ROCK HILL, S.C. — It’s the back way to Dave Lyle Boulevard, which has become the front way. Celriver or Red River Road, whatever you want to call it, is only getting busier and people use it as an alternative to Interstate 77.
York County’s one penny sales tax will pay for a $40 million widening effort that people have wanted to see for a long time.
Patrick Hamilton oversees pennies for progress in York County. He called Celriver a much-needed, high-profile project.
“It’s kind of narrow lanes. The road’s not in the best condition. It’s kind of dangerous,” Hamilton said. “What’s coming is exactly what the first section of Celriver looks like, from Cherry Road to Paragon Way. Five lanes, bike lanes, sidewalks, all the way down to Dave Lyle.”
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That’s two miles of a much wider, safer road, to give traffic an alternative to I-77 into Rock Hill’s busiest commercial area, close to where the Carolina Panthers headquarters will be.
For a while, the backroad drive down Celriver seems like Rock Hill’s best kept secret. People take that way to avoid the busy interchanges at I077 and Dave Lyle Boulevard, and the traffic in front of the mall and Manchester areas.
It’s no secret now. As of 2019, SCDOT counted 12,000 cars a day on that narrow, winding, pot-holed road.
Jason Suber lives on Celriver and said it’s never been safe to walk along or ride a bike on.
“It needs to be widened. They need to do something with it. It’s been like this for a while, and it’s not safe at all,” Suber said.
However, five lanes means pushing the road close to some homes and demolishing others. Hamilton said only a few homes will be bought and torn down. The road will be moved slightly to avoid other homes and businesses in the area.
The new five-lane road will thread the needle between two historic churches.
Nikki Jones works at one of them -- Celriver Church of God. She likes the idea of growth and easier access to the church, but worried about just how close the new road will get.
“I guess being that close and the safety of it, because cars do fly up and down the road,” she said.
Hamilton said with the Panthers headquarters coming, and more large manufacturing businesses looking to locate in the area, the project is critical. However, it won’t happen overnight.
Construction is three years off. It’s expected to start in the Spring of 2024, and finish in the fall of 2026.
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