I-126 Improvements!

[waccamatt]

Well, your problem is that you're trying to rationalize with someone driving from Chapin. Who in their right mind would want to make that drive every day?

I know; imagine that.

[Captain Worley]

It isn't that bad. I used to commute from Columbia to Sumter. As waccamat said, it goes both ways.

[digital_sandlapper]

For me the Geology road idea would be to ease the travel from the Irmo area to the northeast...not neccesarily to downtown. Broad River road is just so busy and with stop lights every other block its a headache!

*digital_sandlapper - the part about Captain quoting Spartan is from post #38.

Oh, okay . . thanks for clarifying (and Spartan, too).

[sonofaque86]

They should link up Killian/Clemson Rd. with Geology Rd.

[scnative]

I want to dig more into the Malfuntion Junction (I-26 & I-20 intersection) problem.

Two questions for you:

1) What do you think is the main problem with that area??? Number of cars? Poor design? Other thoughts?

2) If you could instantly change the design of that stretch of highway between from where I-126 ends and St Andrews exit, what would you do? (please be realistic even though the idea of instant isn't)

I know we would like to see alternate forms of transportation...but in reality a 'quick fix' will be what our state decides to do.

[irmoscdad]

I want to dig more into the Malfuntion Junction (I-26 & I-20 intersection) problem.

Two questions for you:

1) What do you think is the main problem with that area??? Number of cars? Poor design? Other thoughts?

2) If you could instantly change the design of that stretch of highway between from where I-126 ends and St Andrews exit, what would you do? (please be realistic even though the idea of instant isn't)

I know we would like to see alternate forms of transportation...but in reality a 'quick fix' will be what our state decides to do:

So I don't respond much on here, but I am constantly reading all of your posts, and amazed by your insights and ideas into all of this. I have an idea here, but not sure if I can articulate it in writing like I am thinking of it, but let me try........

* First of all, it seems like there is just TOO MUCH going on in a short amount of space....people getting on and off I-26, people getting off on Bush River

* Second, it seems like there is just isn't enough space in many of these places, and that creates stress for all the different sets of drivers

-- In the center of the clover, it appears there is about 100 feet of pavement for both sets of drivers to get on and off I-26......so people trying to get off are stressed knowing they only have so much room.....but that "collides" (lol) with people stressed about getting on I-26 and they only have so much space.

* What if you lengthened the amount of pavement cars had getting ON to I-26 going both directions?? this would allow more space for those getting onto I-26 in both directions to get on, and relieve their stress of getting over RIGHT AWAY.

* What if you added an entire right hand lane from end of the clover (or actually exit to bush river) to the I-26 / I-126 split? Then cars getting on I-26 would be in a different lane. There appears to be plenty of room for this and causes little disruptions

* What if the ramp getting on I-26W going to St. Andrew was moved over and a right lane was added there too?

* And why is the exit ramp for St. Andrews SO long? It seems as if you moved that 100 feet further up (WEST) it would reduce that whole stress of cars getting off on St Andrews versus cars getting onto I-26

I know road widening isn't the only answer long term (I mean how do we NOT have something that connects NE to NW?), but these seem like easy, and somewhat cost-effective solutions. When they extended the entrance ramp from St. Andrews onto I-26W it made that entire section so much better.....

Anyway, I'm sure there are a million flaws here, but thought i'd throw them out........thoughts?

[Spartan]

The problem is one of design, which impacts capacity. The design of the roadway causes too much merging traffic trying to get on or off I-20 while entering/exiting downtown. This problem slows drivers down and creates additional congestion. If the merging traffic can be managed more effectively then traffic will flow more smoothly.

I have a basic design idea that I think would work, but I'll have to find a way to draw it out, otherwise it won't make sense.

[BrasilnSC]

I've seen some extremely preliminary plans that I'm not sure will even be used. I know a drawing is the best way to explain, but I'll give it a try. It basically created 2 or 3 outside lanes running parallel to but separated from the current lanes on both sides. Heading east, it would run from I-126 to past St. Andrews Rd (think of the I-20 exit lane going out of downtown as it splits from the 2 through lanes on I-126 except it remains separated all the way to past St. Andrews). Vehicles exiting at Bush River, I-20, or St. Andrews would get onto the new outside lanes, while through traffic remains on the existing lanes. All of the merging would occur on the outside lanes with some flyover connections for I-20. Through traffic would basically be uninterupted except for the merge onto and off the new outside highway, one before I-126@I-26 and another after St. Andrews Rd.

Maybe we'll see something in 10 years.

[Spartan]

Thats generally what I had in mind. The only way to solve the problem is to create separated outside lanes. They have this arrangement on 85 in Greenville in the vicinity of White Horse Rd.

[scnative]

BrasilnSC could you let us know where you received word on some plans??

I guess since I posed the question a while back I could add my thoughts to this. I took a few min to make a map because as stated before it's a bit hard to visualize without. This plan is different from rumors I heard about just wanting to expand the highway an additional 2 lanes. This addresses the issue/problem - MERGING. Adding more lanes still creates the need to cross over lanes to exit and merge. It's outlined below with the map for reference.

Definition of colored line:

The light blue line is a fly over. It would begin at the same location traffic is exiting off I-20 East bound for I-26 East towards downtown. However it would branch off into two lanes. One would be the existing one to I-26 East and the new fly over would be to I-26 West. This would eliminate 1/4 of the clover (bottom right quad).

The yellow line is a fly over as well which would eliminate a second 1/4 of the clover (top right quad). There are two yellow. The one on right would be built to the right of the existing exit from I-26 West to I-20 East. After built it will become the main road to exit and the current one now would be eliminated to provide room for the new second yellow line (fly over). The fly over would merge with the exiting traffic from I-26 East to I-20 West.

The purple line would be the new exit for St. Andrews (exit 106B) from I-26 West. It would fly over the traffic entering I-26 West from I-20 West. Then would run along frontage road until connecting with current exit road. This would stop the traffic from having to cross the lanes of traffic entering from I-20.

The red line is a modification of the existing exit 64B from I-20 West. The exit lane would be moved farther back closer to Broad River road and would be two lanes instead of one to eliminate the dangerous backup in the far right lane of I-20 West just after the Broad River road exit. The two lanes would merge onto I-26 West just as it does now. The additional lane would be added to the existing lanes up until the St. Andrews overpass. The lane expansion would be added to the opposite side of the interstate on the Jamil Road side after the overpass due to land needed. The median would need to be shifted one lane over to increase the outbound I-26 West traffic.

The orange line is the exit for St. Andrews needed because the old 106B would be eliminated as previously discussed. The exit would be off the exit of exit 64B. It would run a few hundred feet before coming to a new light at Center Point road and Burning Tree Road.

Recap:

The right side of the clover is eliminated, this frees up the congestion of excessive merging. The flyovers would keep traffic moving more safely. The addition of a lane and increasing the exiting distance from I-20 West to I-26 West would help with the traffic coming to a stop in the right lane on I-20. We all know that for the most part traffic is fine on I-26 West after St. Andrews so I don't see a need to increase any lanes after Piney Grove. It may be the best interest for future growth to increase lanes up to that exit now though. The new exit for St. Andrews would take away the need to crossover the entering traffic on I-26 West. This area is so developed I am not sure what other options there are other than the flyovers. This is the major part of my suggested changes. The flyover of I-26 West over I-126 needs addressing as well to aid in the fix to this problem. That is another post coming soon.

Let me know your thoughts. Honestly, I have been thinking there needs to be a change to this area for a long time but only today took some time to draw things out. So if something is just way off or just needs editing let me know. Suggestions welcome.

[teshadoh]

^ I would definitely support eliminating freeway cloverleafs. They were cute back in the 1950's, but having to navigate on them on my vacation a few weeks ago in SC gave me a panic attack. There should not be any cloverleaf intersections left on freeways, at least in populated areas.

Otherwise, I-26 through Irmo & up to I-20 might benefit from parrallel roads, considering the amount of development along 26 around Irmo. I know it's kind of a sprawly thing, but it surprisingly works well in many Dallas suburbs.

[BrasilnSC]

The plans I saw were a SCDOT visualization that was imported into Google Earth. After searching for a while, I was able to find the images I had saved . Again, this was a very preliminary visualization and is not part of any actual concrete plan.

(Edit: It'll make more sense if I start from the West)

I-26 heading east just past Piney Grove.

St. Andrews Rd Interchange

I-26 @ I-20 Interchange.

Stretch between Bush River Rd and I-20. Notice the separate parallel outside lanes.

I-126 and I-26 interchange along with Bush River Rd interchange.

Heading into Columbia, I-126 on the right and I-26 on the left after the split.

[Spartan]

Excellent. Thanks for posting that. Obviously a preliminary concept, but that's something more along the lines of what I was thinking about. That arrangement makes it possible to merge from 26 to 20 without crossing the paths of people merging from 20 to 26.

[scnative]

The plans I saw were a SCDOT visualization that was imported into Google Earth. After searching for a while, I was able to find the images I had saved . Again, this was a very preliminary visualization and is not part of any actual concrete plan.

Thanks! This is what I have been hunting for a long time. It surely helps to see it instead of people in the past explaining what they have heard. This is many years in the making already.

I have no idea what proposal will make it to the final plan but this one surely looks good. The the huge issues are the possible annexation and/or purchasing of land and the cost factor. Once businesses and residents on both sides of the interstate finally agree to the terms to use their land and move the frontage roads then maybe we can see this take shape. From the projects that I am aware of and the ones proposed I have to say this is the most needed change. I may be biased since it I travel this all the time but it seems critical to the expansion of Columbia and the safety of people.

I would think my plan I proposed would be far less expensive but I am not a civil engineer either so I may not even solve many problems! I do agree clovers need to go away in that area and if the land can be acquired then the parallel side roads are the best. That plan BrasilnSC found is impressive. Wish it was in pdf to be able to zoom in for more detail.

Thanks again for sharing!

[growingup15]

The plans I saw were a SCDOT visualization that was imported into Google Earth. After searching for a while, I was able to find the images I had saved . Again, this was a very preliminary visualization and is not part of any actual concrete plan.

(Edit: It'll make more sense if I start from the West)

I-26 heading east just past Piney Grove.

St. Andrews Rd Interchange

I-26 @ I-20 Interchange.

Stretch between Bush River Rd and I-20. Notice the separate parallel outside lanes.

I-126 and I-26 interchange along with Bush River Rd interchange.

Heading into Columbia, I-126 on the right and I-26 on the left after the split.

wow this looks really nice i really think this project will benefit for columbia commuters and also i hope it reduced traffic.

[Spartan]

It won't reduce traffic, but it will probably reduce traffic congestion

[growingup15]

It won't reduce traffic, but it will probably reduce traffic congestion

What we really need is a highway loop and i have an idea im going to present to the mayor when i have my meeting with him again. i hope it works out.

[Spartan]

You mean like the loop that is formed by 26, 20, and 77?

[BrasilnSC]

Columbia does not need another "loop", the I-20, 26, 77 loop serves the city well.....you can get anywhere in 20 minutes or less.

[krazeeboi]

^Correct. That's one thing that SCDOT has gotten right.

[growingup15]

Columbia does not need another "loop", the I-20, 26, 77 loop serves the city well.....you can get anywhere in 20 minutes or less.

I understand and your right but you have to live in downtow to understand the only way to get rid of traffic on regular roads is to open to freeway that loops the city. So instead of traffic keep stopping at every light they can keep going all the way threw town. and at the same time get a good scenic route.

I already talked to the mayor about this idea and he said that this idea could work and will help with traffic.

[Spartan]

You can't get rid of traffic downtown because downtown is the destination people are driving to.

[scnative]

The South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) is seeking comment from the public on an I-26 express lane/widening project in Richland/Lexington Counties. Here is our chance to have our say in what to do to fix or modify 'malfunction junction'.

Click here to visit SCDOT site to add your comments.

[Hybrid0NE]

It won't reduce traffic, but it will probably reduce traffic congestion

Yes; if anyone is familiar with Atlanta's 285, you probably know it was intended to be a bypass loop but ultimately got overrun by suburban sprawl and edge-cities. In it's current state it's used primarily by local traffic and Georgia even proposed an even more far-flung loop for thru-traffic that never materialized.

I think, Columbia is fine with it's "unofficial loop." If, local traffic ever gets to a point where it's oversaturating that system; then maybe a Toll loop or something could be effective for lessening the burden.

[growingup15]

Yes; if anyone is familiar with Atlanta's 285, you probably know it was intended to be a bypass loop but ultimately got overrun by suburban sprawl and edge-cities. In it's current state it's used primarily by local traffic and Georgia even proposed an even more far-flung loop for thru-traffic that never materialized.

I think, Columbia is fine with it's "unofficial loop." If, local traffic ever gets to a point where it's oversaturating that system; then maybe a Toll loop or something could be effective for lessening the burden.

But why wait until the traffic gets to a exploding point in columbia when we can solve the problem now before it comes. I know alot of people see this as far fetch. but i think planning in advance instead of waiting like most cities did is a better idea.