Columbia Council makes way for first phase of Malfunction Junction work
Another key step has been taken in the yearslong effort to revamp the Columbia interstate corridor often referred to as “Malfunction Junction.”
Columbia City Council on Nov. 10 approved a resolution that authorizes the state Department of Transportation to perform construction and improvements in the first phase of the project, which includes an overhaul of the interchange at Colonial Life Boulevard and Interstate 126.
The overall project — called Carolina Crossroads — will ultimately reconstruct and improve 14 miles of road at the junctions of Interstate 26, Interstate 126 and Interstate 20. The $1.6 billion project will be completed in five phases, the first of which is set to begin next year. The total effort could last until 2029, according to SCDOT estimates.
The massive highway project scored a major approval in September when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers granted the state a 15-year permit for the work.
The Crossroads venture will address congestion issues along one of the state’s busiest corridors. According to transportation department data, 135,700 cars per day travel along Interstate 26 between Interstate 20 and Interstate 126. Meanwhile, 148,000 cars per day travel along Interstate 26 between Interstate 20 and St. Andrews Road.
City council’s Nov. 10 measure authorizes DOT’s construction and efforts in the first phase, which is in the city limits. It also makes way for the city to assist the state with the relocation of any water lines, sewer lines, manholes, fire hydrants or other utilities that might be necessary.
At-large City Councilman Howard Duvall said the state will fund the relocation of the city’s utilities as part of the project.
“We’re going to let the state move our lines, with our supervision, and they are paying for it,” Duvall told The State. “It will save us a lot of money that we would have had to spend relocating our lines to make room for this thing.”
Columbia will save about $30 million over the course of the entire project through the state picking up the tab on relocating the city’s utility lines, according to Assistant City Manager Clint Shealy.
For many years, it was the utility’s responsibility to pay to move its various lines in connection with an SCDOT widening initiative. However, the state Legislature passed an act in 2019 that allows for the state to cover the costs of the line relocation on large projects.
“Because Carolina Crossroads is this massive project, it really impacts a lot of our water and sewer infrastructure,” Shealy says. “We were looking at, potentially, a $30 million impact (for the total project). Most of all of that is going to be covered now by the transportation project. That’s a big benefit to us as a utility and to the city as a whole.”
Duvall said the ability to have the cost of utility relocation covered is critical, as the city’s coffers have been swamped by the COVID-19 pandemic this year. Columbia is expecting about $24 million less in general fund revenue in the current budget year, compared to the last full budget year. As virus case counts continue to climb across South Carolina, budget woes will likely continue into 2021.
“We could not have afforded to do it right now,” without the cost of line relocation being covered, Duvall noted.
This story was originally published November 11, 2020 at 1:17 PM.
