TPAC recommends county council accept final transportation needs assessment

The Richland County Transportation Planning Advisory Committee voted unanimously to recommend that County Council accept the final Transportation Needs Assessment report prepared by the county's consultant.

Committee members and staff framed the document as a comprehensive, living inventory of previously planned projects, public-input items and carryover projects from the prior penny program. Director Maloney said the report "starts with the outreach and shows the maps of the various projects that had been planned" and that the document identifies projects sourced from Central Midlands Council of Governments, municipalities, SCDOT and public input.

The report compiles programmatic categories (sidewalks, greenways, resurfacing, intersection work and bikeways) and a list of projects the consultant identified during the outreach. Maloney told TPAC the committee's project manager is consolidating intersection proposals into a single list and that the county will issue an RFP to secure traffic-engineering support to evaluate whether intersections warrant traffic signals. He said many intersections identified by the public will require further vetting to confirm traffic volumes and feasibility.

Committee members pressed for clarity about how carryover projects (projects begun under the first penny program) would be prioritized within the new program. Maloney explained the county intends to launch design for those carryover projects first, but noted that costs rose under Penny 1 because of inflation and a referendum cap that limited bond amounts; he said the carryovers and new projects will be prioritized within program groups (for example, sidewalks vs. sidewalks) as budgets and bonding decisions are made.

Public comment touched on a separate, localized concern: a resident asked for status on the Sunset Drive sidewalk project and when the road reopening could be expected. Maloney said retaining walls and adjacent shoring delayed reopening but that crews were backfilling the wall and traffic restoration should follow once the shoring is removed; he added crews will stage sidewalk concrete work with flagging to maintain single-lane traffic when trucks are present.

TPAC members and staff discussed process and recordkeeping: several members noted TPAC had previously reviewed parts of the work and that the committee had provided feedback in late 2024, but the final report had not been formally accepted by TPAC. The motion before TPAC asked the committee to accept the consultant's final report as presented so the acceptance could be forwarded to County Council and documented as the final record.

A motion to accept the final Transportation Needs Assessment as presented was moved and seconded; the committee voted and the recommendation to County Council passed unanimously.

TPAC asked staff to maintain a clear source column showing whether each proposed intersection or project came from Central Midlands COG, a municipality, SCDOT or public input, and to proceed with technical vetting and consultant support for intersection warrant evaluations. The committee also discussed annual programming of community-investment categories so smaller jurisdictions and safety-focused projects (for example, sidewalks to schools) receive attention independent of raw traffic-volume metrics.

The committee will forward the recommendation and the final report to County Council and retain the needs assessment as a living document to guide programming, design launches and future RFPs for engineering support.