Reopening part of one of Columbia’s busiest roads is being delayed for more repairs
A section on one of Columbia’s busiest roads was supposed to reopen to drivers on Thursday, but that didn’t happen.
Repairs to train tracks on Assembly Street are taking longer than originally planned, a spokesman for Norfolk Southern Railroads said in a news release.
Additionally, more repairs are being made to another set of tracks in the area between Blossom and Catawba streets, according to the release.
The hope now is that all of Assembly Street will be open to traffic on Friday. Information on what time the road will reopen was not available.
The block on Assembly Street, between Catawba and Whaley streets, was closed Monday morning so fixes could be made to the crossing located there.
Since then, the area closed has been expanded from Catawba to Blossom to make repairs to a single track crossing on Assembly, according to the release.
That’s near the University of South Carolina’s campus. It’s where the YOUnion apartment complex and a strip mall with a student bookstore and Subway restaurant are located, among other businesses.
A detour was set up from Blossom to Huger to Whaley streets, and drivers are still encouraged to use that if they are not taking an alternative route, it said in the release.
Drivers who normally travel through this section of Assembly Street are asked add more time to their normal commute.
This is one of several road work projects being done with fewer drivers out because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the South Carolina Department of Transportation.
