Transportation Archives – Charleston Livability

Charleston Transportation Steps Forward with New Intermodal Facility

June 29, 2019January 23, 2019 by Bryan McElveen

The new Charleston Intermodal Facility in North Charleston, SC

Mass transit, like in many southern cities, has been admittedly lacking in Charleston. We have an expansive bus service that does a serviceable job, however any semblance of light rail vanished with the dismantling of the electric trolley cars in the 1930s. Charleston as a Leader in Mass Transit There was a time when, especially among southern states, Charleston spearheaded …

Should Second Sunday on King Street be Every Day?

May 20, 2020March 7, 2018 by Bryan McElveen

People enjoying Second Sunday on King Street

The popularity of Second Sunday on King Street has illuminated a fundamental need: for the street to be a place in itself, not just a means to move traffic.

Visions of a Lorelei Project

December 16, 2018June 28, 2016 by Bryan McElveen

As developers swoop into the upper peninsula to save us from our own growing pains, every few years we see a new master planned community to complement and embrace the historic fabric of Charleston. The latest iteration is a planned development of the uninhabited Laurel Island along the banks of the Cooper River. A 160 acre island that once served …

Crowdsourced Map of Charleston Street Flooding

May 9, 2020August 4, 2015 by Bryan McElveen

Crowd sourcing data can produce wonderfully useful results. In this case, a crowd-sourced map of flood-prone streets in notoriously flood-prone Charleston. We’re entering the rainy season in August, so use scrupulously.

Huger Streetscaping

December 16, 2018February 11, 2015 by Bryan McElveen

Marking the boundary between historic Charleston and the Upper Peninsula district, Huger Street has served as a secondary roadway connecting Morrison Drive, Meeting Street, King Street, and into the Hampton Park Terrace neighborhood. However, the importance and prominence of Huger Street in Charleston’s infrastructure has never been more important. Traffic on the street began to increase with the opening of the …

Designing the Upper Peninsula

December 16, 2018August 5, 2014 by Bryan McElveen

Charleston’s intentions for The Upper Peninsula Initiative are to direct population growth towards the city center in an effort to mitigate sprawl. Of the eight strategies implemented in the EcoDistricts framework, Urban Form & Pattern has the most apparent and enduring influence. The arrangement of building densities, their heights and architectural styles, as well as the natural environment and transportation infrastructures are all paramount …

A Livable Upper Peninsula

December 16, 2018June 3, 2014 by Bryan McElveen

Venture north along the east side of the Charleston upper peninsula, and you will see the charm and history of the port city taper into an disjointed patchwork of abandoned industrial sites, public housing, and a sprinkling of trendy restaurants. The area is the obvious next frontier for growth in Charleston, and City Hall wants to make sure development occurs in a thoughtful way. Enter …

Lowcountry Lowline to Reconnect Neighborhoods

December 16, 2018November 10, 2013 by Bryan McElveen

Many scars remain in Charleston from transportation works projects of decades past, from a time when all civic projects were laser focused on an automobile-centric vision for a city’s future. In the 1960s, our fair port city was connected with America’s burgeoning interstate highway system with the Interstate 26 project. Paving a beeline freeway from the upstate, zipping through the capital …

Clean Trucks in Charleston

December 16, 2018November 4, 2013 by Bryan McElveen

Good news for anyone who breathes air in our fair city – the Port of Charleston is expanding its efforts to see that the trucks moving cargo in and out of its terminals are newer and cleaner with fewer emissions. The air quality in Charleston, particularly in the areas around the ports and interstates, is an inherent victim of the …