Traffic concerns and councils’ actions prompt letters

Left turn closure causes traffic delays

As a snowbird we like to go out to eat, and all have our favorites. Last week a group of four were going to go to a local restaurant that we love.

Well this trip would normally take no longer than 15 minutes. But this time it took an hour and 20 minutes. We were trying to get to an eatery on U.S. 17 Bypass. We went south on the bypass, to find out that they closed off the left turn lane. So we proceeded south and made the turn to go back north to get to the diner.

Well then they had the highway closed down to one lane, with everyone trying to merge it was a major headache. So an hour and 20 minutes later we finally got to our destination. But we certainly enjoyed our meal, after all the hassle to get there.

Why they closed the left turn lane was totally a bad idea. They already closed off Fred Nash Boulevard. another route to get to our destination.

Local councils burden taxpayers

Horry County and Myrtle Beach seem to have the same business model: reduce revenue by driving out businesses, call for increased spending, and make up the shortfall on the backs of property owners through higher taxes.

Recently both Horry Council and Myrtle Beach City Council have made concerted efforts to drive some businesses to close, apparently with no plan to replace the lost revenue. Both councils continue to push for more spending for safety and other issues, but where is a plan to look for waste and duplication of spending in programs and operations?

No worries, property owners can pay more. And apparently even though the school board can make dubious decisions to send hundreds of millions of dollars to the high bidder well over the budget, there seems to be no basis for outside scrutiny. This decision on its face doesn't pass the smell test. I hope someone is in a position to make sure no school board members benefit personally.

Let’s organize traffic safety forum

Re “U.S. traffic deaths rise sharply,” Nov. 25:

The report stated the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that human decisions caused 94 percent of all crashes.

Perhaps your paper could be instrumental in having a forum on traffic safety here in the greater Myrtle Beach area. I had proposed a similar idea to Horry County Police but they were not interested.

We only have one life. Drivers need to learn courtesy. You could put Myrtle Beach on the map for other than golf.

This story was originally published December 16, 2015 at 9:02 AM with the headline "Traffic concerns and councils’ actions prompt letters."