Editorial—N. Seed Farm Road Bridge to be removed

Is it any real surprise that the State doesn’t feel it can come up with either the money to replace an old bridge near Westminster or the cost to repair it? We think not.

That’s no solace at all, especially to those who regularly make their way in and around the Clearmont Community. But it gets us to think about the financial challenges faced by the South Carolina Department of Transportation.

South Carolina long has been a donor state when it comes to transportation funds from the federal government. That is, our state gets back less money than is paid in the form of federal gas tax. And the state gas tax hasn’t been raised in about 25 years.

Unless the economy rebounds at a pace far greater than currently, the DOT is hard-pressed for the money to repave its crumbling roads and repair or replace its aging bridges. Removing a bridge crossing, such North Seed Farm Road crossing Norfolk Southern Railroad on Secondary 64, is likely to be repeated at many rural locations across South Carolina. If true, living in the country will still mean the good life, just harder to get around.

That’s our view. What’s yours?