US 76 enters South Carolina across the
Chattooga River, then continues southeast toward
Westminster. This segment is a moderately windy two-lane road. In Westminster, it heads east toward
Seneca and
Clemson. From Clemson, the road heads southeast toward
Anderson, intersecting
Interstate 85 (I-85), then east toward the small towns of
Belton and
Honea Path. US 76 is a four-lane highway from Westminster to Anderson. In Anderson, the road widens to six lanes with a reversible turn lane. After a concurrency with
US 178, the road narrows to five lanes, and, as it goes south towards downtown Anderson, it narrows again to four. However, the sections around Seneca, Clemson, and Anderson are well developed with many traffic lights. It travels
concurrent with
US 123 from Westminster to Clemson,
SC 28 from Seneca to Anderson, and US 178 from Anderson to Honea Path. From Honea Path, the highway heads east to Laurens. This section is a rural two-lane road that is not frequently traveled. From Laurens, US 76 roughly parallels
I-385 and
I-26 as it heads to
Columbia. US 76 provides local access to the communities of
Laurens,
Clinton,
Newberry,
Prosperity,
Chapin, and the other smaller towns in the area. In
Irmo, US 76 travels concurrent with
US 176, then continues on to I-26, with which it travels concurrent. After the interchange with
I-20, US 76 splits off from I-26 and continues into
downtown Columbia concurrent with
I-126. In Columbia, US 76 follows Elmwood Avenue, Bull Street, Gervais Street, Millwood Avenue, and Devine Street, before heading east toward
Sumter. The segment from Columbia to Sumter is a four-lane highway and US 76 is concurrent with
US 378 from the intersection of Bull and Gervais near the
University of South Carolina in Columbia all the way to Sumter. From Sumter, US 76 heads northeast to
Florence. US 76 is the major road through Florence. It then continues east out of Florence to the small towns of
Marion and
Mullins, then into
North Carolina. The highway is concurrent with
US 301 from Florence to across the
Pee Dee River. ==History==