Over the holiday season and into the New Year, employees focused on repairing and maintaining South Carolina's road and bridge network

Whether responding to the impacts of wind and rain, or making emergency bridge repairs, SCDOT employees are dedicated to returning impacted roads and bridges to good repair, ensuring roadways are open to traffic.

During the first week of January, SCDOT crews worked around the clock preparing for Winter Storm Ember, which fortunately brought minimal impacts to our state.

And as the second week of the year began, SCDOT employees were engaged throughout every stage of Winter Storm Finn, which brought high winds and heavy rains to various parts of South Carolina, including a tornado that swept through downtown Bamberg. 

As we look toward potential severe winter weather again later this week, the motoring public can be assured that SCDOT employees throughout the state will be ready to respond.

SCDOT employees were engaged throughout every stage of Winter Storm Finn, which brought high winds and heavy rains to various parts of South Carolina, including a tornado that swept through downtown Bamberg.

SCDOT maintenance forces worked to prepare for winter weather ahead of Winter Storm Ember. They staged equipment, made salt brine, and spread it on highways to prevent ice buildup.

Just days before Christmas, SCDOT had to close a section of I-20 westbound in Kershaw County to make emergency repairs to a bridge over the Wateree River. Crews worked around the clock to get the bridge safely up and running before traffic volumes spiked during the holidays.

Watch the video.

In the aftermath of a mid-December Nor'easter, South Carolina’s coastal areas faced challenges. The storm hit a number of counties hard, affecting Beaufort, Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton, Dorchester, and Jasper counties with heavy rain and wind.

SCDOT immediately jumped into action to not only assess the damage to all affected areas, but to also begin recovery efforts. As recovery and cleanup operations are continuing and winding down, we urge everyone to drive slowly and safely as they approach work zones.

Watch the video.

The General Assembly made a significant investment in 2017 with the new gas tax program and since 2017 SCDOT has used that funding to begin more than 100 miles of interstate improvements, replace or rehabilitate more than 300 bridges, pave more than 7,500 miles of roadway and initiate safety improvements along more than 900 miles of our deadliest rural corridors. 

SCDOT remains committed to delivering on the promises of the Agency’s Strategic 10-Year Plan, and in 2023, SCDOT employees around the state and in every department worked hard toward these goals. 

Here’s a look at major projects, completed and underway, in these key areas.

Bridges

From planned rehabilitation projects, to emergency repairs, keeping bridges up to optimal safety standards is of the highest priority to SCDOT.

I-77 Bridge Deck Rehabilitation Project

In spring 2023, SCDOT completed the Interstate 77 Bridge Rehabilitation Project. The project fulfilled the need to restore 17 deteriorating bridge decks from the I-26 interchange (MM 0) to Bluff Road (MM 5). At separate times during the project, I-77 southbound and northbound were closed for nine days. SCDOT worked around the clock managing traffic, coordinating with local partners, and advising the public to plan for detours. The use of hydro demolition assisted workers with removing and replacing old concrete. This innovative project was completed within a short timeline, providing the community with a smooth and sound driving surface along an essential route.

Little River Swing Bridge Repairs

In March 2023, a truck carrying a large piece of equipment attempted to cross the bridge and damaged it due to the height of the equipment. After a detailed inspection, the bridge reopened to the public with weight restrictions and limited waterway openings. Within a week of the emergency, SCDOT was able to repair and fully reopen the bridge.

Socastee Moveable Bridge Repairs

In June 2023, the Socastee Swing Bridge in Horry County was in the process of opening when a vehicle struck the side of its truss. This incident caused significant damage to the structure of the bridge, resulting in its closure to all traffic. After the scene was cleared by law enforcement, emergency inspection and analysis took place. Reconstruction began immediately, and the bridge was repaired and reopened to traffic within a week.

US 17 Bridge over the Waccamaw River

SCDOT last year identified deterioration on the four centermost piers of the bridge on US 17 over the Waccamaw River in Georgetown County. Repairs began in fall 2023 and are expected to last through the summer of 2024. In early 2024, a traffic pattern change is scheduled to occur. The bridge will remain open to traffic during the reconstruction.

US 17 Railroad Bridge Crossing

After several rail cars derailed in September 2023 and caused damage to the US 17A/21 bridge structure in Beaufort and Hampton Counties, SCDOT immediately began to address the emergency replacement of the bridge. Through an emergency procurement process, SCDOT plans to construct a new bridge and the adjoining road to current safety and design standards. There is an existing detour in place that has been used since the initial emergency response, and it will continue to be used during construction.

In February 2024, a traffic pattern change will allow SCDOT to begin repairs on the centermost piers of the bridge on US 17 over the Waccamaw River in Georgetown County.

Part of SCDOT’s 10-year plan includes resurfacing miles of interstate lanes across the state. Here is a look at some of the interstate paving that SCDOT crews completed in 2023.

In Orangeburg County, a 14-mile stretch of I-95 was paved. As a major part of the economy of the state, these paving projects are even more important. The paving included the I-95/I-26 interchange over Lake Marion. These paving projects were geared at improving the road surface. 

Additionally on I-95, 22 miles of the northbound lanes between mile markers 171 and 193 have reached substantial completion.

On I-20 in District One, 13 miles on the westbound side between mile markers 37 and 50 have reached substantial completion.

Several large projects, including the Carolina Crossroads and Midlands Connection projects, included miles of paving. 

In 2023, SCDOT resurfaced a stretch of Interstate 95 between the I-26 and Lake Marion in Calhoun County. This is one part of SCDOT's larger effort to "fix the drive" on I-95.

Throughout the year, SCDOT has completed paving projects throughout the state. Here’s a look at some of the projects that took place in 2023.

Crews worked around the clock throughout paving season to refresh and revitalize South Carolina roads like in Greenville and Pickens counties. Nighttime paving took place on US 123 in Easley due to high volumes of traffic.

Paving was completed on several roads in Orangeburg in Clarendon counties, including paving on Bill Davis Road, Braugh Street, nighttime paving on Broughton Street, Moses Dingle Road and SC 261 (Paxville Highway) between Manning and Paxville. During the SC 261 paving, crews reinforced the shoulders along the newly paved section.

Parts of US 21 and US 321 were paved in June and July. The US 321 paving project including grinding the old roadway and mixing in cement to form a new base before the new pavement was poured.

During the summer, more than 120 lane miles of paving were complete in Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties with more than 200 miles scheduled. These projects included paving on about 8 miles of I-526 east and west and the construction of a roundabout on US 176.

In the fall, almost 3.5 miles of SC 576 and SC 501 in Dillon and Marion counties were paved as part of a District Five Rehabilitation and Reconstruction contract. The work included patching, widening, installation of rumble strips, pavement markings and milling of existing pavement.

In September, Richland Maintenance finished paving work on two sections of Heyward Street in Columbia near the University of South Carolina’s soccer stadium. This project was a two-day job that was split as to not interfere with traffic due to a scheduled game. In total, SCDOT poured 260 tons of new asphalt on Heyward Street, painted new parking lines and laid new railroad markings.

More recently, SCDOT resurfaced a section of Old Barnwell Road in Aiken County as part of an initiative to improve the safety of the road, more specifically, to prevent roadway departures. Paving was part of this 6-mile long project along with shoulder widening, limb trimming, rumble strip installations and the addition of high-intensity retroreflective sign post panels to existing sign posts.



In District Two, 45.59 miles were paved in Anderson, McCormick, Greenwood and Laurens counties.

Paving in 2023 (from top): 1) During the spring, paving in Easley took place at night due to high volumes of traffic on US 123. 2) Richland County maintenance forces worked to repave Heyward Street in downtown Columbia. This project was split into two days of work so the project would not interfere with a scheduled game at the University of South Carolina's soccer stadium. 3) Paving on US 21 in Orangeburg was completed in June.

SCDOT is focused on improving safety on South Carolina’s roadways through engineering solutions identified to reduce the frequency of fatal and serious injury crashes, as well as projects to prevent collisions and reduce roadway departures. Here are some road safety projects recently completed or well underway. 

SCDOT Rural Road Safety Program

• US 78 rural road safety program in Aiken and Barnwell counties
• SC 64 rural road safety program in Colleton County
• US 17A in Georgetown County
• Additional partial rural road safety improvements on multiple locations as part of the Primary Pavement Improvement Program

Federal Highway Safety Improvement Program

• Roundabout at US 15 (Jefferies Highway)/ SC 61 (Augusta Highway)
• Roundabout at S-408 (Old Cherokee Road)/ S-204 (St. Peter’s Road) in Lexington County
• Left turn lanes at SC 292/ L-851 (Miller Farm Road) in Spartanburg County
• Intersection realignment and left turn lanes at S-34 (Whitehall Road)/ Sullivan Road in Anderson County
• Roundabout at US 178 (Liberty Highway)/ SC 88 (Old Greenville Highway) in Anderson County
• Roundabout at SC 522 (Rocky River Road)/ S-123 (Taxahaw Road) in Lancaster County
• Left turn lane at SC 81 (Anderson Road)/ S-327 (Old Dunham Bridge Road) in Greenville County

SCDOT employees support one another on a daily basis. Whether collaborating among teams, sharing resources, or traveling across the state to support one other as we respond to an emergency, we come together. We also recognize that with approximately 4,000 of us across South Carolina, some of our own will face unexpected hardships from time to time. When that happens, we step up to help through our employee-run Adopt a Family program.

SCDOT employees came together in December to help make sure that 36 SCDOT families would have what they need for a happy holiday. And while the gifts may have already been delivered, the memories of caring for folks we care about will last for quite a while.

The SC 260 Bridge over Lake Marion has been closed for essential repairs and is expected to reopen in the coming months. These repairs will improve the bridge, and remove weight restrictions, enhancing mobility in the area and ensuring the bridge’s long-term safety and functionality.

Watch the video.

SCDOT's I-85 Business Bridge Replacement Project in Spartanburg County is complete. The bridge reconstruction and safety improvement project opened to traffic on December 6, 2023.

Watch the video.

A bird’s-eye view look at Meeting Street (U.S. 52) in Charleston on March 26, 1951.

Help us share the news. Subscribe to the e-Edition of the Connector.

Office of Public Engagement

media@scdot.org

(803) 737-1270