An Introduction to the Roadwise Program

March 22, 2011: Allen O’Neal, the Charleston County Administrator was introduced to our club by Rob Dewey. Mr. O’Neal assumed his position in 2009 after many years working in local government from North Carolina to New Port Oregon. He has served in roles working with FEMA, disaster recovery and administration among others. Allen is a Paul Harris Fellow, the father of two grown sons, Michael and Joseph, and an avid Tarheels fan.

O’Neal began with a brief overview of county government and moved to his focus area, The Road Wise Program. Charleston County was formed in 1949; it consists of 9 districts, each represented by a council person on County Council. The county has 37 departments, employs 2300 people and operates on a budget of approximately $328 million. The Transportation Sales Tax Program was approved in 2004 and tax collection began in 2009, it anticipates a 25 year duration and $1.3 billion in collections. Those funds are allocated as follows: $847.2 million to Roadwise, $221.5 million to Green Space, and $234.6 million to Transit.

As of March 15, 2011 Roadwise has completed 279 projects, all which utilize mostly local engineering firms and construction companies and has an additional 90 active projects in motion. All funded projects are decisioned after extensive research and input from municipalities, communities and leadership. Allen pointed out that transparency is of the utmost importance; “after all they are your tax dollars, you should know how they are spent”. He also reiterated that the goal is to enhance the quality of living for residents of Charleston County by creating safe avenues for bicyclist and pedestrians, improving traffic conditions for drivers, and preserving property values and landscapes.

Palmetto Commerce Parkway – Phase 1 took Ladson Road to Chrysler from two lanes to 4 lanes, its 2.1 miles long and had a budget of $48million, and it began in March 2006 and was completed in 2007. Phase 2- to complete Phase 1 and widen lanes from 2 to 4 from Ladson Road to Ashley Phosphate – budget of $43 million, project just completed.

Folly at Maybank Highway – began in March of 2009, completed in June of 2010 to improve drainage, sidewalks etc. budget of $4.1 million.

Bee Street at Courtenay Drive – began in May 2010, scheduled completion date of April 2011- improve traffic patterns- budget of $6.1 million

Glenn McConnell at I-526 – began in May 2010 scheduled completion of May 2011, adding lanes in both directions from Orleans Road to 526, address issues of highway noise for local neighborhoods – budget of $7.5 million

As is apparent by the projects above, the county works diligently to spread funding over the whole county based on need. Details pertaining to the RoadWise program and all of the projects can be found at www.ccroadwise.org.

Submitted by Elizabeth Burwell, Keyway Committee Chair