Roundabouts and road paving: Spartanburg County penny sales tax projects taking shape

Spartanburg County Traffic Engineer John Wade has plenty on his plate these days. His job is to spend roughly $480 million and oversee nearly 600 road improvement projects all around the county.

This work was made possible by the passage of a penny sales tax in 2023 by Spartanburg County voters.

“It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity for me to put my handprint on my community,” Wade said.

A small fraction of the work has already been completed. In December, county leaders held an event to celebrate penny-funded resurfacing of a section of Highway 290 in Duncan as well as improvements to the stretch Daniel Morgan Avenue behind the county courthouse.

“Progress is being made on every project we have planned, whether that’s construction, design or right-of-way acquisition,” Spartanburg County Council Chairman Manning Lynch said at the December event. “The momentum we’re seeing is truly incredible.”

Wade is busy trying to keep that momentum going.

An extensive list of projects – scheduled over the course of six years – has been selected by county officials. They studied a variety of factors, including the number of traffic accidents in various locations, traffic volume, and the condition of roadways.

“We are currently working with a number of engineering firms to design six intersections and seven corridors,” he said. From there, the county will select contractors to get crews out on the roads later this year.

Among the first projects is a planned redesign of the intersection at Zion Hill and Sloan’s Grove roads on the east side of Spartanburg County. The intersection will be converted from a four-way stop to a roundabout.

Kristi Ward travels on Zion Hill and Sloan’s Grove on the way to work each morning. She said she’s seen the occasional accident at the intersection and that, in general, traffic tends to get through the area at a slow pace.

“I will feel more comfortable with a roundabout – it should help keep traffic moving,” Ward said. “Plus, there’s a new neighborhood over there, so with all the new traffic coming, it will be good to have something to lessen the chaos.”

Wade said roundabouts are preferable to stoplights and four-way stops because drivers are more likely to slow down as they approach and there isn’t the risk of drivers running red lights or ignoring stop signs. And when accidents do occur, they are at a less dangerous angle – not a 90 degree, or “t-bone,” collision.

Throughout Spartanburg County, there are roads maintained by the county government and others that are owned by the state. Wade explained that his team will oversee the work of contractors in same case while partnering with the South Carolina Department of Transportation on other projects. He said the penny sales tax can provide funding for the SCDOT, and that the county and state work “in cooperation.”

An interactive map of planned penny tax projects can be found on the Spartanburg County website.

As chair of the county council, Lynch supported the sales tax referendum, and he’s glad to see work underway – even if it means that residents will have to put up with some hassles and delays as work moves forward.

“People will probably complain – heck, I do. I hate turning down a road and seeing a sign that a work crew is up ahead,” he said.

“But it will be a sign of progress in this case.”

This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: What to know about Spartanburg County’s road improvement projects