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I-185/Southern Connector

GSP Tiger

By GSP Tiger
in Greenville

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breed Hamlet

breed

Posted
Posted

This is a perfect illustration of how poorly it was planned out. (click on site map and connector map) It should have arched in the opposite direction, with the two ends pointing down the other way. The middle part would have still opened up the same portion of land, but it would have actually cut off some distance and time to boot.

If I recall correctly, having the Southern Connector access Donaldson almost directly was pretty critical, which would account for the wider-than-ideal arc.

My hunch is that in 25 years, the Southern Connector will be viewed as a huge asset to Greenville. But that's a tough sell right now, with its dubious economics. But it is attractive to incoming industry... who rely on efficient transportation... a well-situated limited-access road is not something you'll find in many metro areas.

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vicupstate Metropolitan Area

vicupstate

Posted
Posted

The Southern Connector has been dangerously close to defaulting on it's bonds for some time now. The private investors will probably lose there shirts before it is all over. That's is why you won't see a Norhtern connector anytime soon. It was a poorly planned project from the beginning.

I read something recently that the Hilton Head toll road wasn't doing too well either. I don't recall the details.

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g-man430 Town

g-man430

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I drove on the Southern Connector earlier today and was absolutely amazed by how much traffic was actually on it. There were Champion Charter buses, cars from other states including Georgia, Florida, and North Carolina, a Lexington County school bus, and semi's from companies like Swift and Wal-Mart using it. When I got to the toll booth to pay, there were six cars in front of me that I had to wait for to get through before I could pay the one dollar toll and go through.

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whitehourseview Burg

whitehourseview

Posted
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I drove on the Southern Connector earlier today and was absolutely amazed by how much traffic was actually on it. There were Champion Charter buses, cars from other states including Georgia, Florida, and North Carolina, a Lexington County school bus, and semi's from companies like Swift and Wal-Mart using it. When I got to the toll booth to pay, there were six cars in front of me that I had to wait for to get through before I could pay the one dollar toll and go through.

Amazing to me that a Swift or Wal-Mart truck would be on that road. Most transfer companies prohibit their drivers from going on toll roads unless absolutely necessary.

Stunning really that a Wal-Mart truck, going to or from its distribution center in Laurens, I presume, would be on that road due to the company's cost cutting to the bone philosophy.

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RestedTraveler Metropolis

RestedTraveler

Posted
Posted

The Southern Connector is about to go BOOM: http://greenvilleonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/...SINESS/70424034

This very much reminds me of what happened with the "Central Florida Greenway" (AKA SR 417) on the east side of Orlando. It was built. It sat for years with hardly anybody using it. Then a lot of housing developments came and so did the businesses and the traffic. They've since had to widen/reconfigure the toll plazas a few times to keep up with traffic demands.

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RestedTraveler Metropolis

RestedTraveler

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Greenville. It would have been an unbelievable opportunity to annex largely undeveloped land and let the city grown down that way (and add tens of thousands of residents in the future).

Ah, but they don't call it the suburbs for nothin'. Seriously though - if all of that land were annexed into the city, wouldn't we be far less likely to see it developed into what it will be developed into ("suburban utopia", whatever that means). It'd likely sit undeveloped for many more years because people want to live where their property taxes are lower, no?

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btoy Town

btoy

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Which city? The Southern Connector, for large sections is between Mauldin and Simpsonville and Piedmont.

Isn't the Southern Connector Privatley owned? Not suggesting it, but if they did annex into Greenville, it would sure make it easy for Greenville to reach other areas.

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whitehourseview Burg

whitehourseview

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Isn't the Southern Connector Privatley owned? Not suggesting it, but if they did annex into Greenville, it would sure make it easy for Greenville to reach other areas.

It is privately owned. My point about asking which city is that most of the road would not be contiguous to the city of Greenville, as it goes south of Mauldin, and east of Piedmont.

I'm not sure how other municipalities, including Simpsonville would feel about a reach around like that. If it is ever annexed by a municipality, Simpsonville and Mauldin seem likely candidates.

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Spartan Gigalopolis

Spartan

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I think its now illegal to use roads for annexation or to just annex roads. Greenville (or Mauldin, Simpsonville) wouldn't be able to annex the road itself except for small portions in order to jump the interstate.

Piedmont isn't an incorporated place, and the Southern Connector is separated from all municipalities by quite some distance except right near Mauldin.

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breed Hamlet

breed

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I think its now illegal to use roads for annexation or to just annex roads. Greenville (or Mauldin, Simpsonville) wouldn't be able to annex the road itself except for small portions in order to jump the interstate.

Greer does it... annexing utility lines, roads, or narrow strips of private property to make their "targets" contiguous.

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912 Whistle-Stop

912

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I know what I'm about to say is done in other cities, but they tend to be much larger & toll roads are a fact of life.

Who will want to own a home here, in Greenville, when you have to pay to get to the street you live on?

Maybe we should focus more on lifting the tolls?

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distortedlogic Town

distortedlogic

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Ah, but they don't call it the suburbs for nothin'. Seriously though - if all of that land were annexed into the city, wouldn't we be far less likely to see it developed into what it will be developed into ("suburban utopia", whatever that means). It'd likely sit undeveloped for many more years because people want to live where their property taxes are lower, no?

I was talking about annexing all the way down to the road from the current city lines. IMO, that would have been a great tract to annex; large undeveloped (mainly) area, unincorporated, and a chance for the city to plan some long term dense urban developemnts, that would add a lot of space, money, and population to the city over the next few decades. And I think many people would want to live in the city, especially an up and coming area (and don't forget all the transplants who are used to higher taxes and city services). And besides, greenville city taxes are not very high anyway are they? This would have been a great move for the future. Just my opinion, especially since annexation of developed areas is so difficult in this state, it would have been nice to get it and then develop it properly.

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