What you need to know as another York County bridge, this one over I-77, will close
The bridge over I-77 at Gold Hill Road will close next month, as part of ongoing traffic improvements there.
The City of Tega Cay issued a news alert on Wednesday. According to the alert, the bridge will close from midnight on Aug. 20 to 5 a.m. on Aug. 23. The interstate on and off ramps will remain open during the weekend closure.
The South Carolina Department of Transportation awarded the construction contract at Gold Hill to Boggs Construction. Improvements will create the state’s first diverging diamond interchange. A reduction of left turns will, traffic planners say, reduce congestion at what can be a heavy traffic area. Particularly during the weekday evening rush as commuters come back into York County from Charlotte.
Pennies for Progress, the county cent sales tax program that funds road work, lists the interchange as a $12.5 million project set to wrap up this year. Voters approved the project as part of a larger referendum in 2011.
The Gold Hill interchange improvement runs along Gold Hill from Cassandra Court to Wilson Business Parkway and Bromley Park Drive. It also includes ramps on and off of the interstate in both directions.
The Gold Hill work comes as part of an unprecedented list of I-77 road upgrades in York County. There’s ongoing work to improve the exit 85 interchange between Baxter and Kingsley in Fort Mill. Almost $75 million in state money will go to that interchange and the one at exit 83 in Rock Hill. There’s a new Rock Hill interchange coming to serve the planned Carolina Panthers headquarters.
The most recent work to gain public attention was the resurfacing of I-77 southbound lanes over the Catawba River in May. That bridge work slowed and rerouted traffic for weeks. Similar work will follow, though it hasn’t been announced when, to resurface the northbound lanes.
There aren’t many alternate routes nearby Gold Hill Road that cross the interstate. The nearest interchanges are at S.C. 160 to the south and Carowinds to the north. Another option to cross the interstate is Coltharp Road.
