If our region’s infrastructure is to keep pace with our rapidly growing population, we must start prioritizing improvements. Let's begin with the roads we travel. Our highways, bridges, and secondary roads are not meeting today's needs, let alone anticipated growth in residents, jobs, and businesses in the coming years. We should aggressively find funding tied to road improvement and prioritize top projects. We should begin by finishing I-526 and look for ways to improve I-26 from Summerville to downtown Charleston.

Meanwhile, we should promote strategies that organically lessen the burden on our roads and highways. The Lowcountry Rapid Transit is a key part of the solution. We should also do more to support in-fill development and urban density programs that would promote walking and biking to work and leisure activities. And we should support urban biking initiatives and local organizations that promote them to keep riders safe.

Next, let’s talk about flooding. This is not a new problem in the Lowcountry; on the contrary, it’s long been an issue thanks to the area’s low elevation, proximity to waterways, and years of filling in creeks and marshes for new development. But today, flooding is a significant infrastructure issue impacting the daily lives of residents, and must be a top priority for regional leaders in the coming decade. Fortunately, after years of planning, a number of drainage improvement projects are underway across the greater Charleston area, and more are on the horizon.