Two high-traffic corridors near downtown Greenville are set to receive safety improvements in the coming years.
The South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) plans to complete upgrades to River Street and Richardson Street, along with Rutherford Street and Poinsett Highway.
The corridors were selected for the Federal Highway Safety Improvement Program due to their high crash rates and patterns. Preliminary plans for both projects were presented to the public during a drop-in meeting on July 18.
River Street and Richardson Street
A one-mile stretch of River Street and Richardson Street is planned to receive $1.5 million in improvements. According to SCDOT, the corridor saw 280 vehicular, pedestrian and bicycle collisions from 2018 to 2022.
To help reduce the number of crashes, SCDOT has proposed adding a two-way bicycle track to the roadways. The separated tracks will allow bicyclists to ride in both directions on one side of the road.
Jamie McDonough, co-owner of Reedy Rides, believes the new bike lanes would be beneficial along the corridor. Reedy Rides is a bicycle rental company located on Richardson Street.
“Separating the bike lanes over from the car lane, having some structures beside of it, is going to be safer for everyone – cyclists and pedestrians,” McDonough said.
Other pedestrian safety elements include adding new sidewalks, high visibility crosswalks, ADA ramps, leading pedestrian intervals and more.
SCDOT aims to have the project’s construction plans finalized by the summer of 2025. Construction would begin in the spring of 2026 and take a year to complete.
Rutherford Street and Poinsett Highway
Several safety upgrades are planned along Rutherford Street and Poinsett Highway. According to SCDOT, 542 crashes occurred along the roadways from 2018 to 2022.
Read more about the proposed safety improvement projects.
Raised medians are proposed to be added along portions of the 1.5-mile project corridor. The medians aim to restrict the number of turns cars can make that could potentially end in a collision.
Additional safety improvements along the corridors include:
- Installing and relocating high-visibility crosswalks
- Leading pedestrian intervals
- ADA ramps
- New signing
- Updated pavement markings
- Traffic signal upgrades
Hannah Robinson, media relations coordinator for SCDOT, said the project’s anticipated cost is $4.7 million. Plans for the project are anticipated to be done by the summer of 2025. Construction would begin in the spring of 2026 and take around two years to complete.
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