Charleston County voters will decide Nov. 3 whether to continue a half-cent sales tax that has paid for roads, buses and land preservation since 2004. Early voting runs Oct. 19 through Oct. 31.

The first ballot question asks voters to approve a half-cent sales tax for up to 25 years, or until it raises $4.25 billion, whichever comes first. A second question would let the county issue up to $300 million in general obligation bonds, repaid from the tax, for projects in the same categories.

The county describes the measure as an extension of the 2004 tax, which it expects to finish collecting in 2027. About $1.1 billion of the $1.3 billion authorized under that tax has been collected, according to the county. A second half-cent transportation tax, from 2016, has collected about $598 million of its $2.1 billion, the county said.

County Council gave the program final approval July 21, according to the ordinance.

Where the money would go

The plan splits the $4.25 billion three ways, according to the county: $2.7 billion for roads and related infrastructure, $858 million for public transit and $690 million for the Greenbelt Program, which buys land and conservation easements. The Greenbelt money would be divided evenly between urban and rural areas, the ballot language says.

About $1.7 billion of the road money is set aside for featured projects, according to a county summary dated July 21. The largest is $230 million for Johnnie Dodds Boulevard at Houston Northcutt Boulevard and Wingo Way in Mount Pleasant. The city of Charleston’s list includes $225 million for a project the ballot calls Battery Extension West/Calhoun Street/Medical District, and $225 million to widen U.S. 17 South from Dobbin Road to Main Road. Another $220 million would carry that widening from Main Road to S.C. 162.

North Charleston’s list is led by $175.9 million for a railroad overpass on Rivers Avenue at Durant Avenue and $100 million for Mall Drive. Other featured projects include Long Point Road resiliency work in Mount Pleasant at $170 million, Glenn McConnell Parkway at Magwood Road at $100 million and the Maybank Highway southern pitchfork at $65 million.

The rest of the road money would go to pavement management, including resurfacing ($390 million), intersection safety ($115 million), bike and pedestrian projects ($77 million), traffic signal coordination ($25 million) and unfinished 2016 commitments ($113 million), the summary shows. Debt service accounts for $284.1 million.

Projects near job centers

Several smaller items are in North Charleston’s commercial and industrial areas. After the second reading, council added $17 million for a noise wall at the Palmetto Commerce interchange, the county said. The summary also includes $8 million for dual left-turn lanes on Ladson Road at Palmetto Commerce Parkway and $10 million for Reynolds Avenue. The ballot names two 2016 carryover projects: Dorchester Road widening and the third phase of Palmetto Commerce Parkway.

The Rivers Avenue overpass would address an at-grade rail crossing that North Charleston is studying ahead of the planned Lowcountry Rapid Transit line, The Post and Courier reported Oct. 12. A city official told the newspaper the city sees the sales tax as construction money for the project.

Transit and land

The transit share would pay for operating and expanding service run by CARTA, the Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority, according to the ballot. County materials say $50 million could go to improvements on major transit corridors, which could include expanding Lowcountry Rapid Transit, a planned 21.3-mile corridor the county describes as a faster alternative to traditional bus service. The summary sets aside $23 million to implement the Downtown Route Study.

The county says Greenbelt money from the sales tax has helped protect 26,170 acres so far.

How the county built the list

County staff collected about 29,000 public comments and more than 600 project requests and identified roughly $68 billion in transportation needs, according to the county. Projects were scored on a 100-point scale that weighed public and municipal support, congestion relief, safety and council’s guiding principles.

The county is also pointing to its record. In September it launched an online dashboard listing 490 road projects from the first two sales taxes, 400 completed and 90 active, worth nearly $1 billion.

“The Transportation Sales Tax represents a significant investment in the roads and connections our communities rely on every day,” County Council Chairman Joe Boykin said when the dashboard launched.

A South Carolina Department of Revenue audit reviewed more than 13,500 transactions and found eight expenditures, totaling $615.43, that did not qualify, the county said. That money was repaid.

Work paid for by the 2016 tax is still under way. The county said a roundabout at Main, River and Chisolm roads on Johns Island, part of its U.S. 17 and Main Road Improvements Project, was scheduled to open to traffic Oct. 19.

If it fails

Without an extension, the county says, it would lose one of its main sources of money for resurfacing and improving roads and bridges, transit and the Greenbelt Program.

The county scheduled a final round of public meetings with mayors in North Charleston, West Ashley and Mount Pleasant, followed by a countywide virtual session Oct. 15. Program details and the full project list are posted at CharlestonTransportation.com.