SPRINGDALE, S.C. — Wilton Road in Lexington County has been closed for over 3 years, but officials say it may reopen soon.
It’s been a pain for this community for several years, and people continue to question will Wilton Road ever be fixed.
Dana messaged us on our Street Squad Lexington Facebook page and wanted us to check in on what’s going with this road. She says it’s been a major inconvenience for people who live here.
If we all take a step back, we remember Wilton Road washed out after the floods of 2015.
South Carolina Department of Transportation officials say part of the reason the road has not been fixed is because the dam is privately owned and is not regulated by the South Carolina Department of Environmental Health. This means the responsibility lies on the dam owners to fix the dam before Wilton Road can be fixed.
Street Squad wanted to make sure we took Dana's question to those in charge so she can find the answers she is looking for.
After speaking with SCDOT officials over the phone, and talking to the Mayor of Springdale, Michael Bishop, Street Squad found out the road could be fixed by the end of this year.
"It looks dilapidated. We need to get it fixed. It's designed to have a road and the road needs to be repaired. We call regularly to encourage DOT to get these done," said Bishop.
Bishop says he knows SCDOT had a lot of hurdles to go through with the complexity of the issue and he appreciates them finding a solution.
SCDOT says they were able to work out plans with the private dam owners and they should begin construction later this fall.
Mayor Bishop says the reopening will help push Springdale past the floods that devastated their community 3 years ago.
“It’s been an eyesore for four years and it’s time we got it fixed. It just looks like people aren’t invested in the community when you allow this to sit around for this long,” Bishop said. “It definitely needed to be repaired and I’m very happy that it will be.”
For those wondering about where the money is coming from to fix the road, SCDOT says it’s coming from state funds.
While this road is planned to be fixed by the end of this year, the Town of Springdale still has one more road to fix from the floods of 2015. Durham Road, which is near Exit 113 on I-26, still needs work done before it can be reopened.
At this time, officials don't know when this road will be reopened but it is far less traveled than Wilton Road and won't have quite as a big of a community impact.
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