Letters to The Editor

The April 16th Letter to the Editor, by a local West Ashley resident is spot on regarding the many opinions about this closure. A bit self-serving, his whole letter is based on the convenience for a small section of West Ashley, while naming those who simply state their opinion and throwing in a plug for his business.
The area namely from the bridge including the Cresent, South Windemere, Byrnes Down, Avondale, and over to Mooreland and maybe towards Wespanee and Ashleyville /Maryville is very small in comparison to the rest of west Ashley. What we all know is that nearly half of the City’s residents reside in West Ashley and it extends far beyond this “Happy Zone”. Very few people are going to bike, much less walk to and from town, from areas outside of this “Happy Zone,” but the rest of us will experience the untold inconveniences for this closure.
Recently, I took an unplanned walk home from downtown, I’ve done so several times, to and from different locations around Charleston. This recent walk was from Anson and Calhoun streets to my home near Sam Rittenberg Boulevard and Ashley Hall Road. It took about an hour and 45 minutes.
As I walked over the Ashley River Memorial Bridge, I was reminded of the speed of the cars passing by me going about 40, 50 miles per hour, even though the speed limit is lower. As sand and debris whipped up and blew in my eyes and ears, I thought: what if I were walking into downtown on the lane closure? The debris is one thing, the speed of the cars trying to jockey for position, is another.
For those of us outside of the “Happy Zone” and live near the Sam Rittenberg racetrack, many more West Ashley and Johns Island  vehicles will be coming our way when the closure occurs. Traffic coming from Highway 61 will increase in numbers turning left onto Sam Rittenberg Boulevard, heading towards the Northbridge then Interstate 26, then downtown. They’re not going to get into the congestion that will be waiting for them.
Our safety with this traffic increase is a concern to many of us. The “Happy Zone’s” gain will be our loss, so as opinions go, we hope that more logical thought is put into rethinking the impact this closure will have on the many for the Happiness of the few. There are a lot of good things happening in West Ashley, this just isn’t one of them. I love to bike, I obviously like to walk, but this is not the best of ideas, this isn’t the Ravenel Bridge and this isn’t thinking about the good of all of us in West Ashley. This is just my opinion.
— Michael Allen, Downing Street resident