Excessive Rains draining SC Emergency Road Repair Account

Heavy rains this summer have drained the South Carolina Department of Transportation’s reserve account for emergency road repairs.  Nearly $6 million will now be used on unscheduled repair work.  Officials with the South Carolina DOT say it has cost $5.9 million to repair 14 bridges, 93 road washouts, 56 pipe failures, and other storm damage from across the state.  The agency spent its $2.2 million “extraordinary maintenance” fund less than two months after the new fiscal year began in July.  Local DOT officials are now forced to prioritize any future repairs with money set aside for current maintenance projects, such as mowing grass or handling non-emergency bridge work.  However, the DOT expects $1.8 million in federal reimbursements for its most expensive repair project, replacing a partially-collapsed bridge on Jones Mill Road in Pickens County.