Glenns Bay interchange and S.C. 707 road projects delayed, again

Transportation officials are negotiating delays for construction to be completed on Glenns Bay Road and the U.S. 17 Bypass interchange, as well as the S.C. 707 widening project and the Carolina Bays Parkway expansion.

All three projects, which are part of the RIDE II sales tax initiative passed by voters to build roads, are behind schedule because of delays in relocating utilities and setbacks caused by the 2015 flood and Hurricane Matthew, said Kit Davis Scott, resident construction engineer for the S.C. Transportation Department.

The Glenns Bay interchange and road widening was scheduled for completion April 1, while Carolina Bays and S.C. 707 were supposed to finish up by March 31.

Originally, the roads were expected to be completed by this year.

Officials hinted after Hurricane Matthew that construction would end sometime in the spring, now they say it’s looking more like summer.

“We don’t have a definite completion date yet, but we anticipate those projects finishing summer 2018,” Scott said. “All three of them are planned to finish up around the same time.”

“We do not have an agreement set with the contractor yet for what the time extension will be, but it looks as if the contractors will be done with all of their work by the summer,” Scott said.

None of the projects are over-budget, said Jason Thompson, RIDE program manager.

The Carolina Bays project will extend the parkway from the current terminus at S.C. 544 for nearly four miles to cross the Intracoastal Waterway and connect with S.C. 707 north of Moss Creek Road.

Workers are now preparing to set steel girders over the Intracoastal Waterway in the next few weeks.

They are pouring deck and diaphragms on the structure from the Enterprise Road side to the waterway. The contractor is also working on Moss Creek, Meadows and Lee Road preparing them for asphalt, Scott said in an email.

While some bridgework is being performed over the Intracoastal Waterway, the U.S. Coast Guard will establish a 200-yard safety zone directly under the construction project from 7 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Nov. 3 and 10, as well as Dec. 2, 12 and 21.

Entry of vessels or persons into the safety zone is prohibited unless authorized by the captain of the port. Mariners are urged to plan accordingly to avoid unnecessary disruptions.

The S.C. 31 bridge over Enterprise Road is complete, and approach work on the bridge at S.C. 544 is being performed now.

At the U.S. 17 Bypass and Glenns Bay interchange, work is ongoing on the bridge day and night, Scott said. On Glenn’s Bay Road, workers are building the retaining wall and installing sidewalks, curbs and gutters.

Paving operations are ongoing on S.C. 707 from Bay to the county line, while sidewalks, sound walls and retaining walls are also being built.

This story was originally published October 24, 2017 at 3:45 PM with the headline "Glenns Bay interchange and S.C. 707 road projects delayed, again."