CHARLESTON, S.C. - A deadly stretch of U.S. Highway 17 between Beaufort and Charleston will get more attention from the South Carolina Highway Patrol.

Gov. Mark Sanford is expected on Monday to announce the details of the state's plans to step up enforcement along the busy road.

The 22-mile stretch of highway in Colleton and Beaufort counties varies between two and four lanes and has been the scene of a series of serious accidents.

More than 448 people have been injured since 2001 along the road between Jacksonboro and Gardens Corner.

On Tuesday, Bill Williams watched as the driver of a car in front of him on the highway died instantly in a head-on collision. He said he is encouraged to learn the state is reacting.

"I hope and pray that they will get something accomplished and work out some near-term solution," Williams said. "It will probably take two or three years for them to build a (wider) highway, but they need to do something to help right now."

State officials are looking at widening the road, but the project hasn't been permitted.

The Transportation Department is seeking a permit from the Army Corps of Engineers to widen the Combahee River bridge to four lanes, and if the Corps approves, that $9.5 million project could begin by December.

The state plans to seek further environmental permits for the widening project by January, allowing construction to begin in 2007 if the state can find the $100 million to $200 million that it's expected to cost.

The Charleston County legislative delegation's Roads and Bridges Committee also plans to discuss U.S. 17 when it meets July 25.