Charleston’s Department of Traffic and Transportation has approved a plan to test new carriage tour routes. The pilot program is set to begin March 1, 2017, and last until April 30. The project was developed to help combat over-crowding of residential neighborhoods in areas highly trafficked by carriage tours.
“Combined with increased vehicle traffic from tourists, congestion on residential streets from carriages has worsened,” says Charlestowne Neighborhood Association President Virginia Bush, who represents one of the neighborhoods affected by the route changes. “This also leads to concerns about response time from emergency vehicles, such as fire trucks and ambulances.”
Whether the pilot program is initially successful or not, the end goal is to ultimately change the current carriage routes in the future. Following inspection of the changes, new routes will be opened.
The restriction of carriages on Broad Street and Meeting Street during 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. will be lifted to make room for the new routes. While this may sound contentious to some, Traffic and Transportation Committee Chair and City Councilman Michael Seekings wants everyone to understand that the routes will not require carriages to be on those specific streets for longer than, roughly, three blocks.
Success of the project will be measured using anecdotal evidence from neighborhood associations, tour companies, and the citizens of Charleston. Everyone affected by the changes is encouraged to share their thoughts at City Council meetings. Once the new carriage routes are up and running, the Department of Traffic will begin gathering statistical evidence of their effects. That information will then be used to alter the direction the program takes in the future.
Some public officials and citizens see the changes as long overdue. The current carriage routes were created and approved by the City Council more than 33 years ago.
“The city has grown faster than we’ve expected. Tourism has certainly grown faster,” says Seekings. “Go find another city in America with 30 million people on a peninsula.”
The new trial plan is the result of collaborative efforts between several businesses in the carriage tour industry and the neighborhood associations of Charlestowne, Ansonborough, and the French Quarter. As Director of Livability Dan Riccio notes, this was no small feat. It’s a controversial issue for many, as it touches on problems of traffic, tourism, animal rights, and the comfort of residents. Despite these concerns, both sides see the benefit of new routes. Less crowded streets means happier citizens and more carriages that can be sent out, meaning happier carriage companies.
Seekings hopes that this collaboration is the beginning of a much larger change in traffic in Charleston, saying, “We need a much better understanding of traffic, not just on the peninsula. This can’t exist in a vacuum or bubble.”
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