Monday, May 20, 2013
Gaithersburg, Ft. Meade, Bethesda, Columbia and College Park could lose some public transportation options.
The Intercounty Connector could lose three of its existing five commuter bus routes by Aug. 1, 2013, according to The Washington Post. Based on low ridership numbers, the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) is considering axing three commuter bus routes, including: The article notes that initial supporters of the toll highway, which stretches for 18 miles between I-270/I-370 and I-95/US 1, hyped the highway's ability to provide bus transportation. Now, 60 percent of those bus routes, which provided peak-hour weekday service, could end in the coming months. The MTA has scheduled a number of public hearings in the first week of June: If you are unable to attend one of the meetings in person, the MTA will accept comments with a name and …
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Weather permitting, officials will change posted limits on Friday and Saturday.
State transportation officials are set to change signs on the Intercounty Connector (MD-200) this weekend to officially increase the speed limit from 55 mph to 60 mph. Weather permitting, westbound signs will be changed on Friday and eastbound signs on Saturday, according to the Maryland Transportation Authority. Officials said new warning signs for curves have also been added to the highway, which runs between I-270 and I-95 through Montgomery and Prince George's counties. The MDTA elected to raise the speed limit this past winter following engineering studies and crash analysis based the ICC’s first year of operations. “We needed one year of ICC operations and full consideration of the design speed and geometry of the roadway to ensure …
Monday, February 4, 2013
The change will likely take effect on March 31.
The speed limit on the Intercounty Connector is going up, the Maryland Transportation Authority announced Monday. The ICC's speed limit will receive a 5 mph boost, upping the limit to 60 from 55, likely effective on March 31, according to the MDTA. The decision to raise the speed limit comes after an MDTA engineering study and crash analysis. With the crash analysis, traffic engineers examined vehicular crashes for the ICC’s first year of operations between I-270 and I-95. The analysis helped the MDTA confirm that the speed limit may be safely raised to 60 mph. “This is a win for everyone and will certainly please the growing number of drivers who regularly travel the ICC,” Sen. Jennie Forehand said in a statement. “I appreciate the […
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
A House bill that would raise the maximum speed limit on interstates and expressways statewide from 65 to 70 mph will be introduced during the current General Assembly session, The Gazette reports.
A House bill co-sponsored by Del. Aruna Miller (D-Dist. 15), of Darnestown, and Del. Neil Parrott (R-Dist. 2B), of Hagerstown, could force a change in the speed limit on the Intercounty Connector, according to a report by The Gazette. The bill would raise the maximum speed limit on interstates and expressways statewide from 65 to 70 mph, according to the report, and automatically increase the ICC's speed limit from 55 to 70. Miller cited three reasons the change is necessary. “One, the posted speed limit is way too low,” she said, according to the report. “Two, the toll is way too high. And three, the enforcement is excessive.” A separate bill by Sen. Jennie Forehand (D-Dist. 17) of Rockville, would raise the speed limit on the ICC to 60…
Friday, January 18, 2013
WTOP reports that the Colesville ICC Noise Concern Group will continue to advocate for a sound wall near their homes.
For communities without a sound wall but within earshot of the Intercounty Connector, the likelihood of getting some kind of barrier to block noise from the 18-mile road is slim to none, according to state officials associated with the highway project. A group of residents in Colesville isn't letting the grim forecast stop it from fighting for a sound wall, though, WTOP reports. "We're trying everything we can to try and generate some interest in the state to get sound barriers built on Bonifant Road," Rich Burnes, part of the Colesville ICC Noise Concern Group, told the radio station. "There are houses within 400 feet of the ICC and they are hearing the traffic at all hours of the night," Burnes said. Burnes' neighborhood, with a noise …
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Highway officials will analyze crash data on the Intercounty Connector before increasing the speed limit, The Baltimore Sun reported.
Those clamoring for an increase in the Intercounter Connector's 55 mph speed limit may have some positive news on the horizon. An engineering study of the ICC has concluded that the speed of the highway can safely be raised to 60 mph, pending an analysis of crash data, The Baltimore Sun reported Thursday. The accident review of the toll road is expected to be completed by the end of February, at which point the Maryland Transportation Authority will make a decision on the speed limit, according to the report. The highway—designed for speeds up to 60 mph—has yet to see a fatality and MdTA Police have recorded just 20 single-vehicle accidents, according to the report. Earlier in December, Montgomery County Council Member Phil Andrews said …
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Catch up on the top news in Montgomery County this week.
Report: Study Shows ICC Speed Limit Can Safely Increase To 60 MPH GAITHERSBURG—An engineering study of the ICC has concluded that the speed of the highway can safely be raised to 60 mph, pending an analysis of crash data. Read more on Gaithersburg Patch. Montgomery Village Man Killed In Gaithersburg Crash GAITHERSBURG—A 21-year-old Montgomery Village man was killed early Sunday in the collision of his Honda Civic and another car on Snouffer School Road in Gaithersburg. Read more at Gaithersburg Patch. New Renderings Unveiled For Bethesda Purple Line Station BETHESDA -- Maryland Transit Administration officials unveiled new renderings Tuesday for the Bethesda station on the planned Purple Line. Funding for the 16-mile light rail line …
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Montgomery County Council Member Phil Andrews proposes a cut in ICC tolls to get more drivers to use the road, NBC Washington reports.
Montgomery County Council Member Phil Andrews says a deep cut in tolls would increase traffic on the Intercounty Connector and he's calling on the state to do it, NBC Washington reported. Andrews says the $8 round-trip rush-hour toll is among the highest in the nation. He would propose "at least a trial period of several months, if not, a year when the tolls would be...cut in half, in hopes of doubling the traffic," according to the report. A decision on the toll rate is up to the Maryland Transportation Authority. A spokeswoman for the MTA told The Washington Post the ICC is meeting both traffic and revenue projections. The road was designed to carry traffic volumes projected for 2030, according to the report. Andrews said he hopes that …
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Crews will be repairing hairline cracks on bridges spanning the central portion of the Intercounty Connector.
Repairing fissures in three bridges along the Intercounty Connector may cause temporary road closures between Norbeck Road and New Hampshire Avenue beginning this week, the State Highway Administration announced. Patch reported that hairline cracks were found in 10 bridges along the toll road of more than 17 miles: SHA currently is working on fixing three: Longmead Crossing Drive, Layhill Road and Notley Road. Officials estimate construction should be complete this winter. Expect shoulder closures and temporary traffic signs, traffic barrels, cones, crash cushions and the concrete barriers used to designate the shoulder closures, SHA said. The bridges will stay open and the shoulder closures should cause “minimal impact” to drivers, the …
One contractor disputes that the company is at fault.
Engineers for Maryland's most high-tech highway are nearly half way to mending hairline fractures found in 10 of the bridges that carry the Intercounty Connector between Gaithersburg and Laurel. Repair work has wrapped up on four of those bridges and is set to start this week on three more. But who’s to blame for cracks at two other bridges remains at question. The contractor who designed those bridges is disputing the state’s assessment that the cracks are the contractor's fault. The ICC’s western third opened in February 2011 amid a flurry of both fanfare and skepticism. Eight months later, inspectors found cracks in three bridges along that 7.2-mile stretch—known as “Contract A”—in the ICC’s “pier caps,” the concrete structures …
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7:15 pm on Monday, May 20, 2013
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