The debate over the proposed Cross Island Expressway (also called Sea Islands Parkway) on Johns Island is heating up this week. Proposed by Charleston County Roadwise and funded by the half-cent sales tax, the high-speed toll road would bisect Johns Island, crossing private properties over a previously undeveloped thoroughfare, linking Kiawah and Seabrook Islands with downtown Charleston.

Parkway proponents, many of whom have commented on an online petition supporting its construction, cite the need for a safe hurricane evacuation route and decry the proportionately large number of accidents on Bohicket and River Roads.

“We are new property owners on Kiawah and we find the ride from the airport to Kiawah very dangerous,” wrote one of the most recent posts at press time. “Since there are so many contractors and vacationers using this road, we feel it is imperative to fix this.”

A petition opposing the road has also garnered large support. Many Johns Islands residents argue that preventing accidents requires slowing down traffic, not adding a new high-speed toll road. “What has drawn a lot of people here could potentially be jeopardized with the construction of a mass expressway,” says Jennifer Bost, a Kiawah homeowner. “I’m not insensitive to people’s feelings about safety, but I feel this is an issue that should be decided by the people of Johns Island.”

The project has the support of Kiawah’s mayor and homeowner’s association, and some opponents suspect the current strong push for the road lies in a desire to complete it for golf’s PGA Championships to be held on the island in 2012. Opponents say the toll road would do little to improve the island’s most dangerous intersections, and that road money priorities should be in fixing existing thoroughfares. This Thursday at 6:30 p.m., Roadwise hosts a public comment session on the Parkway, held at the St. John’s Island High School,1518 Main Road. With nearly 3,000 people signed on to one petition or the other and strong feelings on either side, expect a ruckus.

Here’s a press release with more details from Concerned Citizens of the Sea Islands on the meeting…

Public Hearing:
Thursday, June 19 at 6:30 p.m.
St. Johns High School Auditorium
1518 Main Road; Johns Island, SC 29455

Charleston County Council is considering a proposal to design and construct a four lane limited access expressway (interstate type highway) from Kiawah and Seabrook Islands to the Stono River Bridge at the intersection of Maybank Highway and River Road.

Because there is no county or state public funding available for this expressway, the proposal includes finding a private corporation to fund the construction of the road with the cost being paid off over time by charging a toll to use the expressway.

At the Charleston County Council’s Public Works Committee meeting on May 29, 2008, Mr. Christopher Carlsten from Transystems, Charleston County Roadwise’s consulting firm, stated that the cost is estimated at $155 million.

The Cross Island Expressway Toll Road plan proposes building this four lane highway down the center of Johns Island, effectively splitting our community in half.

When this idea was examined in 2001, the County’s consultants determined that, depending on its alignment, the expressway will impact between 70 to 120 acres of freshwater wetlands and between 67 and 160 acres of 100 year floodplain. These wetlands are critical for maintaining the good water quality we currently enjoy in our creeks, rivers, and along our beaches. They also provide habitat for our wildlife and sustain our fisheries.