Charleston — Incipient Streetcar

Rail Transit Online, April 2005

Several redevelopment projects now in the planning stage have prompted a proposal for an ambitious light rail or streetcar system linking Charleston to Summerville and Moncks Corner, with spurs along Dorchester Road and Montague Avenue in North Charleston.  Landowners and developers who control large tracts in the area recently held public forums displaying possible routes and explaining how trolleys have been successful in other U.S. cities such as San Francisco and Charlotte.  One major project is the Magnolia development in north Charleston, and planners believe effective transportation must be part of it.  “If you're going to compete with suburbia, you have to offer the complete package, including transit,” Terry Shook, Magnolia's master planner told The Post and Courier.  The city had sketched out a light rail line from downtown to Charleston International Airport some years ago but never had the funds to move forward.  However, the city is attempting to buy a freight right-of-way through the central business district that could eventually be used for transit, although initially it would be converted to a bicycle path.