Contractors made repairs to areas of Rye Patch Road Tuesday and Wednesday.

Long County Commission Chairman Mike Riddle said the road had potholes that citizens had complained about for years. 

“The Rye Patch Road area is one of the locations where we have had a lot of growth in recent years,” Riddle said. “That road is also one of the most traveled due to it tying in with Darwell Long Road and Highway 301, as a result of this there is a lot of damage, primarily potholes.”

He said the damage had gotten so bad it had become a safety issue, that some areas were so bad that two cars couldn’t safely pass each other.

“A while back, one lady told me she had hit a pothole as another car was coming and then went off the road,” the chairman said. “At this point I knew something had to be done.”

There were also reports of vehicles being damaged, he said.

“Just since January, and I know from talking to the previous commissioner prior to that, many people have hit these potholes and damaged their vehicles,” Riddle said. “Unfortunately when this happens the county can’t do anything to help these folks, because the liability legally is on the driver.”

He said the road crew has been making repairs, but that some areas were too bad for the road department’s resources.

“(Road Superintendent) Norman (Morris) and his crew have been doing a good job on what they could do, but in reality, the damage was just too extensive, so that is why the work was contracted out,” Riddle said.

Funding came from a road safety grant and state funds for road maintenance.

We put in for a safety grant, and with the commissioners being very smart in how we’ve contracted out our other road improvements, we had a little money left over, so this work didn’t cost the tax payers anything,” he Riddle.

He said few other safety projects will also be completed with the money.