South Carolina’s Road Buyback Program aims to shift some state roads to local control

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - Maintaining South Carolina’s vast road network is no small task. The South Carolina Department of Transportation oversees more than 41,000 miles of state-owned roads, one of the largest state-maintained highway systems in the country.

Now, state lawmakers have set aside $12.5 million for a new Road Buyback Program designed to help SCDOT transfer some lower-priority roads to local governments. The goal is to allow the agency to focus more of its resources on roads that serve a broader statewide purpose.

Under the program, SCDOT will identify roads with lower traffic volumes that may no longer be essential to the state highway system. Agency leaders say many of those roads function more like neighborhood streets than major transportation corridors.

“We have to start somewhere and say here are the roads that are lower traffic volumes that really in other places would be neighborhood streets, but in South Carolina are state maintained,” Moore said. “That’s where we’re going to start having the conversation.”

The program would not force communities to take over roads. Instead, the state would offer funding to help cities, towns and counties assume maintenance responsibilities if they choose.

SCDOT officials argue local governments may be better positioned to address concerns on smaller roads that often fall lower on the agency’s priority list.

“We know that for those smaller, less-traveled roads, there are roads that don’t always rise to the top of our priority list,” Moore said.

Still, local government leaders question how far the funding will go.

Todd Glover with the Municipal Association of South Carolina estimates the $12.5 million allocation would cover the transfer of roughly 50 miles of roadway statewide. He says the program is likely to be most attractive to larger cities with established public works departments and dedicated road maintenance budgets.

“That’s the point that really makes us think that the smaller ones are not going to do it,” Glover said. “The future cost they would have to bear is going to be a greater part of their budget than it would be for a Columbia or Charleston.”

Even for larger municipalities, Glover says long-term funding remains a concern.

“Until you really see a dedicated, predictable funding model for these roads, it’s our anticipation that most cities would not take roads,” he said.

As SCDOT begins identifying candidate roads for transfer, the success of the program may ultimately depend on whether local governments see enough financial benefit to take on the long-term responsibility of maintaining them.

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