Many South Carolina local government websites lack essential information about road maintenance requests, leaving citizens unsure of how to get their local roads repaired. A quick look at the practices and procedures of the complex network of public roadway maintenance uncovered accessibility challenges at the county and local levels that underscore the broader issue of mismanagement within SCDOT.
SCDOT and county road systems
South Carolina roads have three levels of control: local, county, and state. SCDOT owns and maintains around 41,000 miles of South Carolina’s roughly 60,000 miles of public roadway, leaving at least 19,000 miles of roadway under the control of county and local governments. Since the state DOT manages most public roads, it has a responsibility to make it easy for citizens to contact the department about maintenance issues.
SCDOT provides a "Maintenance Work Request" form available via a link on its website, allowing citizens to submit requests quickly. Theoretically, an online form should also help government officials organize and address citizens’ requests with efficiency. Most South Carolinians are aware by now that this is not always the case with SCDOT. Despite this, systems that prioritize accessibility and efficiency serve as good models for local governments to resolve problems in their community due to their decentralized nature.
Although the state oversees most roads, counties and towns are still responsible for some roadway maintenance. Each county has its own system for citizens to report maintenance issues. Of the 46 counties in South Carolina, only 14 have online forms for road maintenance requests. Some of the remaining counties have detailed contact information and instructions for citizens to submit requests, which is also a good alternative to an online form, but most others have vague or incomplete information.
Most county websites contain limited information, such as a main office number or a general online portal, rather than information about the county department responsible for road maintenance. This issue is abundantly clear for residents of Clarendon County, whose website is almost impossible to use. A reliable system for road maintenance requests is essential to maintaining public input with county governments.
City streets and town roads
The process becomes more complicated for citizens dealing with locally managed roads. Of the 271 municipalities in South Carolina, only 42 provide clear instructions for submitting road maintenance requests: these municipal websites include detailed contact information, and many feature online forms to streamline the process. In contrast, 166 municipalities offer only limited or unclear information. Their websites might include a contact number or email address for town or city hall, while some function better as a time capsule to 2008. Overall, these websites often only go as far as offering general contact points rather than dedicated resources for road maintenance requests.
While a general contact page can be helpful, it comes with its own set of challenges. It might be manageable in small towns, but it risks overwhelming officials in larger towns or cities, making it increasingly difficult to address specific concerns in a timely manner as more requests come in.
63 South Carolina municipalities lack any government website or other kind of self-published online information. Citizens must instead rely on a third-party online directory maintained by the Municipal Association of South Carolina to find contact information. While this can be a useful resource, it’s not a substitute for a functioning local government website. Citizens with limited internet skills may find it especially challenging, making it increasingly difficult for them to contact their local officials. Even in a small town, citizens would benefit greatly from their local governments offering websites with basic contact information.
Simplifying road maintenance requests
Municipalities without websites should prioritize creating one, as government domain names are free and there are many affordable services that make building a basic website quick and easy. For municipalities with outdated sites, a modest update could make a significant difference for citizens, particularly those who are less tech-savvy.
The Kershaw County government website exemplifies an effective approach. It clearly identifies the department responsible for road maintenance and features a Google Form for submitting requests. Creating such a form requires only a Google account, making it a practical and accessible solution for local governments. Additionally, Google Forms automatically organize responses, streamlining the process for officials to address citizen concerns.
Similarly, Columbia’s city government website has a form for road maintenance requests and includes a link to a map provided by SCDOT to determine who manages the different roads. This map is hard to read and should be replaced with a link to SCDOT’s tool for determining who controls their roads. Any local government official can easily provide a link to this tool on their website, enabling citizens to quickly determine which level of government to report roadway issues to.
By following the examples set by Kershaw County and the city of Columbia, local governments can take meaningful steps toward addressing the mismanagement and lack of accessibility currently plaguing South Carolina’s public roadway maintenance.
***
Brendan Connors is a research intern for the South Carolina Policy Council