How to stay safe — and sane — in the new Lady’s Island roundabout

A state transportation official has some advice for drivers who will soon navigate a completed roundabout at a major Lady’s Island intersection.

“Just patience,” S.C. Department of Transportation engineer Craig Winn said.

Winn oversaw the project, which transformed a four-way intersection at Sams Point, Holly Hall and Brickyard Point roads into a roundabout. The work is expected to be complete at the end of August, and traffic won’t flow through the finished product as it has temporarily while the project is completed.

Cars currently navigate a sea of orange cones and move in a circle restricted to one lane.

But drivers, be aware: the circle becomes a single lane and two-lane roundabout when it’s finished.

Confused? Here’s how traffic will move through the finished roundabout:

▪ Two northbound lanes on Sams Point Road enter the roundabout. The right lane must turn right onto Holly Hall or continue north on Sams Point Road. The left northbound lane must go left onto Brickyard Point Road or continue around the roundabout.

▪ From Brickyard Point Road, a dedicated right lane goes south on Sams Point Road and later merges left. The left lane enters the roundabout, yielding to other cars, and can use any exit.

▪ Heading south on Sams Point, the right lane can go right or continue south on Sams Point. The left lane can continue south on Sams Point or go left around the circle.

▪ One lane enters the roundabout from Holly Hall Road. From there drivers can go north on Sams Point, straight across to Brickyard Point or south on Sams Point.

Yield to cars in the roundabout, don’t stop in the roundabout except to avoid a crash and use your turn signal when exiting the circle, SCDOT recommends.

The project was scheduled to finish earlier in the summer but was delayed due to Hurricane Matthew and having to relocate utilities, Winn said.

The $4 million project will be paid for using federal money from DOT’s Guideshare program. About 20 percent will be covered by the state.

Traffic has been a concern on Lady’s Island as new houses and planned commercial development promise to drive up the number of vehicle trips.

Consultants hired to study the community’s traffic concerns told northern Beaufort County’s elected officials that about 50,000 vehicles travel through Lady’s Island’s major intersections each day. The study recommended a series of improvements, including small roundabouts, new connecting roads, turn lanes and medians.

Beaufort County Council will consider adopting the study’s recommendations and adding the study’s estimated $28 million in road projects to a list of county transportation improvements to be funded.

This story was originally published August 25, 2017 at 5:04 PM with the headline "How to stay safe — and sane — in the new Lady’s Island roundabout."