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Committee OKs SCDOT sign-rule updates adding EV charging eligibility and modernizing blue-logo program
Summary
The committee approved updates to SCDOT's blue-logo and agritourism directional-sign programs, adding eligibility for EV-charging notices and removing obsolete public-telephone requirements; the rules also reflect vendor-funded signage and revenue to the state highway fund.
The House committee approved revisions to SCDOT’s blue-logo (business identification) and agritourism/tourism-oriented directional sign programs that add EV-charging eligibility, remove outdated public-telephone requirements and update references to the agency’s name.
SCDOT presenter described the blue-logo program: a private vendor solicits businesses within roughly a three-mile radius of interstate interchanges, fabricates and maintains the signs, and charges businesses an annual fee that ranges from about $1,200 to $3,000 depending on traffic. After vendor costs, the vendor provides revenue back to SCDOT; the presenter said that revenue is "probably about $5,000,000 or so," which is deposited into the state highway fund.
The revisions incorporate changes required by the Federal Highway Administration's recent Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices; one notable change adds eligibility criteria for an EV-charging supplemental message on a business identification sign. The agritourism rule updates include allowing placement of advance directional signs for businesses with a driveway on a primary route, removing the public-telephone requirement, letting oversight meetings be held virtually, and barring vulgar or offensive business names from the program.
Committee members asked about placement (SCDOT said signs are on state right-of-way and are sited to avoid conflicts with private property), pricing for logos, and whether businesses will pay to update signage to advertise EV charging (the presenter said the business would pay the vendor to add EV-charging messaging). The committee recorded unanimous approval for both items.
Document 5358 (blue-logo program update) and document 5360 (agritourism/tourist directional signing) were approved by roll call; the subcommittee had carried the items forward after resolving Senate concerns.
