Groups submit pleas against extending I-526

The Coastal Conservation League and the Charleston County Park and Recreation Commission are trying to get the state Department of Transportation to see things their way and opt not to finish the controversial Mark Clark Expressway.

The Transportation Department had asked for comments toward the agency's environmental impact statement on the project, and the two area groups submitted detailed reasonings for why they feel an extended I-526 is a bad idea.

If expanded, the Mark Clark Expressway would connect the West Ashley end to the James Island connector, passing through Johns Island. It could help increase mobility for current traffic problems as well as accommodate future anticipated growth.

On behalf of the league, the Southern Environmental Law Center submitted a 19-page document urging state transportation officials to rethink the controversial road project.

The league takes issue with plans to fill about 100 acres of wetlands, cross over the already polluted Stono River and impact wildlife habitats, among other things.

Another of the league's concerns is that of the price.

Previous estimates put the project's cost at about $420 million. But the league argues rising construction costs could more than double the price tag by the time the Mark Clark is completed, which wouldn't be before 2013.

The league's "New Way to Work" proposal would cost about $207 million or less than half of the estimated price, and traffic would improve significantly improve traffic on main roads, such as Folly Road and Maybank and Savannah highways, according to the league.

"New Way to Work" plans call for more connectivity of roads to diffuse local traffic in West Ashley and on Johns and James islands, freeing up the "overburdened arterial roads and highways."

Read more in tomorrow's editions of The Post and Courier.