SCDOT Plans Smith Branch Bridge Replacement on Little Swamp Road in Bamberg

South Carolina Department of Transportation work on the Little Swamp Road bridge over Smith Branch in Bamberg County (project ID P038268) has reached a planning milestone but faces a pause before construction. Projects ConstructConnect reports that “As of January 2026, design work has been completed, however the project is on hold pending owner review.” A timeline for contractor bidding and construction remains undisclosed.

The structure is listed on SCDOT’s statewide project inventory as “Little Swamp Road over Smith Branch Bridge Replacement | Bamberg | Lowcountry.” The original SCDOT project description supplied to public listings includes the fragment “Purpose: replace an aging, structurally def”, that line is truncated and the full purpose statement was not provided in the materials available for this report.

SCDOT has sought consultant interest for the replacement of the S-385 bridge over Smith Branch at milepost 0.17. The department requested a letter of interest and “a current resume of qualifications from all interested consulting firms experienced in providing engineering services necessary for the preparation of preliminary road and bridge plans, environmental permitting, final construction plans for the roadway and bridge, and associated design/coordination services for the replacement S-385 Bridge over Smith Branch (MP 0.17) in Bamberg County.” Requested services cited in the posting include project management, field surveys and mapping, environmental permitting, bridge and structural design, roadway design, hydrology and hydraulic design, geotechnical services, hazardous materials surveys, utility coordination and construction phase services. The solicitation establishes a Disadvantaged Business Enterprise goal of 14 percent and encourages proposers to obtain the maximum amount of DBE participation feasible.

Local contractors and small firms tracking public works in Bamberg County should take note: the ConstructConnect listing contains a line reading “Bid Date: Nov 22 2024,” even though the same posting states a contractor bidding schedule has not been disclosed. The same ConstructConnect page also showed other Bamberg-area solicitations, including reroofing work at a Clemson Extension building and at the Bamberg County Old Council Chambers and Little Swamp Community Center with November 2024 bid dates, and an asphalt rehabilitation entry with a Nov 13 2024 bid date, suggesting a cluster of county work in recent procurement feeds.

An aggregated procurement feed flagged in the materials includes solicitation numbers and budget estimates tied to projects that mix South Carolina and out-of-state agency details; those items appear to be conflated and are not confirmed for the Bamberg bridge. Statewide bridge-condition statistics and federal funding appeals cited elsewhere provide context for bridge work across South Carolina but are not project-specific to P038268.

For Bamberg motorists the immediate impact is limited while the project remains in owner review, but replacement planning signals future traffic changes, potential detours and opportunities for local contractors and DBE firms when work moves to advertisement. Reporters and residents seeking updates should monitor the SCDOT project listing for P038268 and contact SCDOT’s Lowcountry district for the complete project description, funding status and any forthcoming bidding schedule.