Richland County, SC Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Encroachment Permits (2026)

Sec. 21-24 requires an encroachment permit, approved by the county engineer's office, for any construction within or affecting the right-of-way of a county-maintained highway, street or road when the work is done by someone other than the county's own public works department or its authorized contractor. The section lists specific triggers: driveway connections involving a curb cut or pipe installation, curb cuts generally, utility taps, utility installations, excavations within the right-of-way, storm drainage installation, storm drainage discharge, and subdivision entrance signs or gateways, though the list is explicitly non-exclusive.

The permittee must indemnify the county for any liability or damages the encroachment causes, notify the county engineer's office when construction begins, keep a copy of the permit on site during the work, and ensure the county engineer's office approves both the construction and the roadway restoration. Subsection (b) adds street-excavation specifics: work must start within the time the permit specifies or the permit becomes void, no more than half the width of a street or alley may be opened or obstructed at one time (tunneling is allowed instead), and any paving removed for the excavation must be restored to as good a condition as before, with the permit holder required to notify public works in writing when the trench is refilled, tamped, and ready for repaving.

A permit holder who fails to properly refill an excavation, or fails to maintain the repair for a full year, faces the county doing the work itself and charging the cost against the bond posted for the permit.