FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contacts: Norman Marshall, nmarshall@smartmobility.com, (802) 356-2969
Lindsey Mendelson, lindsey.mendelson@mdsierra.org, (240) 706-7901
Proposed MD toll lanes to increase congestion for majority of drivers, shows new analysis
College Park, MD -- Most rush hour drivers will see significantly worse congestion if Maryland proceeds with Gov. Larry Hogan’s $9-11 billion plan to add privately-managed toll lanes, according to a new report. The report analyzes traffic models used to support the I-495/I-270 Managed Lanes Study Draft Environmental Impact Assessment (DEIS). The new report warns constructing the I-495 and I-270 toll lanes is likely to create bottlenecks in new locations, including worsening arterial congestion on roads connecting to the toll lane interchanges.
Released by the Maryland Sierra Club and Smart Mobility Inc., the new study was funded by civic and neighborhood associations and concerned individuals. It comes just weeks after the news that the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (MWCOG) showed tolls could hit $50 for Frederick to Rockville commuters. And it follows yesterday’s breaking news about major utility relocation cost concerns with the highway expansion proposal.
The new study identifies major flaws in the traffic models used by the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) to evaluate and estimate the impact of its tollway plan. The modeling fails to predict peak period conditions accurately and does not capture the new backups that will be created at the end-points and connecting roads.
"No trip begins or ends on a limited access highway, and traffic does not magically switch between limited access highways and arterials as is presented in the DEIS,” writes Norm Marshall of Smart Mobility Inc. “Managed lanes (tollways) concentrate traffic in the peak hour, meaning arterial roads at I-495 and I-270 interchanges will be severely impacted, and these impacts are likely to outweigh the congestion benefits of traffic diversion from other arterials. The DEIS models are incapable of calculating these tradeoffs."
Supported by traffic data, graphs, and maps, some of the key report conclusions are:
- Expanding I-495 and I-270 will shift traffic into the peak hours and create and/or exacerbate bottlenecks at the ends of the toll lanes and on connecting roads.
- If the managed lanes are constructed, it is likely that there will be significant traffic growth (induced travel) in the peak hour and induced land use impacts (auto-dependent land use development adding more commuters as happened during the last expansion of I-270).
- The foundational premise of this project is that extreme congestion in the general-purpose lanes is needed to generate the high tolls that will be required to fund the project.
- The managed lanes would benefit only the few who are able to outbid the majority of travelers. The new lanes would offer a choice between extremely high tolls or extreme congestion. There would be no benefits for non-users of the toll lanes, and taxpayers will likely have to significantly subsidize the private toll lanes.
“For too long, our region has been relying on very flawed traffic models to try to justify very costly, destructive, and ineffective highway expansion,” said Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth. “This report demonstrates there is no net benefit from this project. It is another signal that the toll lanes aren’t worth the price for drivers, neighborhoods, or the environment.”
The full report can be downloaded here.
Quotes:
"These report findings throw the public benefit of this project into serious doubt. The state cannot claim anymore that this project will help everyone, including environmental justice communities. It will only benefit people able to pay the high tolls, while failing to relieve congestion for most drivers and increasing congestion on many connecting arterial roads.
– Josh Tulkin, Director, Maryland Sierra Club
“This essential report reaffirms that the I-495/I-270 expansion is designed to trap rush hour drivers between extremely high tolls and extremely dense congestion. And that’s the best case scenario, because the report assumes the tollway P3 won’t suddenly collapse like the Purple Line P3. Taken with other studies showing $50 tolls and flawed state analysis, it's clear the public has better options for getting people home on time.”
– Brad German, Co-Chair, Citizens Against Beltway Expansion
“It was obvious from the beginning that, one way or another, Maryland taxpayers and commuters would be on the hook to pay for Governor Hogan’s disastrous toll-lane project. Now we have clear evidence of what we’ll be getting in return: continuing congestion on the highways, unaffordable tolls, 4-5 years of construction misery in any location, damaged communities, and major backups on our secondary roads. What we really need instead is fair, effective multimodal transportation supported by evidence that it will actually work.”
– Janet Gallant, Co-Coordinator, DontWiden270.org
“This plan is the opposite of traffic relief. The Virginia Beltway toll lanes created horrendous backups where they end in McLean. Extending them across the bridge will move that congestion into Maryland and make drivers suffer even more at the lane merges on I-270 north of Shady Grove and on the Beltway at Wisconsin Avenue. The only winner will be Transurban -- known as a "blood-sucking monopoly" in their Australian homeland -- the politically connected company that's in line to collect the $50 tolls.”
– Ben Ross, Chair, Maryland Transit Opportunities Coalition
“This traffic modeling review refutes the purported travel benefits of building toll lanes. The Toll Lanes project will divert funds that are necessary to close the funding gap to care for aging critical infrastructure in Maryland such as the drinking water supply, wastewater and stormwater treatment systems, and transit systems.”
– Rodolfo Pérez, P.E., Consulting Engineer and long time resident of Silver Spring, MD
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About the Maryland Sierra Club
Founded in 1892, the Sierra Club is America’s oldest and largest grassroots environmental organization. The Maryland Chapter has over 70,000 members and supporters, and the Sierra Club nationwide has approximately 800,000 members.