New fix proposed for one of Lexington’s most congested roads

Lexington officials have a new way to fix one of the town’s most congested intersections, located near River Bluff High School.

The plan would divert traffic headed east off Corley Mill Road to a new route crossing over I-20 that comes out on a side road near West Columbia.

Frustrated that the state and federal officials aren’t helping pay to ease congestion and safety problems on roads, the town decided to take care of this intersection’s problem itself.

“We’re the little guys stepping up,” Lexington Mayor Steve MacDougall said Friday. “Nobody is helping us.”

An easier trip through the intersection can’t come soon enough for motorists.

“We’ve all been waiting for a complete fix,” said Seth Krisnow, who commutes to work from his home off Corley Mill.

Others call relief overdue after other ideas were shelved.

“It was obvious to the untrained eye that roads there were going to be a nightmare with a school that was going to be a magnet for families,” said Phil Williams, who travels there from his home on Lake Murray.

The estimated $10 million project would be paid for by pledging future property tax growth that might come from at least one new subdivision planned nearby plus the expected retail growth that would follow.

“It’s imaginative, but it makes the most sense for the future,” MacDougall said.

The road is designed to ease a bottleneck on the east edge of the rapidly growing town where Corley Mill meets U.S. 378, a block west of I-20. It’s an intersection that town officials said 57,000 vehicles travel through daily.

Congestion has worsened since River Bluff High opened in 2013, adding traffic associated with 1,500 students to that from neighborhoods along Corley Mill.

If everything goes well, the route could be in use as soon as 2022, officials said.

Town officials plan to pay for the new route through a method known as tax increment financing. A “TIF district” would encompass a largely undeveloped 260-acre area near the high school that’s expected to bloom into homes and shops.

Town officials plan to borrow to build the road and pay off the loan over 20 years with property tax growth in that area.

The road would join $7.5 million in other improvements slated at the intersection. Those are being paid for by a town tax of two pennies on the dollar on restaurant meals, take-out food and some snacks.

Town officials will need help to make their plan happen.

Crossing I-20 to link to Davega Road requires agreement from state transportation officials, who have been briefed on the idea. “We wouldn’t move forward unless we felt good about that conversation,” MacDougall said.

The location for the span across I-20 remains to be determined.

Lexington 1 school officials and Lexington County Council also must sign off on the step since it would cost each revenue from future development. But those officials have offered to contribute to a fix.

This story was originally published February 24, 2017 at 1:26 PM with the headline "New fix proposed for one of Lexington’s most congested roads."