Roads

Proper maintenance and building of our roads is a core function of government. SC has the 4th largest state highway system in the US. Because of years of poor leadership, we fell way behind on keeping up with repairing our roads and bridges.

In August of 2014, a bipartisan House Legislative committee was assembled to examine the DOT and help it become more streamlined and efficient with your tax money. At the time, if we considered raising gasoline taxes or any other taxes, we also had to make sure that inefficiency and waste were eliminated. They also recommended an audit of the DOT. This was completed in March of 2016. There were many problems cited in the report.

However, under the new leadership of Secretary of Transportation Kristy Hall, a sweeping changes were made at the DOT. She and her staff introduced reforms that made the department less political and more equitable and efficient to our citizens. In 2017 there was a renewed effort to give the DOT a sustainable revenue stream. A House bill did this in the form of giving the Governor more direct authority over the DOT as well as a providing for the revenue it needs. This bill became law in 2017.

The gas tax (wisely introduced over a period of years instead of all at once) has allowed SC to begin the long journey of making our highways safer and more modernized. The pace at which these changes are occurring can be frustrating, but progress is being made. Since the introduction of the new revenue stream, the DOT has repaired or replaced some 250 bridges and resurfaces many miles of roads. There is more that needs to be done, but it is a far cry from where we were just a few years ago. The DOT has listed on its website much useful information about our roads and bridges: https://www.scdot.org/projects/public-involvement-portal.aspx