DOT Plans to Remove Assembly Street Rail Crossings
The South Carolina Department of Transportation has presented a preferred design to eliminate 15 railroad crossings on Assembly Street in Columbia.
Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in Utilities
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The South Carolina Department of Transportation presented a plan to eliminate railroad crossings on Assembly Street in Columbia. Public feedback on the Assembly Street Railroad Separation project is open until November 19, 2026.
Why it matters
Trains block traffic on Assembly Street for minutes or hours, disrupting commutes, classes, and events. The project aims to remove those conflicts by separating rail lines from the street.
The city has secured $279 million of an estimated $330 million cost, including $204 million from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and $40 million from the city and state legislature. The plan would elevate the rail line 13 feet and lower Assembly Street 18 feet beneath the new bridge.
The players
South Carolina Department of Transportation
The state agency responsible for planning and building the state's highway and transportation infrastructure, including this rail separation project.
Lindsey Graham
A United States Senator from South Carolina who secured $10 million in congressional funding for the project.
The details
The preferred plan consolidates multiple rail lines onto one new bridge over Assembly Street, eliminating 15 at-grade crossings and closing four roads. Existing bridges over Whaley Street and Rosewood Drive would be widened to accommodate additional rail lines, and engineers have accounted for flooding in low-lying areas.
Timeline
Planning to remove the railroad crossings has been underway since the 1970s.
Since 2020, city officials and DOT have been fundraising and narrowing design options.
The last public meeting on the project was held in December 2024.
A DOT public input meeting was held November 4, 2026.
Public feedback on the project closes November 19, 2026.
Roadmap
The project's $204 million federal allocation comes from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which has directed federal dollars toward grade-separation and rail-crossing projects across the country. Columbia's plan follows that funding pattern by replacing at-grade crossings with elevated and lowered infrastructure.
Commuters and event-goers on Assembly Street could see fewer train-related delays once the crossings are removed, though construction is not expected to begin before 2028. Residents of Shandon and Olympia may face construction disruption over several years of work.
The takeaway
Residents who want to weigh in have until November 19, 2026 to submit feedback, and the project's timeline stretches into the late 2020s and beyond. Staying engaged during the environmental review period is the most direct way to influence the final design.
What happens next
Public feedback on the project closes November 19, 2026, and environmental approval is expected in early 2027.
Further reading
For related local context, see Utilities coverage for Columbia.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Post and Courier.
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Do you support spending $330 million to remove Columbia's downtown railroad crossings?
