Driver safety concerns prompt change in SCDOT road improvement project

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) – The South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) has made several changes to portions of Augusta Road that were part of the Interstate 20 Improvement Project after local officials raised concerns.

Two drivers who frequent the area, Regina Allen and Robin Burns, say they don’t feel safe driving to work, which is just off Augusta Road, after SCDOT removed a center lane.

SCDOT told WIS News 10 the initial changes to the road were a result of construction on the I-20 exit ramp as part of the larger improvement project.

However, some drivers said these changes made the road more dangerous.

“You have to cross this and you have to cross that to get across. Four lanes. It’s ridiculous,” Allen said.

In May, SCDOT took over the center lane, where Allen and several other colleagues had to turn left to merge onto the busy road.

“It’s like, OK, maybe there aren’t enough deaths right now, but how many deaths does it take to be safe? Or accidents?” Allen said.

“You have to look at everybody in general. Not just for me, but because I work in the area. There are other places, businesses, and stuff. And not just from here, but from people going everywhere,” Burns said.

Between 2019 and 2023, there were 14 fatal crashes on Augusta Road.

During the same period, there were 288 accidents and 62 injuries on the stretch of Augusta Road near Monroe Lane and the I-20 exit.

When first asked about the intersection’s relocation in May, an SCDOT spokesperson said the center lane would be replaced with a raised median to improve road safety.

And that there is no requirement that a four-lane road have a median strip based on the dimensions of the road.

But after requests for the past 5 years of collision data and contacting members of the Lexington County Council, SCDOT sent a follow-up message stating, “Due to these adjustments, SCDOT engineers have initiated a further investigation of this intersection.”

On July 15, SCDOT revised the plan after review, saying, “The center median will revert to a two-way left turn lane.”

SCDOT expects the final paving and new road markings for the two-way left turn lane to be completed in August.

According to DOT data, an average of more than 29,000 vehicles travel the Augusta Road and Monroe Lane freeway each day.

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