Public input meeting for Meeting Street Road improvements happening Monday

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – Meeting Street Road in Charleston may be heading in a safer direction with an upcoming project.

“So, we have studied it, that the numbers of cars that are on the road right now are right in line with what happens when you do what we call road diets. Going from four lanes to three,” explained Christopher Morgan, the Planning Manager for the City of Charleston.

The South Carolina Department of Transportation has plans to resurface the one-mile corridor which currently consists of four lanes of traffic.

The city is looking to use this as an opportunity to restripe the roadway with a new design. The proposed lane reconfiguration, also known as road diet, would include two vehicle lanes, a center turn lane, and bike lanes.

“A center turn lane makes things much, much safer for the turning traffic, the trucks, and folks that are traversing through the area,” said Morgan.

Under the current proposal, people on bikes would be protected from traffic by on-street parking spaces. Charleston Moves Executive Director Katie Zimmerman is getting behind the plan and said Meeting Street Road has been a problem for bicyclists.

“We always advocate for designs that are contextually appropriate. So, you know, we wouldn’t advocate for a bike lane on every street, we wouldn’t advocate for a parking-protected bike lane on every street, but in this instance, it seems like it could be a really good option for folks,” Zimmerman told News 2.

Community members will have a chance to weigh in on the potential updates at a public input meeting on Monday, May 6^th.

“We’d like to hear from folks in the area. Business owners, residents, people who traverse the area, to understand, you know, any thoughts they may have about this potential conversion. Any questions they may have. There could be questions from folks who, you know, are in the area on a daily basis and this event on Monday will help them understand exactly what’s proposed,” Morgan shared.

The meeting will be held at the Quin office building located at 1940 Algonquin Road from 4:00 to 7:00 pm.