One of York County’s biggest highway projects just got delayed…by a lot.
The $165 million rebuild of I-77 Exit 85 at S.C. 160 in Fort Mill is now expected to finish May 30, 2028 – a project that was originally scheduled to open in November 2027.
SCDOT officials say utility relocation caused the roughly six-month delay. The added time is not expected to increase the project’s cost.
South Carolina’s First Interchange of Its Kind
The massive Exit 85 project serves the fast-growing Baxter Village and Kingsley areas and is designed to completely reshape traffic around S.C. 160.
Plans include:
- Three new bridges, including two interstate flyovers
- South Carolina’s first fully directional interchange
- More than one mile of S.C. 160 widening
- A new 10-foot-wide multi-use path
- A redesigned interchange with only one signalized intersection
Much of the project is already taking shape.
Both ramp bridges are complete, along with the project’s retaining walls. Crews are now installing girders and widening S.C. 160 while continuing work in the I-77 median.
More Than a Decade in the Making
Initial funding for the interchange was approved in 2015, followed by years of planning and design.
Most of the project’s funding comes from the Rock Hill-Fort Mill Area Transportation Study, which committed about $99.3 million in federal transportation money.
The South Carolina Transportation Infrastructure Bank contributed another $42.2 million, while York County provided roughly $23.4 million.
Drivers may begin using portions of the new interchange before the official 2028 completion date. Traffic will likely shift into final configurations while crews finish paving and other remaining work.
More I-77 Construction Is Coming
Exit 85 is only one piece of a much larger overhaul along York County’s I-77 corridor.
The $90 million Exit 81 interchange in Rock Hill opened two years ago. A $106 million reconstruction of Exit 82 at Cherry and Celanese roads is expected to begin around 2030.
Transportation officials are also studying improvements at Exit 90 near Carowinds, where South Carolina could eventually connect with proposed toll lanes extending south from Charlotte.
