Mount Pleasant Magazine Fall 2011

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15
In the movies, when
aliens invade Earth, they
generally say they come
as friends and intend
to do no harm; most of
the time, they are lying.
The invasion underway
along Johnnie Dodds Boulevard is
an exception to the rule. When the
hundreds of orange cones and bar-
rels have completed their mission
and returned home, wherever that
is, Mount Pleasant will be left with
only the magnanimous results of
their visit.
The Johnnie Dodds Boulevard
project consists of widening three
miles – from the Arthur J. Ravenel
Jr. Bridge to the Interstate 526 in-
terchange – to three lanes from two
in each direction. Improvements to
the two frontage roads and some
side streets along this stretch of U.S.
Highway 17 are included in the plan.
New curbs and gutters are the be-
ginning of the visual improvements;
both are being installed along the
The asphalt is heated to 290 F
coming out of the spreader.
Even a few minutes later,
it’s still measuring 269 F.
For comparison, according
to the Consumer Product
Safety Commission, most
adults will suffer third-
degree burns if exposed
to 150 F water for
two seconds.
Top Right: With the road widening, losing
some trees is unavoidable. Orange fencing sur-
rounds those that definitely will be retained.
Left: Dump trucks load hot asphalt into a
shuttle buggy, which loads the spreader, which
spreads it onto the roadway. Several workers
follow behind, checking the fresh blacktop for
proper depth and slope and filling in imperfec-
tions before the compactor compresses it to a
scientifically calculated level for the road and
environmental conditions.