Barriers along U.S. 501 Bypass will be removed starting Monday

As the Waccamaw River’s flooding recedes, the South Carolina Department of Transportation will start Monday removing the barriers lining the roads.

The barriers along U.S. 501 Bypass did their jobs. Even though the bypass over the Waccamaw River was closed temporarily for the construction of the barriers, the road remained open during the river’s cresting Wednesday.

The traffic created by these barriers — and its construction — has been a major problem for the past two weeks. That won’t be fixed Monday. SCDOT is asking drivers to avoid the area Monday as the bypass will be down to one lane in both directions as crews remove the barriers.

“Workers will be on both sides of the highway. Please drive slow and use caution if using that route,” the SCDOT news release said.