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by RALPH NORMAN
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Ask any South Carolinian what issue matters to them most and most will say “roads.” Our roads are a mess. Dilapidated bridges. Some of our potholes are bigger than many animals, not to mention humans. At the start of this year’s legislative session, the South Carolina Policy Council conducted a poll which showed that 69% of South Carolinians view infrastructure improvements as very important.
South Carolina has plenty of money for roads. And I believe that investing in roads should be a priority. I would increase the amount of money spent on roads by $500 million, while cutting spending elsewhere. But the results of the millions we already spend? That’s a different story. We’re already spending hundreds of millions, and getting a poor return. It’s no wonder that public trust in the S.C. Department of Transportation (SCDOT) is deteriorating. While the General Assembly has formed a committee to address the issues, many of their proposals reflect a lack of innovation or willingness to address the problems at hand.
As Governor, I will restore public trust in SCDOT by enacting a third party audit of the department, making my Lt. Governor the Roads Czar, transferring state-maintained roads to the county level, and ensuring the General Assembly stops prioritizing wasteful pork projects in our annual budgets instead of Constitutionally-obligated functions like infrastructure.
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RELATED | S.C. ROADS & BRIDGES NEED ATTENTION
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The first step to solve our infrastructure problems is accountability and transparency. Under a Norman administration, hiring a third party auditor is a day one priority. We must conduct an agency-wide audit of DOT, which gives the legislature and the people of South Carolina confidence that the funding needed to adequately fix and maintain our roads and bridges is spent correctly. Doing this will begin the process of restoring public trust in the Department as well as give the General Assembly a road map for moving forward with allocation of existing funds. The study will also highlight the amount of dollars that actually go to asphalt, construction, department overhead, engineering, and environmental costs.
Secondly, my Lt. Governor’s primary responsibility will be to serve as the “Road Czar.” Effectively, this individual will serve as the liaison between the Executive and the department, offering needed oversight into operations as well as holding SCDOT accountable. I’d also request legislation mandating that the Legislative Audit Council, in conjunction with the Lt. Governor’s Office, conduct a yearly audit of the Department of Transportation and publicize their findings as well as the criteria which they considered during the audit.
But the problem with our roads goes beyond a lack of accountability and transparency: our state government has too much control over our roads and is inept at maintaining and repairing them. Roughly 68% of South Carolina roads are state-maintained. We know that local control works, and counties are more suitable candidates for road maintenance and repair than bureaucrats in Columbia. The legislature should pass legislation to begin transferring control of roads to the county level and ensure funding for our local county transportation commissions is proportional to the amount of roads transferred.
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Lastly, politicians in Columbia routinely prioritize non-core government functions and blatant wasteful spending projects over core infrastructure every year, choosing to fund things like Hollywood tax subsidies, money for DEI initiatives, horse races, and food and wine festivals. Wasteful spending like that is a major reason why our roads and bridges are in such disrepair. Under my administration, we will cut the waste and reallocate the funds to core government functions like roads and bridges.
South Carolina needs a businessman who has actually built roads before and balanced budgets in order to fix our desperately failing infrastructure. It starts with establishing transparency through an exhaustive audit of the department, creating accountability by making the Lt. Governor the Roads Czar, exercising local control by transferring state roads back to the county level, and finally cutting wasteful spending so we prioritize roads and bridges.
South Carolina is objectively failing to maintain our infrastructure. I won’t rest until we fix our roads and bridges, and finally prioritize infrastructure.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
Ralph Norman represents the people of South Carolina’s fifth congressional district in Washington, D.C. A businessman, he is the conservative choice for Governor of South Carolina in 2026.
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3 comments
Any candidate that talks about fixing our roads as their first priority has my vote. As a 32 year transportation manager and truck driver, I can tell you South Carolina’s roads are an embarrassment. Ask anyone from out of state and they’ll tell you the same. Our State Government is a joke. We need a businessman not more career politicians. One more thing, please close our primaries so we can finally flush out the RINOS !!!!!!
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Another campaign of vague promises about on par with Trump’s “Great” Health Plan.