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With commuters bumper-to-bumper on I-26, riding rails gets serious look
By Tony Bartelme (Contact), David Slade (Contact)
The Post and Courier
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Wade Spees
Railroad tracks pass under rush hour traffic as commuters merge onto Interstate 26 near Remount Road from Interstate 526 on Monday.
The Post and Courier
Interstate 26 is by far our most important and heavily traveled roadway in the Charleston metropolitan area.
On a typical workday, roughly 140,000 vehicles roll through its busiest stretches — 160 a minute during the morning rush.
Most of the time, I-26 efficiently speeds motorists between downtown Charleston and Summerville in 20 to 25 minutes. But rush hour is a different story.
Trips then can take nearly twice as long on average, a new Post and Courier survey shows.
If you're one of these commuters, you know full well how I-26 clogs near the Mark Clark Expressway.
And if a wreck shuts down some lanes? Sorry, boss, I won't be in for another hour.
PLEZE!!! Charleston doesn't know what traffic is. New Jersey, Miami, Ft Lauderdale, New York, DC now that's traffic.
We should be thankful!
LOL, beachme.. I have to agree with you. As someone who has actually lived in NJ/NYC/Philadelphia, this traffic is easy to handle.
However, I really don't want Charleston to someday have the same problems with traffic as some of our northern states do. Acknowledging the traffic issues and working towards a solution to reduce the problem now would be wise, before it gets any worse.
PLEZE!!! Charleston doesn't know what traffic is. New Jersey, Miami, Ft Lauderdale, New York, DC now that's traffic.
We should be thankful!
Seeing that you live in MP I don't think you have any idea what those of us that travel I-26 deal with. I have only lived in this area and have seen traffic increase dramically in the last few year's. Something needs to be done about it so we won't turn into one of the cities you mentioned.
Last edited by Luvsdabeach; 07-06-2008 at 08:22 PM..
Location: Nothing could be finer... I'm in S. Carolina!!
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i agree 26 is the WORST i have ever seen. we live in dallas now and we've been looking for an interstate as bad as 26 and compare everything to 26 by saying, "it's not nearly as bad as 26". it's AWFUL. true, i've never driven in a bigger city than dallas, but i think it's sad charleston's traffic is worse than here. did i mention it was awful?! and scary too!
I lived in the Dallas area for 16 years and I can't think of one interstate or expressway that is less worse than I-26 or I-526. I'll take driving on I-26 any day over driving on LBJ or N Central Expressway. And Airport Frwy ain't exactly alot of fun either. But I agree I-26 is getting worse. Would be nice if HOV lanes could be added.
The CARTA express buses are supposedly quite popular. Before (or while) planning a train and/or more lanes, add more buses, particularly during off peak hours as a lot of folks don't work 9-5. This could be done in conjunction with an HOV lane. Also, maybe have these buses stop at other employment centers. Most workers in the area don't work downtown.
I know it's a much larger city, but maybe the success of Charlotte's first light rail line will spur other Carolina cities to consider doing it. Commuter rail from Summerville into Charleston, would be a great way to cut down traffic on I-26. Lightrail around the city would help alleviate traffic in other areas. Plus, as in Charlotte, it can lead to some good transit oriented development, which in the long run could help cut down on suburban sprawl.
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