Copyright Charleston Post and Courier
NORTH CHARLESTON — Advocates have pushed for decades for bike and pedestrian safety improvements along the 70-year-old bridge that connects North Charleston to West Ashley, but time and time again they’ve been met with roadblocks despite support from local officials. The North Bridge, formally known as the World War II Memorial Bridge, runs almost a half mile along S.C. Highway 7. In the 1970s, existing sidewalks on the bridge were removed to add more traffic lanes. Since then, the bridge has had no pedestrian or bike lanes in either direction. A narrow curb divides the six lanes of traffic. Still, pedestrians and cyclists regularly travel along the dangerous bridge because it’s the only way to cross the Ashley River for miles. In some cases, the consequences have been deadly. Over the last 10 years, five people have been killed by cars as they attempted to cross the state-owned bridge. Traffic along the route is only increasing. According to the state’s Department of Transportation traffic count, roughly 47,900 cars drove across the bridge each day in 2024, compared to 43,700 a decade ago. “Given the history of the bridge already, we know it's deadly,” said Charleston Moves Executive Director Katie Zimmerman. “We know people need to get across it by modes other than a car, so we've got to fix this.” While progress on an concrete plan has been slow, elected officials have expressed support for moving improvements forward. On Oct. 20, the Charleston Area Transportation Study committee, made up of elected officials in the tri-county area, approved a resolution that encouraged SCDOT to include bike and pedestrian accommodations to North Bridge improvements. The letter also requested the bridge be replaced instead of rehabilitated. “The community is still pushing forward on this, and our representatives are being clear that they support it,” Zimmerman said. The resolution came a few months after the bridge was added to DOT's Bridge Program list. The North Bridge is ranked 33rd out of nearly 80 bridges on the list that identifies bridges across the state in need of repair. Two nearby overpasses where Azalea Drive and Cosgrove Avenue cross over Interstate 26 also landed on the list. Hannah Robinson, a spokesperson for DOT, said the list prioritizes bridge projects that the department expects to begin in the coming years using current and future funding. “Most of these projects have not begun yet and are still being evaluated to see if they will be repaired or replaced,” she wrote in a statement. Before North Bridge was identified on the Bridge Program list, Charleston County adopted a solution to build a standalone bridge to run parallel to the existing one, similar to the Ashley River Crossing bridge that will connect West Ashley to the Charleston peninsula. Over the years, the county conducted several feasibility studies along the bridge, including a 2008 study that determined it would not be feasible to widen the existing bridge to accommodate for bike and pedestrian access. In 2021, the county started developing a conceptual design for a 14-foot-wide standalone bridge. However, the county hasn’t been able to secure the necessary funding for this project. The county has applied for the U.S. Department of Transportation’s RAISE grant for three consecutive years without success. The most recent denial was in June. “There isn't another source of funding that is allowing us to move forward in any way,” said Charleston County spokesperson Chloe Field. Zimmerman said Charleston Moves is advocating for any improvements that incorporate pedestrian and bicycle access, whether that includes a standalone bridge or replacement of the existing bridge. She said either plan needs to connect with existing and future infrastructure at both ends. In North Charleston, the recently completed Cosgrove Avenue extension bridge, roughly one mile away from the North Bridge, has a dedicated 12-foot multiuse path that is separated by a barrier from traffic lanes. The bridge leads to the former Charleston Naval Base that is home to a number of manufacturing businesses and federal agencies, and the Navy Yard redevelopment project that seeks to transform old Navy buildings into shops and apartments. In West Ashley, where Sam Rittenberg Boulevard and Old Towne Road meet, is the 35-acre Ashley Landing development that plans for six acres of green space along with apartments and townhomes. “The idea that we would still have this huge gap across the Ashley River is frustrating,” Zimmerman said. “It's also a very obvious pinch point when you start looking ahead to all that's coming.”
