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It won’t happen overnight, but finally the S.C. Department of Transportation is moving to replace the dysfunctional junction of Interstates 85 and 385 with more lanes, new bridges, and a traffic hub that can meet Greenville’s current and future needs.
The Transportation Commission gave preliminary approval in June to a $70 million project to widened, improve and resurface I-385 from the I-85 junction to the junction with the Southern Connector near Mauldin. The commission also signed off on the $240 million replacement of the traffic-worn junction of the two interstates that does not have enough lanes for today’s traffic. The redesign will address current and future needs.
Motorists will have to endure the bone-rattling potholes on I-385 for a while longer. Construction on the I-385 improvements will be in the 2010-2012 timeframe. Money slated for paving the stretch of battered roadway will be rolled into the reconstruction, so a new road surface won’t be possible until the project is finished.
The I-85 and I-385 interchange is rated the No. 2 priority in the state in terms of need for improvement, after only the infamous I-20 and I-26 “malfunction junction” in Columbia. It’s about time these serious dollars are being committed to rebuild Greenville’s aging gateway intersection.
The current interchange is deficient in several ways: There is no room for additional lanes on I-85 under the bridges; the bridges are too narrow for the amount of traffic; and the current bridges constrict widening of I-385 at the junction.
Construction of the new interchange would begin about 2013, barring any delays in current plans, after the I-385 improvements are finished.
The plan is subject to a 15-day public comment period, during which copies of the plan would be available at the Appalachian Regional Council of Governments, SCDOT’s regional office and on the Internet.
Barring negative comments during the public comment period, the DOT commission would likely approve the plan in July, federal highway authorities would review it in August and September, and it would become part of the official State Transportation Improvement Plan (STIP) on Oct. 1.
Greenville citizens would do well to contact their political leaders and Transportation Commission members to ensure that this preliminary proposal remains a top priority in the final, official STIP that emerges this fall. The Upstate is overdue to have its pressing transportation issues addressed at the state level.
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