February 25, 2021
To Route 278 Community Oversight Committee:
It has been roughly 3 months since the formation of the Independent Engineering Review of the Route 278 Corridor project and the creation of the Community Oversight Committee. The Committee is working hard and is roughly midway through its work. We have watched through their 2/16/21 meeting.
Meanwhile, according to a 2/16/2021 report to a County Council Committee, SCDOT has been finalizing its plans, which have already been submitted in Draft form for review. A formal submission to the Federal Highway Authority is planned in March. The SCDOT plans appear little changed from what we have previously seen, with the addition of several large signs and a pavilion commemorating the Stoney Community.
Since SCDOT’s plans appear to be gelling rapidly, there is concern that it will become increasingly difficult to impact them. Thus, there is an urgent need that the work of the Independent Engineer and Oversight Committee provides the public with the detailed quantitative data expected before it is too late to use it. Listed below are areas where significant illumination is needed.
1. COMPARISON OF PLANS – DELAY DATA - One of the prominently stated goals of this project is to provide congestion relief. To prove that we are meaningfully achieving that goal, simulation data should be provided showing end-end peak delay (or travel time) of each plan, measured from the Moss Creek lights to an efficient interconnection with the Cross Island Parkway, including the compound effect of concatenated traffic lights, plus the Windmill Harbor light, if used. (The connection to the Cross Island Parkway needs to consider the traffic and cost impacts of merges and lane splits, which currently appear to be taken for granted.)
2. COMPARISON OF PLANS – COST AND IMPACT DATA - For each plan, we should also see total costs, including community and environmental mitigation costs, as well as issues, impacts, and pros/cons.
3. INTERSECTION AND OTHER OPTIONS – In addition to SCDOT published drafts, there has been considerable behind-the-scenes discussion about intersection plans. A prevalent public sentiment is that an 11-lane Spanish Wells intersection is highly undesirable. Thus, in addition to the SCDOT Preferred plan, the alternatives that are quantitatively compared in Items 1 and 2 above should include at least the plans broadly defined as Baseline, Spanish Wells Overpass, and Bypass, as well as other worthy solutions.
4. OTHER ALTERNATIVES – One of the Public’s desires was to have the Independent Engineering consultant take a fresh view of our situation to determine if any other solutions are possible. For example, what are the comparative delay, cost, and impact parameters of a two-lane solution with all lights removed or optimized? The consultant has considered two-phase traffic lights, but there has been no quantification of their benefits and issues or the methods, costs, and impacts of dealing with the rerouted traffic.
The public is paying for this project via gas, sales, and other taxes. Usually, when we buy something, such as a car or refrigerator we know quite a bit about it, including the cost and performance of the various alternatives. Many of us have also learned the painful lesson that the cheapest option is not always the best.
In contrast, we still have almost no detailed quantitative data for this project, even though we have repeatedly asked for cost – performance - impact data over the past 2 years. (For example, Plan A will cost $330 million, provide an end-end travel time of 19 minutes and have negative impacts X, Y, R, Q; Plan B will cost $260 million, provide a travel time of 24 minutes and have negative impacts X, Y, Z, etc.) Without such data, it will be impossible for Councils and Taxpayers to make well-reasoned decisions. No corporation, business, or engineering school would undertake this kind of project without such data.
We now have a major historic opportunity to do things well for our Island Gateway. We also have an opportunity to do things poorly. It is possible that most of the painfully earned gain of the extra lanes will be lost in intersections and traffic lights.
Over 4700 Citizens signed a Petition expressing these concerns. They worked hard to support the Independent Engineering Review and the Community Oversight Committee to help sort this out. To do that, we expect quantitative data to prove that a workable and proper plan is being recommended, and that reasonable alternatives have been fully, quantitatively, and transparently evaluated. Please don’t let us down.
Sincerely,
Diederik Advocaat
Steven Baer
Gray Smith
CC
Town Council of Hilton Head Island, Town Administrator
Beaufort County Council, County Administrator
Senator Tom Davis