Edgefield County Residents Fear Traffic Surge on Coronet Drive Due to New U.S. 25 Signal
Residents in the Springcrest neighborhood fear that new traffic signals on U.S. 25 will create traffic and safety issues.
Yellow traffic light with a green signal illuminated
Getty ImagesHomeowners in the Springcrest neighborhood worry about the traffic surge coming to their street. The South Carolina Department of Transportation plans to install a traffic signal at U.S. 25 where it meets Shortcut Road and Trailside Drive by summer 2028. That red light, they say, will funnel even more vehicles onto Coronet Drive, which is a quiet residential street already plagued by speeding since Fox Creek High School relocated nearby in 2009.
Tim Horton moved to the bend in 1996. He's watched reckless driving for years. Garrett Grice arrived in 2018 and says things have deteriorated as student numbers climbed.
"Coronet is a shortcut road to 25," Horton said, per The Post and Courier.
The two men attended SCDOT's public input session on March 3 for the Shortcut-Edgefield Road intersection. They asked about speed bumps. Officials told them installation would cost between $15,000 and $18,000 and would be money they'd have to pay themselves.
A School Resource Officer once blocked access from Shortcut Road into their streets, Horton recalled. Not anymore. School administrators offered little help since the chaos unfolded off campus.
Grice keeps his 6-year-old and 2-year-old indoors until after 3 p.m. He's witnessed a pickup flip into a neighbor's yard. Manny Fernandez, who lives nearby, replaces mailboxes several times a year.
Residents are insistent that Edgefield County takes action on this issue. Their main request is simple: drivers need to slow down.
