Interstate 85 and 95 in South Carolina

Interstate 95 in South Carolina

South Carolina Interstate 85 Business

I-85 Bus.
Get started Spartanburg
End Spartanburg
Length 9 mi
Length 14 km
Route
→ Greenville1 North Blackstock Road

2 → Asheville / Columbia

3 New Cut Road

4A Broadcoast Drive

4B Asheville Highway

5 → Downtown Spartanburg

6 Boiling Springs Road

7 Bryant Road

9 → Charlotte

The Interstate 85 Business or I-85 Bus. is a Business Route and Interstate Highway in the US state of South Carolina. I-85 Business forms a route through the city of Spartanburg and is 14 kilometers long.

Travel directions

I-85 Business begins and ends at Interstate 85, which forms a northern bypass of Spartanburg in this area. I-85 Business runs a bit more through the city itself and has 2×2 lanes. However, I-85 Business does not pass through or past downtown Spartanburg, Interstate 585 is an access road to downtown. There is also an interchange with Interstate 26.

  • ANSWERMBA: Provides information about South Carolina history.

History

The highway was originally constructed as part of Interstate 85 when it was built through South Carolina in the early 1960s. It is not known when the highway was opened exactly, but somewhere between 1960 and 1964.

With population growth in the southeastern United States, through traffic on I-85 also increased dramatically and there was a desire to widen I-85 to 2×3 lanes. However, the existing highway had substandard features and was technically complex to widen. As a result, it was decided to build I-85 over a new route north of Spartanburg. This bypass opened to traffic in 1995. After that, the old route was renumbered as a Business Route.

Traffic intensities

30,000 to 50,000 vehicles use I-85 Business every day.

 

Interstate 95 in South Carolina

I-95
Begin Hardeeville
End Hamer
Length 199 mi
Length 320 km
Route
Georgia5 Hardeeville

8 Hardeeville

18 Ridgeland

21 Ridgeland

22 Ridgeland

28 Coosawhatchie

33 Sheldon

38 Yemassee

42

53 Walterboro

57 Walterboro

62 McLeod Road

68 Canadys

77 St. George

82 Harleyville

86 → Columbia / Charleston

90 Wells

93 Wells

97 Santee

98 Santee

102

108 Summerton

115

119 Manning

122 Sumter

132 Sardinia

135 Sumter

141 State Route 53

146 South Lynchburg

150 Sardis

153 Timmonsville

157 Florence

160 → Columbia

164 Florence

169 TV Road

170 Williston Road

181 Latta

190 Dillon

193 Dillon

North Carolina

Interstate 95 or I -95 is an Interstate Highway in the US state of South Carolina. I-95 forms a north-south route through the east of the state, from the Georgia border at Savannah to the North Carolina border at Dillon. I-95 does not serve any major cities in South Carolina, the regional town of Florence is the largest town on the route. Interstate 95 is 200 miles long in South Carolina.

Travel directions

I-95 at Beaufort.

Interstate 95 in Georgia comes from Savannah and crosses the Savannah River, which forms the border between Georgia and South Carolina. I-95 then heads northeast, progressively further away from the Atlantic coast. It follows an approximately 140 km stretch through rural areas to the interchange with Interstate 26. There are no places of significance on this route. I-95 leads through a fairly monotonous area with a lot of forest and sometimes some meadows.

After the interchange with I-26, there is a 120-kilometer stretch to Florence, the largest town on the route. This part of the route has slightly more meadows and crosses Lake Marion with a bridge. I-95 passes some distance east of the small town of Sumter. Near Florence, Interstate 20 ends at I-95. Florence is not much more than a regional town.

After Florence there is another 60 km long route to the border with North Carolina. This again leads through rural area with quite a lot of afforestation. A long bridge crosses the swamps around the Pee Dee River. On the border with North Carolina, I-95 leads past ‘South of the Border’, a tourist trap. Interstate 95 in North Carolina then continues toward Fayetteville.

History

I-95 at South of the Border, a landmark for travelers.

History

Several US Highways preceded I-95. From south to north these were US 17, US 15 and US 301. Due to the lack of larger cities on the route, these US Highways were not developed to a high standard for the construction of I-95.

Construction history

Interstate 95 had a somewhat secondary importance to South Carolina because it did not connect major cities. Thanks to the federal funding that became available for the construction of the Interstate Highways from 1956, the construction of I-95 has been started somewhat energetically. Construction began in the first half of the 1960s on various routes. The first sections opened to traffic in 1965, construction initially progressed mainly on the northern half of the route. In 1968 the bridge opened over Lake Marion south of Sumter. It wasn’t until 1980 that the last part was opened, this was the bridge over the Savannah River on the border with Georgia.

Future

Because I-95 is of little importance to South Carolina, but is very important for north-south traffic along the US East Coast, further modernization and widening of the highway with toll collection is being considered. Plans for this are not yet concrete, and US legislation also does not allow Interstate Highways to become toll roads, although there are already examples of this in South Carolina, such as I-185 at Greenville. The cost of a full state widening to 2×3 lanes is estimated at $4 billion. In 2018, there was talk that the southernmost 50 kilometers from the Georgia border to US 17 could be the first to be widened. In 2022, there was talk of a broadening of this trajectory by mid 2030.

Traffic intensities

Every day, 54,000 vehicles per day cross the Georgia border near the city of Savannah. The intensities are then relatively stable at 30,000 to 40,000 vehicles per day through much of the state, the quietest part being between I-95 and Florence. After the interchange with I-20 in Florence, 48,000 vehicles per day run, before dropping back to 35,000 vehicles per day at the border with the state of North Carolina.

Interstate 95 in South Carolina