Letters: Spend better, not more, to fix SC roads

Gov. Henry McMaster is absolutely wrong to suggest issuing bonds to fund highways and road improvement and maintenance. It is unconscionable to pay interest and obligate the future generation with debt, just so we can say there was no tax increase. We should pay as we go. Removing the sales tax cap on automobiles, to make it fair to everyone, would be a worthwhile effort, and it would generate a few more dollars.

But we should review the reports by the American Association of Civil Engineers and Federal Highway Administration records before throwing any more money at the Transportation Department. Both show that South Carolina has around the 30th worst roads and bridges. New York, Pennsylvania, California and Washington state have some of the highest gas taxes and some of the worst roads and bridges list.

This suggests that what we need isn’t more funds but better management of the funds by the Transportation Department, along with better monitoring, to ensure better use of the funds.

This story was originally published April 15, 2017 at 4:10 PM with the headline "Letters: Spend better, not more, to fix SC roads."