Traffic study: Segment of Aiken's Whiskey Road is 17% overcapacity

Aug. 11—It's no secret that Aiken's Whiskey Road gets busy during the morning and evening rush hours. But just how busy does the route connecting downtown Aiken to New Ellenton and the Savannah River Site get?

The segment of Whiskey Road between Dougherty Road and East Gate Drive is 17% over its intended capacity according to a 2022 traffic study conducted by the city of Aiken's traffic consultant.

Jennifer Bihl of Bihl Engineering said in a traffic report recently presented and provided to the Aiken City Council that this segment of Whiskey Road's capacity is 36,600 cars per day.

Data collected by the South Carolina Department of Transportation says that an average of 42,700 cars traversed that segment of Whiskey Road each day in 2022.

Bihl also includes diagrams of Whiskey Road's intersections with Dougherty Road and East Gate Drive/Oak Grove Road. The diagrams include morning and evening rush hour traffic counts.

In the morning, 796 cars head north, toward Aiken, on Whiskey Road through its intersection with Dougherty Road. An additional 401 cars turn left from Whiskey Road onto Dougherty Road.

Seven hundred thirty-five cars head south, toward New Ellenton and the Savannah River Site, through the Dougherty Road intersection. An additional 117 cars turn right from Whiskey Road onto Dougherty Road.

Three hundred and thirty-four cars turn right from Dougherty Road onto Whiskey Road. And an additional 128 cars turn left from Dougherty Road onto Whiskey Road.

In the morning, 826 cars head north on Whiskey Road through its intersection with East Gate Drive/Oak Grove Road. Another 84 cars turn left from Whiskey Road onto East Gate Drive. Two more cars turn right from Whiskey Road onto Oak Grove Road.

Six hundred fifty cars head south on Whiskey Road through the East Gate Drive intersection. An additional 272 cars turn right from Whiskey Road onto East Gate Drive. And 22 cars turn left from Whiskey Road onto Oak Grove Road.

Three hundred fifty-eight cars turn left from East Gate Drive onto Whiskey Road (toward Aiken). An additional 66 cars turn right from East Gate onto Whiskey Road (toward New Ellenton). Four cars go across Whiskey Road from East Gate Drive onto Oak Grove Road.

Five cars turn left from Oak Grove Road onto Whiskey Road (toward New Ellenton). Eight cars turn right from Oak Grove Road onto Whiskey Road (toward Aiken).

Although the segment is overcrowded, wait times are not a concern according to Bihl's report.

Bihl said she examined how long cars have to wait at the intersections during rush hours using a grading system of A-F. She said it's a grade of "D" or above is considered acceptable.

Whiskey Road's intersection with Dougherty Road receives a "B." Its intersection with East Gate Drive receives a "C."

But, the problem could be getting worse.

Bihl added in her report the Whiskey Road segment between Dougherty Road and Oak Grove Road was one of eight city intersections to experience a traffic increase of 10% from 2021 to 2022.

South Carolina's population grew 1.7 percent in 2022 according to the Census Bureau. The Bureau estimates Aiken County's population grew 3.2 percent from 2020 to 2022. And that Aiken's population grew by 1.2 percent from 2020 to 2022.

An Olive Garden is being built in the area. Also, the Aiken Mall is being redeveloped and a new drive-thru coffee shop is planned.

There are several efforts underway to alleviate the Whiskey Road overcrowding.

The city is expected to break ground on the first of two phases for the Powderhouse Connector later this year or early next year. This phase would run from Whiskey Road to a planned roundabout connection with an extended Centennial Drive.

There are also plans that have not yet been funded to connect East Gate Drive to Dougherty Road. There are also plans to connect that connector to the planned Bergamot Parkway.

Bihl also lists three studies in her report.

There is an ongoing feasibility study of Whiskey Road between Powderhouse Road and New Ellenton. Stantec conducted a 2017 study of Whiskey Road between South Boundary Road and Powderhouse Road. URS conducted a survey of Dougherty Road in 2013.