Palmetto Cycling Coalition's Suggested Letter about Harbor View Road

Anyone is free to use these points in any e-mail, letter or statement to James Island Town officials. It was written by the staff at the Palmetto Cycling Coalition.

I am writing today concerning the proposed improvement project along Harbor View Road on James Island. The Charleston County plan for this project includes bike and pedestrian facilities, and I would like to voice my support for Charleston County’s efforts to promote bicycling and walking along this corridor that is in great need of consideration regarding issues of traffic congestion and safety.
• The Harbor View Road project is a Charleston County ½ cent transportation tax project. The design and construction is handled by Charleston County RoadWise. The project was originally conceived to address residents’ and commuters’ legitimate concerns over safety and traffic flow on parts of Harbor View Road (especially during peak hours). The current issue is that SCDOT and the Town of James Island are trying to apply rural road standards to a suburban area. The RoadWise project brings the road up to 21st century standards appropriate to the context.
• Contrary to what some officials will tell you, there is a great deal of interest among James Island residents in improving bicycle and pedestrian facilities along Harbor View Road. At the public hearing on June 29, 2006 regarding this project, the single most important issue that citizens voiced was the need for improved bicycle and pedestrian facilities, with 24% of citizens listing this as a top priority for improvements on Harbor View Road.
• Bicycling and walking is great for health, good for communities, and a solution to many of our most pressing societal and environmental problems. Promoting these active forms of recreation and transportation boosts the economy, is less expensive than driving a car, and reduces road congestion and air pollution.
• In Charleston County, we don’t have to look very far to see the benefits of bicycle and pedestrian accommodations. The added costs of including these on roadways have enormous payoffs in the long-run for communities in terms of health and quality of life. The most prominent example is the heavily-used multi-use path on the Ravenel Bridge, but other very popular facilities include the West Ashley Greenway and the bike lane on Folly Road going toward Folly Beach.
• It is imperative that roadway designs enable motorists, bicyclists, and pedestrians to travel safely. But all too often, our roadways are built with only motorists in mind, leaving pedestrians and bicyclists without safe or viable options to travel. This forces these potential walkers-and-bikers to travel even the shortest of trips by car—thus increasing traffic congestion and decreasing air quality.
• In support of these active forms of transportation and recreation, the South Carolina Department of Transportation, in February of 2003, approved a resolution affirming that bicycling and walking accommodations should be a routine part of the Department’s planning, design, construction and operating activities, and will be included in the everyday operations of its transportation system.
• Since the passage of this resolution, communities across the state have expressed their support for more bicycling and walking accommodations to be included at the local level. Cities and counties throughout South Carolina have passed versions of their own bicycle/pedestrian policies, and have implemented designs into their roadways to include bicycle lanes and paths, multi-use paths, as well as specific pedestrian-friendly designs. A few of these communities include: North Myrtle Beach, Richland County, Spartanburg, Greenville, and Anderson. Many of these communities have already seen a dramatic increase in biking and walking, and are quickly being seen as more desirable places to live, simply by providing places for their citizens to be active.
• Given these issues, I ask for your continued support of bicycle and pedestrian accommodations along Harbor View Rd, and encourage you to see to it that the design include bicycle and pedestrian considerations. Please do not abandon this extremely important project, which will help make James Island a more livable and active community to be a part of.
• Thank you in advance for your consideration. Sincerely yours,