Maryland needs transit planning

While the Post has editorialized in favor of the ICC more recently, in (natch) "Build It," and even Roger Lewis wrote favorably of it yesterday, in "My 2007 Wish List: An Intercounty Connector, a Purple Line . . ." where he says

Let years of debate in Maryland finally end so that construction of the intercounty connector can begin. By linking major highways crossing Montgomery and Prince George's counties, the connector promises to be a vital element in the region's overburdened road network. It should significantly reduce east-west Beltway traffic volume and, thanks to meticulous planning, minimize environmental problems."

(although Lewis' next paragraph is about Purple Line planning...) I think this letter writer to the Baltimore Sun (ironically he hails from Silver Spring, but probably figures that the Post wouldn't run the letter), makes the right point:

Develop transit plan before building ICC

At the heart of the controversy over whether to build the Intercounty Connector is the fact that the State Highway Administration never considered whether the estimated $2.4 billion the state plans to spend on the highway would produce more relief from traffic congestion if invested elsewhere ("Two lawsuits filed against ICC," Dec. 21).

This case is particularly vexing because the state's own traffic projections show that the ICC, for all its expense, would only provide marginal benefits.

Political leaders from across the state should look long and hard at the ICC.

While Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. fast-tracked the ICC, other important transportation projects have been sidetracked and not just in Montgomery and Prince George's counties.

The ICC project is so expensive that the state will have little transportation money left for badly needed mass transit and road improvements.

Work on the ICC should stop until the new governor can develop an integrated transportation plan that weighs the costs and benefits of all the options on the table and all the priorities statewide.

Michael Rubinstein, Silver Spring

Also see the Baltimore Sun's in-depth collection of stories on the topic: The Intercounty Connector. And this blog entry, "Interesting difference of opinion between the Baltimore Sun and the Washington Post on the Inter County Connector," from last June.

Index Keywords: transit