SCDOT Widens I-95 Corridor Through Hardeeville
The $825 million Fix the Drive project will widen Interstate 95 from the Georgia border to one mile north of Hilton Head's Exit 8.
Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in Healthcare
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The South Carolina Department of Transportation is widening and improving Interstate 95 from the Georgia border to one mile north of Hilton Head Island's Exit 8 as part of its Fix the Drive campaign. The John Smith Road overpass, closed to traffic in March, is expected to reopen in early 2027.
Why it matters
The upgrades are designed to reduce bottlenecks through the Hardeeville zone, a corridor serving a rapidly growing region. Jasper County grew 6% between July 2024 and July 2025, making it the fastest-growing county in the U.S., which adds pressure on the interstate.
The estimated $825 million project includes $728.8 million for construction and replacement of fourteen bridges along the corridor. The original timeline of about nine months has been extended, and the completion schedule for the full corridor remains unresolved.
The players
South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT)
The state agency responsible for maintaining and improving South Carolina's highway system, leading the Fix the Drive widening project along Interstate 95.
City of Hardeeville
The municipality in Jasper County that will build a new Exit 3 interchange at Purrysburg Road as part of the regional interstate improvements.
The details
Exit 8 will be reconfigured into a diverging diamond interchange, which eliminates left turns across oncoming traffic, and the Medical Center Drive intersection will be eliminated and moved about one-fifth of a mile to Dolnik Drive. Utility relocations for Exit 8 are scheduled to be completed by the end of 2026.
Timeline
August 2025: Fix the Drive project broke ground in Hardeeville.
March 2026: John Smith Road I-95 overpass closed to traffic.
End of 2026: Utility relocations for Exit 8 expected to be completed.
Early 2027: John Smith Road expected to reopen.
2030: First roughly 10-mile widening stretch anticipated to be complete.
Healthcare Landscape
The widening is part of SCDOT's Fix the Drive campaign, which extends the state's highway improvement program into a corridor where population growth is straining capacity. Its 14 bridge replacements and interchange redesigns follow the same pattern of incremental corridor upgrades used across the state's interstate network.
Drivers using Interstate 95 through Hardeeville and Hilton Head should expect continued lane and interchange disruptions until the project nears completion. The reopening of John Smith Road in early 2027 will restore a direct overpass route for local travelers.
The takeaway
Residents and commuters in the Lowcountry should plan for longer travel times through the I-95 corridor while the Fix the Drive widening proceeds. Monitoring the late-2026 utility work and early-2027 John Smith Road reopening will help identify when traffic patterns begin to ease.
What happens next
Utility relocations at Exit 8 are scheduled for completion by the end of 2026, and John Smith Road is expected to reopen in early 2027.
Further reading
Explore more Healthcare coverage in South Carolina.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Island Packet.
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