What cuts could be coming to Richland penny tax projects?
Richland County officials spelled out for the first time this week proposals for cutting back road construction projects to overcome shortfalls on several major projects in the penny tax road program.
One of the most expensive projects is the expansion of Atlas Road between Bluff Road and Garners Ferry. County officials estimate the project to now cost $27.7 million more than the $17.6 million approved by voters in 2012. All work was stopped on Atlas and other over-budget roadways as the county looks to pair down the costs of some of its biggest projects.
In documents presented to Richland County Council’s transportation committee on Tuesday, transportation officials offered three options for Atlas Road: drop expansion between Bluff and Shop roads (saving $9 million), between Shop Road and Garners Ferry Road (saving $23.1 million), or only install sidewalks and bike lanes along the full length of the road (saving $31.3 million).
None of the proposals were adopted by council members this week. County Transportation Director Michael Niermeier said his staff would continue to vet proposals before making a recommendation, based on design features, input from the surrounding community and traffic data. They will bring recommendations back to the transportation committee next month.
The hope is that the county can make a dent in rising costs that have left the penny program projected to be about $154 million over the referendum amount.
In some cases, pairing down a project won’t reduce it enough to get back within the referendum amount. Widening Broad River Road from Royal Tower Drive to Interstate 26 was estimated to cost $29 million in 2012. Now, if widening is limited to Dutch Fork Road from Royal Tower — shaving more than two miles off a 4.6-mile project — the project is still estimated to cost $39 million.
Niermeier said his department is asking the S.C. Department of Transportation if the county can avoid moving a waterline near the project, thus saving another $1.15 million.
Officials want to hold down costs on the intersection of Clemson Road and Sparkleberry Lane by removing the planned sidewalks. But even that change would only get the project, initially approved at $5.1 million, down to an estimated cost of $12.2 million.
“What we found is there are some projects you can’t do anything to and still achieve the desired objective,” Niermeier said.
The proposal raises the prospect of some projects not continuing. It notes roughly two-thirds of the public response to widening Polo Road from Two Notch to Mallet Hill is negative. Residents worry the $15 million expansion will increase traffic and speeding in the area and threaten wetlands in Boyds Pond or Sesquicentennial State Park.
If the project is scaled back to bike paths, sidewalks and turn lanes at intersections, it would save $10.6 million.
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