Myrtle Beach made things worse during Bikefest
What a mess Myrtle Beach traffic handlers create during the Atlantic Beach Memorial Day Bikefest.
On Sunday, I was driving in the south-bound left lane on Kings Highway. Because of some barricades, I got trapped in the left turning lane at 29th Avenue. I was not concerned, as I thought I could come back. When I had to make a right turn at Ocean Boulevard, I was horrified to see the traffic.
To compound my fear, all the avenues (west-bound) from 28th through 22nd were blocked. It took me more than an hour to reach 21st Avenue as the traffic did not move or slowed down to snail’s pace.
Interestingly, there were hardly any motorcycles. One cyclist there easily navigated his way via a narrow opening. Such an option was not available for any car.
In the single north-bound lane, all kinds of law enforcement vehicles were cruising around without doing anything to ease the situation. This is unacceptable. With extra police, traffic only got worse.
Traffic planning left a great deal to be desired.
Subhash C. Saxena, Coastal Carolina University, Distinguished Professor Emeritus
This story was originally published May 31, 2017 at 8:06 AM with the headline "Myrtle Beach made things worse during Bikefest."