Written by Charlie Wetmore

y family and I recently moved back to the area after being away for four and a half years. We truly missed the Lowcountry lifestyle while we were gone. When we were deciding where to move, we recalled the fond memories we had of living in Bluffton.

Since returning I have discovered the Greater Bluffton Pathways organization whose website is: greaterblufftonpathways.org and its founder, Karen Heitman. This is a group of volunteers who work within the greater Bluffton community (area residents, local officials and various organizations). This group helps to ensure safe routes to school for our children, safe places to bicycle for our community members and much more. Imagine a pathway system that will allow a family to walk to the new community park or cinema on Buckwalter Parkway, or that will allow children to safely walk around Old Town.

While volunteering as a community member, I have become very impressed by how well everyone (including elected officials) worked together to get things done right. A recent example of this is the new pathway being built along Buckwalter Parkway from SC 46 to just past HE McCracken Circle. A representative from the town of Bluffton applied for a grant to build the pathway years ago. When the grant was approved, the town approached the county about building the pathway for them. The county agreed and construction of the new pathway began in November.
As community members watched the construction process, they became concerned about a part of the pathway that seemed as if it would take a sharp turn and run directly along Buckwalter Parkway. This would be very dangerous – it would place children and others within inches of traffic that was traveling 45mph along a four-lane road.

Calls and e-mails were made to Greater Bluffton Pathways, the town of Bluffton and to Beaufort County. A local newspaper was also contacted and ran an article highlighting the situation. The initial response was that the pathway had to travel next to the Parkway because there was a culvert that either had to be replaced or a bridge for the pathway had to be built. I can only assume that, somewhere in the planning for the pathway, this fact was missed and the money was not there to correct the situation.

Everyone who looked at the area in question began to agree that it was unsafe and that changes needed to be made. The big question then became: Would anyone step up and take care of the situation or would we be stuck with a dangerous pathway? In thinking of other communities I’ve lived in, the situation would have been ignored and the pathway would have been built, endangering all who used it.

Well, that’s not the case in Beaufort County. According to an e-mail I have received, the county Administrator, Gary Kubic has made the decision that this must be corrected. He found the money to extend the culverts so that the pathway will no longer travel directly alongside Buckalter Parkway. Thank you Gary!

This is one of the many reasons why my family and I are so glad to be back. There truly is no place like Bluffton.

Buckwalter Child Safety Project 
PATHWAYS and SAFE CROSSINGS Are Urgently Needed Along Buckwalter Parkway and McCracken Circle. Be part of the discussion and help your community.
 
Buckwalter Safety Steering Committee
School Traffic Safety Team
Greater Bluffton Pathways is attempting to  establish  a Steering Committee of Beaufort County and Bluffton government officials and planners, school representatives, interested residents, developers, builders, churches, homeowners groups and others from the Buckwalter Parkway area to discuss and review plans to make paved pathways and SAFE pedestrian crossings a reality. We feel that the residents along Buckwalter would like to have the choice of safely walking or biking to other neighborhoods, the schools, future parks and the movie theater complex. We want to have input into the design plans when Buckwalter Parkway is widened. Still needed: Beaufort County Planner, school representatives, students, church representatives, developers.

We have also formed a School Traffic Safety Team (Bluffton Complex) whose mission is to improve walking and bicycling conditions within and around the McCracken Circle/Bluffton School Complex/ Boys and Girls Club area.

The Issues: 

SAFE PEDESTRIAN CROSSINGS
* Where should the crossings be located?
* How can we make them pedestrian friendly?
* Traffic lights or roundabouts?
* Mid block crossings?
* Traffic calming devices to slow traffic and give pedestrians priority
* Safe routes to movie complex and regional park.
* Discuss overpasses and tunnels vs. at-grade crossings
* Traffic signs, control signals and pavement markings.

SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOLS
* School Traffic Safety Team for Bluffton School Complex
* School Site Assessment Form discussion (See SR2S Tool Kit)
* School Crossing Guard program? For which intersections?
* Identify where students live and do Neighborhood Site Assessments
* School zone flashing signal, traffic signs, control signals, pavement markings.
* Programs that educate children on walking and biking safely, and challenge them to walk or bike often
* Increased traffic enforcement around schools.

PATHWAYS
* Pine Ridge Pathway (10 ft. wide) to be built in Sept./Oct. will extend from SC 46 along Buckwalter Parkway to Bus Entrance at HEMMS.
* Funding needed for pathways around McCracken Circle to connect Boys & Girls Club and Pinecrest Community.
* 8 ft. wide pathways have been funded for rest of Buckwalter Pkwy. Discuss 8’ vs. 10 ft. width and its’ location relative to the roadway.
* Bike lanes to be included on Buckwalter Parkway?  Bicycle Boulevard?
* Bollards, Stop signs and pavement markings
* Suggest that each “subdivision/church/business/school” along the pathway be responsible for it’s maintenance, landscaping and amenities (benches, trash cans, etc.)

SAFE ROUTES WITHIN DEVELOPMENTS
* Review Neighborhood Site Assessments (from SR2S Tool Kit)
* Suggest each HOA have a School Traffic Safety Advisor
* Involving parents with ‘Walking School Buses’, ‘Bicycle Bus” and Neighborhood Block parents
* Identify projected walking routes for children to use to safely get to the school complex, the regional park and the movie complex.