‘Coffin corridor’ on I-95 in SC targeted for safety project

State highway officials are planning safety improvements on Interstate 95 in Jasper County, a stretch known as the 'coffin corridor' for its alarming number of fatal tree-related wrecks.

An investigation this month by The Island Packet and The Beaufort Gazette found more drivers are striking trees and dying along that stretch than any other part of the highway in South Carolina.

The safety project likely will include cutting trees in the median as well as installing cable barriers, according to Jasper County administrator Andrew Fulghum. He could not provide specifics -- such as how many trees would be removed or at what mile markers -- because state Department of Transportation engineers are still studying the area.

The project came about after Fulghum, upon reading the newspapers' investigation, requested that DOT study the area and propose a plan to improve the roadway.

"There are tragedies that might be prevented if the trees weren't there," Fulghum said Thursday. "We have a long history of providing emergency services to accident victims we'd like to lessen."

A final project proposal is expected to be ready in two months. If approved, work is scheduled to begin this winter, according to an email DOT sent to Jasper County officials. DOT safety engineer Brett Harrelson said in an email that the agency is finalizing a list of safety projects, but did not provide any more specifics.

The email from DOT to county officials confirming a plan was underway came on March 10, a little more than a week after the newspapers published a series that showed the county's section of I-95 -- a main artery for tourists coming to Hilton Head Island -- is particularly deadly.

During the past five years, 16 people have died in tree-related crashes along the 35-mile stretch. That's more fatalities than in any other county that I-95 touches, according to the newspapers' investigation.

Sometimes these drivers were drunk or speeding, but other times they were run off the road by another driver.

State Rep. Bill Herbkersman, R-Bluffton, said the stories jump-started the DOT project.

"They're being very responsive to us now, and I think a big part of that is thanks to the articles. (DOT) takes this stuff very seriously," he said. "Before Jasper County was out of sight, out of mind, since we are almost in Georgia, so it was good to bring us back to the forefront. And it's hard to ignore when people are being killed."

It is not clear how much the project will cost or how the state will pay for it.

Herbkersman said he thinks funding could come from money the state designates for infrastructure projects.

"We are not broke and there are funds available for the projects the state prioritizes, and this is now one of those projects," he said.

The project marks a change in position for DOT, which had not planned to work on I-95 in Jasper County until at least 2017, according to budget documents. Even more, that work was to be routine maintenance, which is usually much smaller in scope than a project to improve safety.

Before work begins, the project must be approved by the state Department of Transportation Commission. A proposal will likely come before the commission in May, according to the DOT email to Jasper County officials.

Commission chairman Jim Rozier said he did not know about the work, but safety projects generally mean an issue "needs our attention."

When told about the project, Rozier said it sounded like the tree-clearing work on Interstate 26. The DOT is cutting seven miles of trees and installing cable wire on the most dangerous stretches of that roadway. The four-lane stretch, between Summerville and I-95, claims the lives of more drivers than any other corridor in the state, according to a 2012 DOT study.

Rozier said he was against the project at first. But then he talked to the loved ones of motorists who died.

"Sometimes you have to say the hell with politics and do what's right for safety," he said.

Public outcry has hobbled tree-clearing projects in the past. Most people blame motorists for careless driving, and don't realize removing trees too close to the road could give those drivers room to recover, according to tree-clearing advocates.

Hardeeville Police Chief Sam Woodward, who has been vocal about removing trees in the median, said he expects pushback from the public.

But based on data from the past five years, if the trees stand until 2017, six more people could die, sometimes at no fault of their own.

"I'm sure we will have pros and cons and that there will be people who don't want to see the trees cut, and I can understand their feelings," said Woodward. "I'm a woodsman myself and don't want to see the trees go -- but I'm trying to save lives, and if it saves one life then I think it's worth it.”

This story was originally published March 27, 2015 at 7:11 AM with the headline "‘Coffin corridor’ on I-95 in SC targeted for safety project."