Charleston County has tremendous road needs and only one realistic way to pay for them: extending the half-cent transportation sales tax that’s set to expire next year. So as County Council begins to craft its 2026 sales tax referendum, it’s imperative that it focus in on the most cost-effective projects our community actually needs. And if it hopes to win voter approval, it needs to narrow that list down to the ones that are most popular, first by removing any controversial or unpopular projects. That’s why an overpass where U.S. Highway 17 crosses Houston Northcutt Boulevard in Mount Pleasant seems like such a bad pick.
The S.C. Department of Transportation and the town need to find an at-grade solution that will address what some see as a dysfunctional, frustrating intersection, particularly on the southern side where a frontage road feeds into Houston Northcutt near the highway. Traffic backlogs there can lead to frustrating gridlock.
Mayor Will Haynie tells us the intersection “needs a lot of help” and is the town’s “Number One nut to crack” through an extension of the county’s existing transportation sales tax. County Council has formed a special committee to determine what projects will be on the list.
County officials are seeking cities’ wish lists for projects by the end of next month, and they know they have work to do to move public opinion in favor of extending the tax. Last year’s disastrous referendum — shot down by 60 percent of the voters — is top of mind.
The losing margin was so large because by far the largest slice of that 2024 plan would have funded the controversial extension of Interstate 526 to Johns and James islands. The 526 project cost the most and also was the most unpopular, according to an unscientific survey of almost 800 residents.
But it’s worth remembering that the second-most unpopular project was a plan to build an overpass where Highway 17, also known as Johnnie Dodds Boulevard, meets Houston Northcutt. Those who have lived in our region for a few decades might have a sense of deja vu: When Johnnie Dodds Boulevard was widened and improved through the original transportation sales tax, there was a lively debate over whether that work should include overpasses or flyovers at Houston Northcutt, Shelmore and Anna Knapp boulevards as well as Bowman Road.
A group of concerned residents and advocates formed the East Cooper Planning Council, which in turn made a two-part video explaining why the flyovers would be an awful idea and urging instead a more urban approach that would include multi-lane roundabouts at intersections and a multi-way boulevard flanked by deep sidewalks framed by 5-story and 6-story buildings.
The videos and pressure rallied business owners and residents, and they ultimately convinced town leaders to back off all the flyovers except for the one built over Bowman Road; the larger urban boulevard vision didn’t come to pass, but the other three intersections were enlarged, nearby frontage roads were widened, and landscaping was added to the medians.
While the Houston Northcutt-Highway 17 intersection is still so wide that it’s not a particularly inviting place to walk, building an overpass there would give the area a more industrial, bleak feel, too steep a price to pay.
Mr. Haynie tells us he remembers the debate over the flyovers and believes there may be at-grade solutions that can address the worst snarls, possibly by forbidding traffic heading north on Houston Northcutt from turning left onto Johnnie Dodds toward the Ravenel Bridge. That might involve directing those cars toward Coleman Boulevard, which also leads to the bridge, or toward Wingo Way, which also has a ramp to the bridge. “I live on Wingo Way so I’d be sending traffic to my own neighborhood,” he tells us.
It’s unclear when those alternatives will be fleshed out, but we encourage the state and town to do so soon. One big advantage of an at-grade solution is that it would cost only a small fraction of a flyover, which after all would essentially be a six-lane bridge with on- and off-ramps over Houston Northcutt.
Town leaders need to rally around whatever appears to be the best at-grade solution for fixing problems at this choke point. And we urge county officials to make sure that any specific solution to fixing this intersection that’s part of next year’s transportation sales tax referendum is not so controversial that — just like last year — its inclusion risks dragging down the project because some voters believe the project doesn’t help and actually hurts where they live.
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