When I was running for council, I was frequently asked, “What political party are you?”
Explaining that Mauldin’s elected offices are non-partisan, I would often add that, “Potholes don’t know political parties.” There was only one person I spoke with who didn’t like my explanation, but that’s another story for another time.
Anyway, it’s true. Potholes don’t know political parties, but like Star Trek’s “Tribbles,” they (potholes, not political parties) seem to be multiplying.
What’s the cause?
Well, there are a number of them. For example:
- More growth means more traffic on existing infrastructure,
- More traffic includes transport vehicles, like tractor-trailers, on roads that weren’t designed to handle the weight of those vehicles or the amounts of them or the frequency in which those vehicles travel those roads,
- Water gets in road surface cracks and lifts out chucks to create the potholes that jar you and your family every time you hit them (and as we all know, it doesn’t matter how wide you swerve to miss those holes, you still hit them square-on), and
- State funding hasn’t kept up with road and bridge maintenance the way it should.
Last year, the South Carolina General Assembly allocated a tremendous amount of funding to begin trying to correct this problem, and they are expected to do the same this year. The allocated funds, which came from a surplus in the state’s general fund, amounted to what would have been collected if the state had raised our gas tax by 3.1 cents (but that increase in road funding came without having to increase taxes).
You may not know it, but of the 50 states, South Carolina is 40th in area. At the same time, we have the nation’s 4th largest road system to maintain. That’s a lot of Palmetto State road miles.
On November 5, 2013, Greenville County Council unanimously passed a resolution “to initiate the development of a project list of roads, intersections, and bridges to be improved.” This created the 18 member Greenville County Citizens Roads Advisory Commission.
Their goal is to consider proposals for road improvements and related projects within Greenville County.
Allowable projects include “highways, roads, streets, bridges and related facilities including sidewalks and related transportation amenities where appropriate.”
The commission is in the process of soliciting citizen and community input regarding potential projects, with a final report due to Greenville County Council by April 1, 2014 that will highlight a prioritized list of projects and their costs.
The City of Mauldin will host the Greenville County Citizens Roads Advisory Commission tonight (February 27, 2013) at 6:30 at the Mauldin Cultural Center.
This is your opportunity to provide input on infrastructure conditions and needs in Mauldin, the Golden Strip, and across Greenville County.
If you can’t attend tonight’s meeting, the commission will have a final opportunity for you to speak this Saturday, March 1 at County Square (301 University Ridge) in Suite 400 from 9:00 a.m. until Noon.
Potholes may not know political parties, but our cars know potholes. If you have an area or project that you want considered, please attend one of these final two meetings and let the commission know.
Leave a Reply