It’s the worst traffic headache in Lexington County, and no fix is in sight

Editor’s note: The State this week has been looking at the five worst traffic headaches in Lexington County. Today we look at the worst headache - Augusta Road at U.S. 378 near Lexington Medical Center. We’re not including in this series Columbia’s infamous Malfunction Junction — the merger of I-26, I-20 and I-126 — because state transportation officials are preparing to start work next year on fixing that area.

The No. 5 problem was Columbia Avenue in Chapin.

The No. 4 problem was U.S. 378 around Lexington Medical Center.

The No. 3 problem was the half-mile stretch where U.S. 378 and S.C. 6 run together in Lexington.

The No. 2 problem was U.S. 378 at Corley Mill Road near River Bluff High School.

The problem

Nearly 42,000 cars drive through a one mile stretch of Augusta Road in West Columbia each day.

Commuters share the road with shoppers headed to strip malls, restaurants, and hotels.The amount of traffic there is higher than on some sections of I-20 near Gilbert and Batesburg-Leesville, which carry about 8,500 fewer vehicles a day, according to state traffic counts.

Backups for several blocks are common on Augusta Road, particularly during rush hours.

“Lexington County is getting so built up, it’s getting crazy out there,” said Bruce Sheaffer, manager of a liquor store in Danwood Center.

Bill Muse, manager of nearby Calloway’s Sport Bar, offers a terse description of the busy road:

“It’s often chaos.”

Conditions have worsened as more traffic is forced to stay on Augusta during construction of a span across I-26 on Leaphart Road.

Residents on streets off Augusta typically take side roads out of their neighborhoods instead of venturing into the congestion. “You learn to deal with it,” said Carol Wofford, who has lived in the area four years.

Some homeowners cut through shopping centers to avoid traffic, heading toward traffic signals to enter Augusta.

Meanwhile, people who live and work along the road say their only recourse is to endure the congestion.

“Going out there can be dicey,” said Courtney Wood, manager of the Halloween Express costume shop on the road a block east of I-26. “But sometimes you have to take the good with the bad.”

What’s been done

Traffic signals were added in front of three strip malls in the past decade to assist shoppers arriving and departing.

The fix planned

State transportation officials acknowledge the problems but say a solution won’t be easy and quick.

Some relief is likely with renovation of the I-26 interchange, an $80 million project on which work is slated to start in 2022, state transportation officials say.

Entrance and exit ramps will be lengthened to ease problems when traffic merges so vehicles on the road don’t weave or stop, which will improve traffic flow, officials said.

“We’re looking at a total re-do of that, trying to fix some problems ,” said Jae Mattox, project manager for the state Department of Transportation. “It’ll clean up things around the interchange, but that’s the extent of it.”

Other changes are under consideration, but it’s too soon to say when they might be put into use, officials said.

A series of medians to limit left turns and changes in the length of traffic signals were recommended by traffic consultants in April.

Those steps should be taken because there are 84 entrances and exits in that stretch of the road, many of which are too close to each other, the study said.

More analysis is needed on the impact of turn restrictions on businesses and neighborhoods to determine the best spots for medians, the study said.

This story was originally published November 23, 2017 at 8:42 AM with the headline "It’s the worst traffic headache in Lexington County, and no fix is in sight."