COLUMBIA, S.C. — It seems like a weekly occurrence: you're driving along south Assembly, trying to run an errand or make it to an appointment when you hear the unmistakable sound of a train's horn and see the red lights start flashing and the crossing gates start coming down. If you're lucky, this will only take a minute or two. If not, you could be stuck waiting for a very long train to clear the intersection for what seems like hours.
It's frustrating, for sure, but now there are plans in the works that might help alleviate this train versus traffic conundrum.
South Carolina's Department of Transportation (SCDOT), the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) are partnering to put forth possible solutions to the train situation in Columbia and they are asking the public for their opinion on the Assembly Street Railroad Separation Project (ASRSP).
The window for public comment opens Monday, Oct. 12 through end-of-business on November 11, 2020. Interested parties -- motorists, residents, business owners, etc. -- can review the six different proposed plans and weigh in on each one.
Proposed plans vary from consolidating train traffic along certain tracks while abandoning others, altering traffic patterns by raising the streets with proposed bridges and/or closing off streets in the South Assembly, Olympia-Granby corridor.
The area affected measures approximately 1.2 square miles and is bounded by:
- Blossom Street to the north,
- Pickens Street and Norfolk-Southern rail line to the east,
- Norfolk Southern rail line approximately 3 miles southeast of Rosewood Drive toward Andrews Yard and S. Beltline Boulevard, and
- Catawba Circle/Heyward Street/Dreyfuss Road/Assembly Street to the west.
Currently, motorists seem most frustrated when trains block Huger/Whaley near Granby Mills, Assembly Street near Whaley, Assembly near Capital Stadium and Assembly at Rosewood. The proposed plans are a result of a 2009 feasibility study and a 2018 online survey that sought to alleviate the train traffic problem in downtown Columbia.
Plans can be viewed here and feature interactive maps and a link for adding your comments. You can also email comments to info@assemblystreetrailproject.com or send in written comments to: Assembly Street Railroad Separation Project, PO Box 191, Columbia, South Carolina 29202-0191. You can follow the progress of the SCDOT Assembly Street Railroad Separation Project project on Facebook.
