Additional 446 miles of safety improvements across South Carolina.

The South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) Commission has approved the second phase of the agency's Rural Roads Safety Program – an additional 446 miles of safety improvements across South Carolina.

"South Carolina's fatality rate is the highest in the nation, and this program is attacking that problem mile by mile," said Secretary of Transportation Christy Hall. "SCDOT is targeting the 'worst of the worst' roads in our state with our Rural Roads Safety Program."

In Year 1 of the 10-year plan, SCDOT already awarded contracts totaling 187 miles of safety improvements, well ahead of projections.  SCDOT has another 276 miles in phase 1 currently under development.  The Commission's recent approval for phase 2 includes the start of an additional 446 miles of safety improvements across South Carolina.  This constitutes a total of 909 miles in projects approved for development.

"We are looking to keep the momentum going as we work together to make South Carolina roads safer," Hall said.

Hall said nearly 30 percent of the rural fatal and serious injury crashes are occurring on just over 5 percent, or approximately 1,900 miles, of SCDOT's road network of more than 41,000 miles.

The types of improvements in SCDOT's Rural Roads Safety Program vary and will be designed specifically for each road. They include rumble strips, wider and brighter pavement markings, brighter signs, high-friction surface treatments, wider/paved shoulders, improved clear zones, guardrails, cable barriers, eliminating vertical drop-offs along pavement edges and beveling of driveway pipes.

The Rural Roads Safety Program is one of four SCDOT priorities in the agency's 10-Year Plan. The other three priorities are: replacing Structurally Deficient Bridges, Road Resurfacing and Interstate Widenings.

For more information on the Rural Roads Safety Program and other SCDOT programs, please visit www.scdot.org.

The direct link to the Rural Roads Safety Program is http://scdot.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=df937e9b63ce4377a3705feb9fb05466 and can be access at SCDOT Public Involvement page, https://www.scdot.org/projects/public-involvement-portal.aspx.

Rural Roads Safety Program Phase II: RRSP Phase II List July 2018.pdf

Types of improvements include:

Brighter signs. Signs for this program may be replaced with a higher reflective signage known as “diamond” grade that will allow for increased visibility, especially at night.

Rumble strips increase the visibility of the edge of travel lane at night and during inclement weather conditions

Wider and brighter pavement markings. National studies have shown that wider pavement markings increase safety by increasing roadway visibility, especially at night and in rain.

Clear Zone - The unobstructed area beyond the edge of the travel lane that allows a driver of an errant vehicle to safely stop or regain control. 

 Cable Barriers, made of steel wire ropes mounted on posts, are installed to help prevent a vehicle from leaving the travelway and striking a fixed object or crossing over.

Wider/Paved shoulders reduce numbers of certain crashes and reduced maintenance costs.

High Friction Surface – SCDOT may apply a skid resistant aggregate to the pavement using a polymer binder that will improve pavement friction. Higher pavement friction helps motorists maintain better control in both dry and wet driving conditions.

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