Known locally as Ribaut Road (pronounced REE-bo), SC 281 serves as an arterial connecting Beaufort and Port Royal.

South of its southern terminus, Ribaut Road continues as U.S. Highway 21 (US 21) towards Parris Island.

[2] Prior to the completion of the McTeer Bridge in the early 1980s, SC 281 was signed for Ribaut Road.

When US 21 Business was created and US 21 was re-routed (away from downtown Beaufort and along Ribaut Road and over the McTeer Bridge), SC 281 was decommissioned for a 30-year period.

In 2012, US 21 was re-routed again, this time further to the west and south in order to help direct traffic towards the Sea Islands away from Ribaut Road.