700 Crosswalk Project brings safety upgrades to Lowcountry roads

BEAUFORT, Sc. (WTOC) - Hundreds of crosswalks throughout South Carolina have been installed or upgraded to increase safety for drivers, bicyclists, and pedestrians near schools and workplaces, according to the South Carolina Department of Transportation.

The 700 Crosswalk Project is a collaboration between SCDOT and several counties, including Beaufort, Colleton, and Jasper. Work on the project began in 2019 and has used tens of millions of dollars in funding.

SCDOT Deputy Secretary for Engineering Rob Perry announced details at a press conference Friday in North Charleston.

“We dedicate $10 million strictly to bicycle, pedestrian, or vulnerable road user safety,” Perry said.

Improvements include new pedestrian signals, pushbuttons, ADA-compliant curb ramps, and other safety enhancements. The project also includes shortening the distance between crosswalks and placing them where people already cross.

Perry said the project is expected to reduce crashes similarly to SCDOT’s Rural Road Safety Program.

“We’re expecting to reduce crashes kind of like our rural road safety program. We’ve reduced fatal and serious injury crashes by 30%,” Perry said.

The Rural Road Safety Program includes infrastructure upgrades such as rumble strips, roadway widening, and safety barriers. The South Carolina Department of Public Safety announced in March that annual roadway deaths are at the lowest level in more than a decade.

About 20 improvements are in progress in the Charleston area, with dozens already completed throughout the Lowcountry. In Beaufort County, 48 crosswalks were installed or upgraded. 35% of those are located on a one-and-a-half-mile stretch of Ribaut Road.

One completed crosswalk is at Ribaut Road and Reynolds Street, near the Technical College of the Lowcountry. People working near that intersection said drivers often speed there.