New traffic roundabout to replace lights at busy DI intersection

The Daniel Island Neighborhood Association meeting on Aug. 20 at the Daniel Point Retirement Center drew a large crowd as leaders addressed growth, safety, and infrastructure – from a major roundabout project to road resurfacing, e-bikes, and mosquito control.

 

ROUNDABOUT PLANS UNVEILED

Berkeley County officials plan to replace the traffic lights at Seven Farms Drive and River Landing Drive with a single-lane roundabout that includes two dedicated turn lanes. 

 

They hope the roundabout will ease congestion, reduce delays, shorten crosswalks, and enhance safety.

 

“We have finalized preliminary design, and we will be moving forward with construction plans,” said Amanda Deaton, program manager for the county’s penny sales tax program.

 

Construction on the intersection improvement project, which voters approved in the 2022 penny sales tax referendum, is expected to begin in mid-2026 and will take about six months for completion, project manager Bryan Merta said.

 

Work will be scheduled outside the school year to limit traffic disruption, though timelines may shift depending on underground utilities.

 

Merta noted a dramatic improvement in traffic flow: without the roundabout, peak-hour delays are projected at nearly a minute. With it, delays drop to 11.5 seconds in the morning and 16.6 seconds in the afternoon.

 

“Part of this design is traffic calming,” Merta said. “We want people to be going slower… it decreases any type of conflict.” He also noted that, unlike traffic signals, roundabouts remain functional during storms and power outages.

 

Since 2018, the intersection has seen 24 crashes, five involving injuries. County officials believe the new design will cut that number significantly and create a safer experience for drivers and walkers.

 

At the meeting, some residents voiced concerns about losing up to 10 nearby parking spaces and changes to one-way access roads. As one quipped, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

 

RESURFACING WORK AHEAD

Berkeley County Chief Infrastructure Officer Danny Thrower said nearly 50 city and county roads on Daniel Island, including Seven Farms Drive, Island Park Drive, and River Landing Drive, are slated for resurfacing over the next few years. The work is also part of the $587 million sales tax referendum that included 20% reserved for resurfacing county roads. 

 

DI NEARS FULL CAPACITY

City of Charleston Councilmember Boyd Gregg provided a current snapshot of Daniel Island’s decades-long planned development.

 

“Seventy-five hundred is the number of units allowed on Daniel Island,” Gregg said. “We’ve got 6,712 units that are either built, occupied, or currently coming. What’s left? 788 units. We’re in the last 5% of development left.”

 

Gregg estimated the cap would be reached in three to four years. While density often raises concerns, he noted its benefits.

 

“The reason we’re getting a brand-new Publix is there are more people on Daniel Island than there were 15 years ago. Density does bring us some good things,” he said, noting the island’s only grocery store is being redesigned, and retail and amenities are coming to Nowell Creek Village.

 

CRIME AND E-BIKE SAFETY

Charleston Police Sgt. Judson Haithcock reported property crime is down. “We’re down 50% on vehicle break-ins and 41% on car thefts.”

 

He also addressed one of the summer’s biggest issues: safety around e-bikes. 

 

“We get calls about them all the time. Right now, we have to treat them as bicycles,” Haithcock said. “We’ve told plenty of kids, if you see somebody walking, don’t run them over.”

 

The City of Charleston is monitoring Mount Pleasant’s pilot regulations on e-bikes before adopting new rules. Recently, Charleston’s Team 5 investigated two bicycle accidents; neither involved e-bikes, and a driver was at fault in one.

 

Police also plan to add a license plate reader on Highway 41, currently the only road in the Daniel Island area without one.

 

MOSQUITO CONTROL

Between the humid weather and frequent rainfall recently, DINA President and Berkeley County Councilmember Jarrod Brooks said mosquito complaints have surged this summer.

 

Benjamin Milligan of Berkeley County Mosquito Abatement explained the island receives more service than any other area in the county – about three times as much. “We’re in this area four times a week,” he said.

 

Crews spray by truck at night, when mosquitoes are most active and when spraying is safest for people and pollinators. 

 

“We try to hit every little road,” Milligan said, “and we’ve been doing pretty good controlling it with the trucks.”