Bull Street Lane Closure Has Commuters Worried About Rush-Hour Traffic

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WOLO)– Even though it’s Friday, and everyone is just looking forward to the weekend… we wanted to give you all a heads up for a slow Monday morning commute coming up.

“Not at all,” Nick McGill laughs, a resident in the Cottontown area and Bull Street commuter.  

Starting Monday, one of the inbound lanes on BullStreett will be closed causing the already chaotic drive to be even more of a headache.

“On the way to work, on the way home from work it’s always a pain,” McGill said.

“Well, it’s just going to be inconvenient because of a lot of traffic. A/C is a must. It’s a must in this traffic,” Aaron Brown said, another Bull Street commuter. 

The inbound lanes on Bull Street by Victoria and Franklin Streets will be affected while Columbia Water improves the storm drain infrastructure. Residents in the area say they’re worried it’s going to cause even more traffic on their side streets right next to where the project is to take place.

“And again, they’re doing a lot of road work in the actual neighborhood and you never know what roads closed what day. So it’s been kind of tough getting around here recently,” McGill said.

The city says the new infrastructure will reduce localized flooding, increase fire protection, and improve water quality for residents in the Cottontown area.

“I’m just glad they’re taking the time to put the money in the community where it’s well needed,” Brown said. 

“I understand they have to do what they have to do. There’s no convenient way to do it, so hopefully they can just get it done quick,” McGill said.

The city says the projects were coordinated so that traffic would only be impacted once, however construction may take up to 30 days.