THOSE WHO COMPLAIN ABOUT TRAFFIC COMING ON AND OFF HILTON HEAD ISLAND SHOULD BE AWARE THAT THINGS COULD BE WORSE.
At least the original eastbound portion of the former James F. Byrnes Bridge — the first slice of concrete that joins the mainland to Hilton Head Island — is still standing.
Built in 1956 as a two-lane prelude to the adjoining toll swing bridge over Skull Creek, the bridge — now known as the Karl Bowers Bridge that rises over Mackay Creek before depositing cars on Jenkins Island, home to Pinckney Wildlife Refuge, has been classified as “structurally deficient” by the Federal Highway Administration. Inspections of the bridge in 2008 and 2010 discovered structural bridge flaws.