Roads

Get where you're going quicker.

Roads are the largest part of the 2026 transportation plan: $2.7 billion, 63.57% of the program, for the corridors, intersections, and repaving that shorten the drive between where you are and where you need to be. All for about $10 a month for the average household from the transportation half cent. [1][9]

The cost of doing nothing.

Charleston County has grown 33% since the half cent first passed in 2004, and registered vehicles are up more than 41% in sixteen years. The county projects another 42,000 residents in the next decade. Sitting in that traffic already costs the average driver about 63 hours a year, worth roughly $1,325 per driver per year. [2] Growth is coming either way. The question on the ballot is whether the roads keep up. A yes vote is the difference between a plan and a parking lot.

What the roads money funds.

Featured corridor projects across every part of the county, nearly $1.7 billion worth, each named in the published program. [1][3]
A $390 million pavement management program to resurface and maintain the roads we already have. [3]
A $115 million intersection safety program targeting the crossings with the worst crash records, with a $50 million quick start list already identified. [3]
$284 million in debt service so major projects can start sooner rather than decades from now. That is what the bond question on your ballot makes possible: the county borrows against the sales tax, builds now, and repays the debt from transportation sales tax revenue. [3]
A $25 million signal coordination program so the lights work with traffic instead of against it. [3]

Every project earned its place through a published 100 point scoring system: up to 50 points for public and municipal support, up to 30 points for congestion relief, and up to 20 points for safety based on crash and injury data. [4]

WEST ASHLEY

US 17 South widening from Dobbin Road to Main Road, $225 million, and Glenn McConnell Parkway at Magwood Road, $100 million.

JOHNS ISLAND

Maybank Highway Southern Pitchford and roundabout, $65 million, plus US 17 South widening from Main Road to SC 162, $220 million, and new roundabouts at Main Road at Mary Ann Point and SC 162 at Salters Hill.

N. CHARLESTON

Rivers Avenue overpass at Durant Avenue, $175.9 million; Mall Drive improvements, $100 million; Patriot Boulevard widening, $12 million; Stall Road improvements, $15 million; plus $45 million in North Charleston infrastructure priorities.

DOWNTOWN CHARLESTON

Battery Extension West, Calhoun Street, and the Medical District, $225 million, plus Hagood Avenue improvements, $25 million.

MT. PLEASANT &EAST COOPER

Johnnie Dodds Boulevard at Houston Northcutt and Wingo Way, $230 million, and Long Point Road resiliency improvements, $170 million.

BOTH SIDES OF ASHLEY

The Better North Bridge, a $90 million connection between West Ashley and North Charleston. Details on the Bike and Pedestrian page.

A program that finishes what it starts.

Since 2004 it has delivered 895 miles of resurfacing and local paving, 69 intersection improvements, and the corridor projects drivers use every day, from the Glenn McConnell widening to Bees Ferry Road to Johnnie Dodds Boulevard. [5] It provided the $72 million local match that made the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge possible. [2] The Glenn McConnell widening opened on time and within budget in 2024. [6] The $90 million Palmetto Commerce Interchange opened in November 2025, ahead of its deadline. [7] And it shows on the pavement: 38% of neighborhood and secondary roads here are in good condition, versus a 22% statewide average. [2]

This is not the Mark Clark Extension. The 2024 referendum that failed was centered on the Interstate 526 Mark Clark Extension. The 2026 plan is a different measure built through a different process, and the Mark Clark Extension is not part of this program. What is in the program is exactly what you see on this page, published project by project. [3][8]

SOURCES:

[1] Charleston County news release, County Council approves third and final reading of 2026 Transportation Sales Tax ordinance, July 21, 2026 (final allocations: $2.7 billion roads, 63.57%). https://www.charlestoncounty.org/news/2026/charleston-county-council-approves-third-and-final-reading-of-2026-transportation-sales-tax-ordinance.pdf

[2] Charleston County, Just Facts: Two Decades of Infrastructure Investment and the Road Ahead (growth, congestion cost, pavement condition, Ravenel Bridge match). https://charlestontransportation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/chstco_13580_60day_report_press.pdf

[3] Charleston County 2026 Transportation Sales Tax program one pager, July 21, 2026 (category and project level dollar figures). https://charlestontransportation.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/TST-Program-One-Pager_July-21.pdf

[4] Charleston County news release, Finance Committee advances framework for 2026 Transportation Sales Tax program (100 point scoring). https://www.charlestoncounty.org/news/2026/finance-committee-advances-framework-for-2026-transportation-sales-tax-program.pdf

[5] Charleston County Transportation Development, program impact page (895 miles resurfaced, 69 intersections, legacy corridor projects). https://charlestontransportation.com/impact/

[6] ABC News 4, Glenn McConnell widening project substantially complete, March 22, 2024. https://abcnews4.com/news/local/glenn-mcconnell-widening-project-substantially-complete-new-lanes-opening-friday-wciv-abc-news-4-parkway-west-ashley-magwood-drive-bees-ferry-road

[7] Live 5 News, Charleston County completes Palmetto Commerce Interchange, November 17, 2025. https://www.live5news.com/2025/11/17/charleston-county-completes-palmetto-commerce-interchange/

[8] Charleston City Paper, Charleston Co. puts half penny transportation tax on 2026 ballot, July 22, 2026. https://charlestoncitypaper.com/2026/07/22/charleston-co-puts-half-penny-transportation-tax-on-2026-ballot/

[9] Yes for CHS campaign research, Baselice and Associates survey of Charleston County voters, February 2026 (household cost of the transportation half cent). Not a public document; present as a campaign statement on the site