Copyright Charleston Post and Courier
ISLE OF PALMS — Bike lanes, wider sidewalks and extra speed bumps. If you’ve ever thought the barrier island needs more of these features, city leaders want to hear about it. The Isle of Palms is conducting a mobility survey, taking a closer look at how people get around the city. Leaders want to know where gaps exist in sidewalks and safe crossings to plan for future projects, like incorporating more pedestrian and bike-friendly infrastructure. Residents, visitors, businesses and employees on the island can offer their thoughts online until Oct. 31. The city is partnering with the Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments and Explore Charleston to conduct the survey. Participants will have a chance to share how often they drive, bike or walk, and where they feel the city should prioritize safety. The survey also asks participants to identify any dangerous intersections or unsafe roads on the island. As traffic becomes one of the top issues on the island, particularly in the summer months, Mayor Phillip Pounds said the city wants to learn how to make it easier for visitors and residents to get around the island in something other than a car. The feedback from the survey and an Oct. 20 open house will help identify projects to do that, he said. “Part of it's just trying to make it easy for people, if they're new coming to the island, if they haven't been over here before,” Pounds said. “Right now, there's really very little infrastructure, very little signage to help direct people, so I hope one of the results of this will be to really make it easier for our visitors to get around the island.” Over 300 people have taken the survey so far. Early responses show that many residents and visitors primarily use a car to get around the island. Biking and walking are also common, followed by using golf carts or low-speed vehicles. E-bikes and scooters have proven less popular among survey participants. Dozens of participants turned out to an open house on Oct. 20 at the Isle of Palms Recreation Center to share their input. Several indicated they’d like to see more bike lanes, crosswalks and speed bumps throughout the island. A large map of the island was covered in sticky notes and colorful tape to show where residents want to see these changes. “Need an improved crossing for bikers to get from connector to Front Beach. A bike lane should extend to public beach,” one note read. Another asked for better signage on Palm Boulevard, the road running alongside the island’s beach parking district, notifying cyclists that bikes aren’t allowed on this busy stretch of road. Pedestrians mix with cars here as they walk to the beach via the access paths at each block. Paula and Michael Eriksen recently moved to the Isle of Palms full time. The couple has owned a home on the island for over a decade, but officially made the move to the beach community just under a year ago. Coming from Atlanta, they said their experience walking and cycling around the island has been a breath of fresh air, for the most part. “You come here, it’s like you can bike, you can walk and not get killed,” Paula Eriksen said. Still, they noted speeding cars on 30th and golf carts as a concern. “They come flying around the corner here and we're walking our dog, and they veer into the wrong lane because they cut the corners,” Paula Eriksen said. Other participants called for bike lanes on Waterway Boulevard and going towards Breach Inlet, as well as wider sidewalks throughout the island. BCDCOG will use the results of the study to create a list of projects, along with cost estimates, the city could pursue to address residents’ comments and concerns. The survey runs until the end of the month and can be accessed at publicinput.com/iopmobility.
