Press Room

Public calls for more mass transit

By ANDREW CHILDERS Staff Writer

The transportation projects left out of a 30-year regional plan drew the greatest reaction from the public at a forum in Annapolis last night.

Several residents protested the lack of mass-transit projects in the Transportation Outlook 2035, a regional planning guide.

The plan by the Baltimore Regional Transportation Board, an arm of the Baltimore Metropolitan Counsel, identifies key regional road priorities in Baltimore and the five surrounding counties, including Anne Arundel. The plan only outlines projects that are eligible for federal funding.

But the Annapolis forum last night was largely focused on the lack of mass transit in the plan.

"I was disappointed to see there wasn't a goal or vision for any kind of rail transit between Annapolis and Baltimore and Annapolis and New Carrollton," Annapolis Alderman Sam Shropshire, D-Ward 7, said.

The major problem is money, officials said.

With $8 billion for new construction slated throughout the region by 2035, planners said they tried to stretch the funds out as far as possible and rail projects average $2 billion to complete.

A previous plan to bring light rail to connect Annapolis to Baltimore was "vehemently" opposed by Glen

Burnie residents, said Harvey Gold, County Executive John R. Leopold's transportation representative to the county Planning Committee.

Bringing rail to Anne Arundel would require much higher population density, according to city and county planners. While the county is among the state leaders in commuter bus riders, those riders only account for about 4 percent of commuters, according to Annapolis leaders.

"If the bus ridership got up there, maybe you could have rail, but the bus ridership isn't there," said Jon Arason, Annapolis' planning director.

Those speaking at the meeting also took issue with the plan's top regional priorities, including widening Route 50 from Interstate 97 to the Bay Bridge - the most pressing problem identified for Anne Arundel.

Though the plan only identifies projects that are currently eligible for federal funding, residents said the road should not be widened until the state has resolved where it would put a new Chesapeake Bay crossing.

"You're shoving this stuff into a choke point and saying, 'Oh well, let road rage dominate,' " said Pete Julian of Annapolis.

This is the first draft of the plan intended to address the looming impact of the Base Realignment and Closure, or BRAC, process that could bring as many as 22,000 jobs to the Fort George G. Meade region by 2014.

Most of the new projects identified for Anne Arundel focus on the Fort Meade region.

Routes 175 and 198 are scheduled to be widened by 2015, while routes 100 and 170 are planned for improvements by 2020.

Claire Louder, executive director of the West County Chamber of Commerce, said the projects are critical for the region, but had hoped they could be completed before the jobs started moving into the county.

"It's a good start," she said. "Obviously none of it's coming soon enough for the people coming in. We're getting the projects we need just not when we need them."

Published June 26, 2007, The Capital, Annapolis, Md.
Copyright © 2007 The Capital, Annapolis, Md.