BERKELEY COUNTY, S.C. (WCBD) – Residents in Berkeley County are calling for change at a dangerous intersection that has seen several deadly crashes in the past two years.

News 2 began digging into the issue after a viewer reached out to us regarding the dangers of Black Tom Road and Black Tom Road Extension.

“I’ve lived in the area since about 1998. I’ve been traveling this road here for a little over 20 years,” said Revis Jackson, who is concerned about the intersection.

Jackson says as more growth has happened along Black Tom Road – he’s noticed a serious problem.

“The last three, four years, traffic has really increased terribly. And I’ve seen a lot of close incidents. I’ve been involved in a few, close to having an incident,” he said.

And too many accidents on this stretch of road have become deadly.

“It’s a very dangerous intersection,” said Chief Deputy Kelly Kraus with the Berkeley County Coroner’s Office. “We have seen an increase in accidents and fatalities.”

Krause said there were six accidents in 2020 and eight the next year – none of them were deadly. But in 2022, there were 13 accidents with one deadly crash and four accidents and two deadly crashes so far this year.

Jackson said he believes a very simple solution could save lives here.

“I feel like they could shut down the lane coming from Cooper Store Road on the other side. Have the traffic go to the crossover there, to the stop sign, and it would alleviate that intersection.”

By closing that one lane headed toward 17-A on Black Tom Extension, drivers would not have to merge across a lane.

News 2 reached out to the South Carolina Department of Transportation; however, their office was closed on Wednesday. They will get back to us with what could be done to help make this intersection safer later.