S. Carolina DOT Seeking Comments on State Line Bridge Replacement

By MJ Kneiser, WLHR Radio, Lavonia

South Carolina Department of Transportation officials are asking for public input on a plan to replace and upgrade the State line bridge over Lake Hartwell on Interstate 85.

South Carolina DOT Spokesperson Kimberly Corley said no further planning will be done on the project until they hear from the public.

“There’s no funding attached to it yet because we are still in the public comment phase,” she said Monday. “If people don’t like it or there’s a lot of negative comments we probably won’t go through with it. We don’t want to go too forward with something people may not want or like.”

According to the South Carolina DOT’s web site, the total cost of the proposed project is $33.3 million if it goes through.

The South Carolina DOT is seeking public comment on a total of four bridge replacement projects on I-85 in Oconee and Anderson counties.

The other bridge replacement projects include the bridges over the Seneca River and Three and Twenty Creek in Anderson County and replacing the bridge over Fairplay Creek in Oconee County.

South Carolina citizens have until February 11 to submit comments to the South Carolina DOT.

According to Corley, if approved by the South Carolina DOT, the bridge projects will be recommended for inclusion in South Carolina’s Statewide Transportation Improvement Program and will then be moved on to the design phase.

She said there is no timeline yet for reconstruction on any of the proposed bridge projects.

Anyone in South Carolina interested in commenting on the state line bridge project or any of the other projects can go online to SCDOT.org for more information.