Proposed Grand Strand evacuation route likely means tolls

SURFSIDE BEACH — Horry County may soon see its first toll road.

The SELL road, or Southern Evacuation LifeLine, is the hurricane evacuation route that county leaders discussed Monday at a meeting in Surfside Beach.

Money always has been the biggest hurdle in starting the project. But the Civil Engineering Consulting Services firm announced Monday it will head up the project and find the funds for the more than $600 million project, which could be completed by 2016 at the earliest. One way that could be done is through tolls.

The project’s study area was generally outlined by U.S. 17, U.S. 501 and the Little Pee Dee River and extends inland to just beyond the interchange of U.S. 501 and S.C. 22 (Veterans Highway).

Leaders who have worked more than 10 years on getting this deal done are elated, but some homeowners who live along the proposed route aren’t so thrilled.

“I don’t understand how you could put dollars, cents, or value on historical roots,” Burgess Community resident Richard Knox said. “That is something very sentimental, and I think that is something that should not be destroyed.”

Knox is concerned the new hurricane evacuation route could force him and his neighbors to move.

“I think that should be taken highly in respect, and highly in honor, and really accept that, and make some other alternative, that way you wouldn’t just destroy a people and their homes,” he said.

The road, which would connect the South Strand to the intersection of U.S. 501 and S.C. 22, has also raised concerns with wildlife conservationists.

“It will threaten and impact the wildlife refuge, and most of all it is not necessary,” said Nancy Cave, Northcoast Office director for the Coastal Conservation League.

Project planners said all of these factors have been closely considered in an environmental impact study. They said the evacuation route is necessary for the safety of Horry county and Georgetown County residents, as well as vacationers.

The majority of people take their vacation during the summer and warmer months of the year, coinciding with the hurricane season in the Atlantic Ocean beginning in May and ending in November, according to the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce. Hurricane evacuation studies concluded that the southern Grand Strand area could be evacuated more effectively with a new crossing of the Waccamaw River.

On Jan. 19, 2006, the S.C. Department of Transportation Commission allocated the $1 million of state funds required to match at least 20 percent of the $4 million of federal transportation funds that were made available to the SELL project in the a Federal Transportation Bill as an earmark.

After that, elected officials from Horry and Georgetown counties created a SELL Task Force of residents from both counties to promote the development of an Environmental Impact Statement to evaluate alternatives for providing an additional evacuation route across the Waccamaw River, according to SCDOT.

City leaders said the new road would have sensors to track vehicles on the route or cameras would take pictures of license plates and then drivers would be billed to make sure the tolls are paid.

Leaders said the toll would cost drivers about $3.50, a price they said is worth a quick evacuation.

“The faster folks evacuate, the faster folks that live in South Strand and the Waccamaw neck can get out,” Horry County Councilman Howard Barnard said.

Still, people like Knox are concerned not only for their community, but also others that could be affected.

“I know, obviously if they take this preferred route, then somebody else is going to be hurt as well,” Knox said. “So, you can’t please everybody, but at least look at the major impact of the situation.”

Project planners said the next step will be to make sure funding for the road meets with Horry County Council’s approval.
On the Web:

Southern Evacuation LifeLine, www.southernevacuationlifeline.com