Dear Editor:

I submitted the following info several months ago when GDOT sent out an email requesting comments on Hyundai-related traffic problems. Never heard back from them or saw anything in the media, so I assumed it was either lost or ignored. Neither idea is new or untried. It certainly isn’t bottle-rocker science.

First: The idea of rideshare has been around for many decades. Put parking lots at or near interstate exits on I-16 and I-95 where the largest number of Hyundai employees are located. Hyundai should be able to help with this by analyzing their employee data. If you could average two people per car instead of one, you have just cut the traffic in half at the I-16 / Rte 280 exit and down 280 to the main entrance.

Since this is by far the heaviest at shift changes, the greatest reduction in overall traffic is during those times. This won’t change the traffic heading past that intersection, but would make everything less congested and dangerous. Hopefully, this should also be fairly quick and easy to set up.

The second option would be to better utilize and expand our current Coastal Regional Bus Service. These small busses make stops on or near I-16 and I-95, servicing Bryan, Bulloch, Chatham, Effingham, and Liberty counties.

It doesn’t take much imagination to picture current and potential new pickup locations to funnel workers to the Hyundai plant and possibly to some of the tier-one suppliers as well. This especially helps workers in places such as Riceboro, devastated by the loss of their absolute largest employer. An ever bigger potential plus is the option to route these off of I-16 at the new exit just east of the I-16/rte 280 interchange, thus also improving traffic flow on 280 down to the plant entrance. If this is a potential, another option is to see if Hyundai worldwide produces busses anywhere.

If so, it would be in everyone’s best interest to supply them for this task. Either way, I’m sure Hyundai would be more than willing to contribute to one or both of these options. For more info, go to the website of the Coastal Regional Bus Service.

Ken Copi, Pembroke, Georgia

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