Bike The Neck Progress and Plans

Dear Waccamaw Neck Residents and Visitors, We thank each of you for your past support of the Waccamaw Neck Bikeway ~ donations of money, services and goods, participation at fundraising events, and your verbal support and usage of the path. We are deeply grateful to the hundreds of resident and non-resident supporters who share our vision and have contributed time and money to make this trail a reality. To date we have 12 of the 27 miles completed, having raised about $1.5 million!

• We gratefully acknowledge the following:

  • Ray Funnye, Beth Goodale, Paul Battaglino and Don Corrina of Georgetown County Dept. of Public Services and Recreation and Leisure Services for shepherding the project through state and county channels;
  • Debbie Mann of USDA Natural Resources for assistance in route planning, surveying and construction supervision;
  • Mark Hoeweler and Chris Clark of Waccamaw Regional Planning for the map on the back and all their support through the Highway Enhancement, East Coast Greenway and Safe Routes to School processes;
  • Boyd Johnson and Holly Richardson of GC Dept. of Planning for supporting the inclusion of bike paths in PUD planning;
  • Richard Pope of SC Dept. of Transportation for expediting highway right-of-way encroachment permits and implementing the agency’s mandate for increased bicycle and pedestrian facilities;
  • Murrells Inlet 2007 for adopting the “Bike Bridge” across the marsh at the southern entrance to Murrells Inlet, completed and dedicated as part of the East Coast Greenway in June 2008;
  • Litchfield by the Sea Property Association, Tradition Club POA, River Club POA and Myrtle Beach National for working with us to carve the route along Kings River Road;
  • Kelly Kelley of Georgetown County School District and the entire team working on the Safe Routes to School projects;
  • and Grand Strand Bicycles and Plantation Printing for helping to defray the cost of printing and distributing these maps and progress reports.

• Waccamaw Neck Bikeway/East Coast Greenway: The East Coast Greenway, a national program to create a multipurpose path along the eastern seaboard of the United States from Maine to Florida, has designated five completed phases ~ 12 miles ~ of the Waccamaw Neck Bikeway (from north to south):
  • four miles of lanes through Murrells Inlet along Hwy 17 Business from the Georgetown County Line at Carson Avenue to the south entrance of the Inlet;
  • Bike Bridge connecting Murrells Inlet with Huntington Beach State Park;
  • three miles of trails across along the western border of Huntington Beach State Park, paralleling Hwy 17 Bypass;
  • four miles of trails from the intersection of Lakeshore Drive and Boyle Drive in North Litchfield to the Reserve Club at the end of Willbrook Blvd.; and
  • one mile of trail from the North Causeway to the South Causeway along the east side of Hwy 17. These completed phases of the eventual 27-mile Waccamaw Neck Bikeway are used and enjoyed by residents and tourists alike!

• Kings River Road: The route to connect Litchfield to Pawleys is proceeding as a separated 8-foot wide path on the east side of Kings River Road from Willbrook Blvd. to Waverly Road. It has been approved by SCDOT, Waccamaw Regional COG, GC Dept. of Public Services and the property owners along the route. Two and one-half miles (from Willbrook Blvd. to All Saints Church) will be constructed in 2009 at an estimated cost of $556,000 with SCDOT Highway Enhancement funds, Georgetown County Land Bank funds (aka transfer tax funds) and private donations raised by Bike the Neck. The final quarter mile from All Saints to the corner of Kings River and Waverly, requiring the construction of a 280-foot bridge, will be completed in 2010 with $132,000 of SCDOT Highway Enhancement funds, plus a 20% match raised by Bike the Neck through private donations.
• Waverly Road: A multipurpose separated pathway from Kings River Road to Hwy 17 along the north side of Waverly Road extending, replacing and widening the old sidewalk is being planned in collaboration with the GC School District’s Safe Routes to School effort. Most of this route has received the necessary state and local agencies’ approvals, as well as those needed from the private sector. This path will enable children to travel safely to and from Waccamaw Elementary School from the east and the west, and provide safe crossing for the afterschool program at Teach My People. The one and three-quarter mile stretch will be constructed in 2009-10, with the remaining SCDOT Highway Enhancement funds, Land Bank monies, Safe Routes to School funds and private donations raised by Bike the Neck.

• South Causeway to Hobcaw Barony: This long and delightful stretch of the bikeway, utilizing the 50 ft. wide easement secured by Santee Cooper and extending 10 miles from the South Causeway to Hobcaw Barony, will be the last phase of construction. Santee Cooper has agreed to provide easements and in-kind services along their transmission lines, and we are in the queue for a new round of highway enhancement funds. We are also looking to the developers of Arcadia East to provide more than easements for the substantial population anticipated in this development. Yet, even with contributed labor and other in-kind services, the price tag to install this coveted recreation amenity will be very high, well over a million dollars.
• Prince George Nature Trail: Georgetown County holds a three-mile, 80-foot wide easement for public access. The County will maintain a cleared right-of-way suitable for walking until such time as a trail network can be developed.

• Path Monitoring: As the path extends over miles of the Waccamaw Neck, GC Dept. of Public Services remains committed to its safety and maintenance through the removal of debris and repair of potholes and root damage. One section ~ Huntington Beach State Park from its south boundary at Trace Drive to its north boundary at the Bike Bridge ~ is particularly hard to monitor behind the treeline. If you bike or walk this segment regularly and would be willing to report fallen trees, etc., please call 237-4486.
• Parking: Please be considerate when parking and off-loading bicycles. The best public locations are: Morse Park Landing in Murrells Inlet; Huntington Beach State Park (fee required, see box below); the north parking lot at the Litchfield Beach & Golf Resort; Piggly Wiggly and Bi-Lo grocery stores in the Litchfield community; and Food Lion at the South Causeway.
• T-Shirts: New Bike the Neck t-shirts in a variety of colors and sizes (adults and youth)are available at Grand Strand Bicycles, on Hwy 17 Bypass in Murrells Inlet For a $15 donation to Bike the Neck, you can pick out a great personal expression of support!
• Donations: The urbanization of the Waccamaw Neck is proceeding at an unprecedented pace. Traffic on Hwy 17 and all the alternate routes is increasing to dangerous levels for motorists, to say nothing of the conditions for the more vulnerable pedestrians and bicyclists. We hope to capitalize on the recent drop in fossil fuel costs which dictate asphalt prices, but market volatility means we need to move swiftly on the remaining segments in order to incorporate bicycle and pedestrian routes that safely connect this community. Your support is critical at this juncture.
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• Please send your tax-deductible donation to "Georgetown County-Bike the Neck."

We look to you, our friends and neighbors, the future beneficiaries of the path, to help make this quality-of-life improvement happen. Since Bike the Neck is a grassroots volunteer organization, your tax-deductible check made out to “Georgetown County-Bike the Neck” will ensure that it is deposited in the dedicated account for the Waccamaw Neck Bikeway. Happy trails to you and thank you for your support!

Huntington Beach State Park entrance fee is $5/adult, $3.25/senior, $3/youth (6-15 years), free/5 years and under, whether you are driving, riding or walking into the park. A PARK PASSPORT, purchased at the park, is $50 for SC residents ($25 for SC senior citizens) and includes everyone in the car at every SC state park. Residents of local counties may purchase the Park Passport at their library/rec center for $35.