Officials Seek Input on Malfunction Junction

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Columbia, S.C. (WOLO) — On Tuesday, the State Department Of Transportation held a community kickoff meeting to discuss their Carolina Crossroads Project that is focused on improvements along the I-20, I-26, and 126 corridor. Members of the community were invited to Seven Oaks Elementary School for the first public meeting and presentation. It‘s one of busiest interchanges in the state, and it‘s one that gives many drivers a headache. “It‘s an extremely difficult interception to maneuver, particularly in the afternoon,” said Bru Pender. “I try to avoid it honestly,” added Chris Campbell. “I used to travel it a lot but I‘ve been frustrated with the traffic jams over there so I try to go over there as little as possible,” said Linda Cooper. That interchange is the I-20, I-26, and I-126 corridor, commonly referred to as ‘Malfunction Junction,‘ due to its high congestion and safety issues. “It‘s the crossroads of our state‘s economy and we have significant levels of traffic there,” explained SCDOT‘s Brian Klauk. “We have travelers, we have recreation travelers, we have cargo, we have commerce that all flows through that corridor.” To address the high volume of cars passing through the interchange, Klaus said the SCDOT is beginning a 36-month environmental impact statement to identify different solutions that will improve traffic flow and safety, part of which includes hearing from the community. “We want to hear from people, how they experience the corridor right now, when it is functioning correctly for them and when they are having those congestion and safety issues,” said Klauk. There will be several opportunities for people to weigh in before a solution is chosen at the end of the 36 month period, but as for drivers they just want to see malfunction junction, function. Officials said until a solution is picked they will not have a dollar amount on the project or an estimated timeframe for construction. To learn more about the project visit, http://www.scdotcarolinacrossroads.com.