Photo courtesy of SCDOT
The grant will allow the four bridges, originally constructed in 1968, with narrow shoulders and roadway approaches, to be rebuilt into one bridge with two 12-ft. travel lanes in both the southbound and northbound direction.
Travelers driving across South Carolina's largest lake may soon do so more safely after the state received federal funding for a badly needed bridge replacement project.
The South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) is set to embark on major work to replace four bridges carrying Interstate 95 traffic over Lake Marion in the central part of the state. The new project will undoubtedly affect travelers across the country as I-95 is a main artery that ties together most of the Eastern Seaboard from Maine to Florida.
In a July 17 news release, SCDOT revealed that it had received $175 million in federal funding to complete the project. That means the state now has the necessary $350 million to get the construction under way.
"Today's announcement marks the beginning of a long-awaited and nationally important project that will transform this region," noted Justin Powell, the state's secretary of transportation.
The health of the nation's bridges took on new urgency after an out-of-control cargo ship crashed into a support column of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Md., earlier this year, causing the bridge to collapse. The accident killed six road crew workers.
South Carolina's roads and bridges are badly in need of repair, but work has been hampered by a lack of funding, according to previous Post and Courier reporting. Replacing the I-95 structures has been a years-long priority.
The $175 million for the Lake Marion bridges is part of a $5 billion investment package announced recently by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Officials in Washington provided the monies to replace or improve aging bridges in a total of 16 states, according to SCDOT.
The FHWA funding comes from a $1 trillion infrastructure package President Biden signed into law in 2021.
The rest of the money for the I-95 spans will come from $105 million in separate federal funds and $70 million in state funds, an SCDOT spokesperson told the Post and Courier Pee Dee in Florence, S.C.
In a recent press release, South Carolina Gov. McMaster credited the work of U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R) and U.S. Rep. James Clyburn, D-6th District in securing the federal funding for the Palmetto State project.
The interstate bridges are a critical link in the East Coast supply chain, he wrote in a November letter to federal Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg supporting the effort.
Interstate Bridges Could Be in Poor Condition by 2025
Replacing the Lake Marion bridges, first built in 1968, also will improve safety and reliability for travelers and support the economic development of the state and region, McMaster wrote.
Together, the four structures span a large swath of the lake, transporting people to and from Clarendon and Orangeburg counties.
While SCDOT reports indicate that portions of the bridges are still in fair condition, the agency predicts that the bridges will be in poor condition and may require load restrictions as soon as next year.
Their narrow shoulders also impede emergency responders during accidents, according to the state agency. That carries implications not just for daily traffic — which includes everything from families on road trips to truckers transporting essential goods — but also for vehicles evacuating the coast during tropical storms.
When construction is finished, the four bridges will be replaced by a single structure with two 12-ft. travel lanes in both the southbound and northbound directions. The work also would create a bicycle and pedestrian path separated from the roadway by a barrier. Additionally, plans call for the adjacent existing U.S. Highway 301 pedestrian bridge to be retained.
The new roadway bridge's design will allow it to be expanded in future years to include an extra travel lane in each direction.
SCDOT said the existing bridges will remain in operation once construction begins on the new bridge, meaning there should not be any substantial road closures or detours during the work.
The transportation agency aims to have the project under contract sometime in 2025, the Post and Courier Pee Dee reported.
Lake Marion is South Carolina's largest lake, encompassing 110,600 acres and 511 mi. of shoreline. The waterway touches Berkeley, Calhoun, Clarendon, Orangeburg and Sumter counties.
It also is one of two water bodies that comprise the Santee Cooper Reservoir, constructed to provide hydroelectric power to rural South Carolina.
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