Its legal to go below the speed limit.  I do it in DC all the time to protest the speed cameras (especially the ones in the 3rd street tunnel).  Besides, if any of those cops are on the shoudlers, you have to slow down, its the (move-over) law! 

agentsteel53

Quote from: mtantillo on August 08, 2011, 04:20:22 PM
Its legal to go below the speed limit.  I do it in DC all the time to protest the speed cameras (especially the ones in the 3rd street tunnel).  Besides, if any of those cops are on the shoudlers, you have to slow down, its the (move-over) law! 

oh, fuck the move-over law.  got forced into the median a few weeks ago by a truck blindly obeying the move-over law with no regard for actual conditions.
live from sunny San Diego.

http://shields.aaroads.com

jake@aaroads.com

1995hoo

Quote from: mtantillo on August 08, 2011, 04:20:22 PM
Quote from: 1995hoo on July 18, 2011, 05:08:37 PM
Quote from: wriddle082 on March 29, 2011, 11:14:49 PM
....

Oh yeah, those blue-on-white median-mounted signs warning of the Ridgeland speed cameras are in Clearview.  Not sure if they were put up by SCDOT or by Ridgeland, but I would think SCDOT put them up to warn of the scam since the state is on the record as being against this practice.

I drove through there two weeks ago (heading north) and the blue-and-white signs are gone, probably because (from what I've read in the news) the speed cameras are gone. The Ridgeland speedtrap was in full force, though; one cop up on an overpass shooting radar and using a handheld radio to communicate to four cop cars located further down the road. I knew of Ridgeland's reputation and had my cruise control set to 70, but plenty of other people didn't and were all dancing on their brakes and going 55 mph (in a 70-mph zone) when they saw all the cops. I kind of wish the cops would ticket those people for obstructing traffic!

Its legal to go below the speed limit.  I do it in DC all the time to protest the speed cameras (especially the ones in the 3rd street tunnel).  Besides, if any of those cops are on the shoudlers, you have to slow down, its the (move-over) law! 

Yes, but "legal" and "should do it" are two different things. There are lots of things that are "legal" that you shouldn't do, like driving 55 mph in the left lane of the Beltway. I drive below the speed limit past DC's speed cameras as well, however, for the simple reason that I want to protect against potential speedometer error. In Maryland that's less of an issue with the 12-mph cushion, but I don't know what tolerance DC allows.

I don't know whether South Carolina has a move-over law, though that's an example of the converse of the situation posed in my previous paragraph–even if the law doesn't require you to move over for stopped emergency vehicles, it's something you should do as long as you can do so safely.

In other words, slowing down to 65 mph in 70-mph zone speedtrap, sure. Makes perfect sense, especially in a chickenshit town like Ridgeland where they'd probably nail you if you were going 71 mph. But slowing down to 55 is more than a bit excessive.
"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
—Olaf Kolzig, as quoted in the Washington Times on March 28, 2003,
commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

Bryant5493

Check out my YouTube page (http://youtube.com/Bryant5493). I have numerous road videos of Metro Atlanta and other areas in the Southeast.

I just signed up on photobucket -- here's my page (http://s594.photobucket.com/albums/tt24/Bryant5493).

Bryant5493

#24
Florence, SC Roadgeeking




Be well,

Bryant
Check out my YouTube page (http://youtube.com/Bryant5493). I have numerous road videos of Metro Atlanta and other areas in the Southeast.

I just signed up on photobucket -- here's my page (http://s594.photobucket.com/albums/tt24/Bryant5493).



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