SNOW HILL – County leaders shared concerns about local intersections as well as the need for improvements on Route 589 during a visit with state transportation officials this week.
On Tuesday, the Worcester County Commissioners met with Maryland Transportation Secretary Paul Wiedefeld and other representatives of the Maryland Department of Transportation to discuss the agency’s consolidated transportation program (CTP). The document outlines $21.2 billion in transportation spending throughout the state over the next six years.
“We’ve made some progress but some of our toughest challenges still lie ahead,” Wiedefeld said.
He told the commissioners the CTP included funding to maintain existing transportation facilities and also allocated funding for electric vehicle infrastructure, as well as investment in the transition to zero-emission transit buses and other carbon reduction and resiliency programs. The CTP also includes funding to promote “Transit-Oriented Development” to spur economic growth and for projects to support “Complete Streets,” an initiative to make Maryland’s roadways safer and more accessible for all users.
Commissioner Ted Elder asked if changes were on the way to ensure electric vehicles helped support the transportation system, as they didn’t pay the gas tax. Wiedefeld said that was an issue nationwide.
“We are looking at it very closely right now,” he said.
State Highway Administration (SHA) Administrator Will Pines told the commissioners the preliminary study of Route 90 between US 50 (Ocean Gateway) and MD 528 (Coastal Highway) had been completed and that options for improvements were being evaluated. He said $15 million was allocated for planning and preliminary engineering.
Pines said two local intersections had also been signalized by SHA recently. A stoplight was added at the intersection of Route 113 and Germantown Road in Berlin while another was added to Route 589 in front of the new Atlantic General Hospital facility.
Elder asked if SHA kept statistics related to the number and severity of accidents at intersections throughout the state. When Pines said those figures were tracked, Elder asked if SHA was looking into installing a stoplight at the intersection of Route 610 and Route 50.
“It seems like some of these other intersections that have gotten these lights have not been as serious, or had as many accidents as there have been at that particular intersection,” Elder said.
Pines said SHA had received the request for a signal at the intersection and was reviewing the request.
“Specific to this location we’re aware of the request, we’re working on evaluating it, looking at the traffic volumes, the configuration, the safety statistics and all of that to look for signal warrants,” he said.
Commissioner Caryn Abbott told Pines she thought the intersection of Route 13 and Route 366 also merited a signal. She said there was development planned for the area, which had already been the site of many serious accidents.
“I just want to make sure that’s on your radar,” she said. “Many things have been tried as far as signage. I think the next logical step has to be a permanent light.”
Commissioner Chip Bertino said he’d be remiss if he didn’t mention the traffic challenges on Route 589.
“We appreciate the fact that you put the light at AGH but that has not done anything more than compound a problem that has existed for quite a long time,” he said, adding that he’d been part of a stakeholder committee focused on Route 589 changes 20 years ago. “To date nothing has been put in the budget to move that project forward. It’s very frustrating for the community of Ocean Pines and anybody who traverses that roadway.”
He suggested that even small improvements could help if funding for a major renovation wasn’t yet available. Bertino said the clogged road was a problem for not only residents but also first responders when emergencies occurred.
“You’d really come out as a rockstar if SHA actually did anything around there,” he said.
Commissioner Eric Fiori expressed concerns about the Route 611 intersection with Assateague Road.
“That intersection has gotten not only dangerous but you’re talking about very heavy vehicles making very sharp turns in front of 50-mile-an-hour traffic through that area,” he said.
Pines said that intersection qualified for a signal and design work was underway.
When Fiori asked about the length of time developers had to wait to get approvals from SHA, Pines said there was a team working on that and that the agency tried to respond in a timely manner.
Sen. Mary Beth Carozza, Del. Wayne Hartman and Del. Charles Otto thanked state officials for working with Worcester County on local issues. Carozza and Hartman reiterated Elder’s electric vehicle concerns while Hartman also suggested the state focus on the revenue being lost with trailers registered in the state of Maine.
Wiedefeld acknowledged their input and said the department did its best to address needs throughout the state.
“It isn’t a geography decision, it’s really overall what we can afford, what makes sense throughout the state to do,” he said.
SHA officials, whose stop in Worcester County was the first in a statewide tour, also highlighted other local projects in the CTP. Those include $3.8 million in operating and capital grants to support transit offered by the Town of Ocean City and Shore Transit, $93,000 for a project to remove runway obstructions at Ocean City Municipal Airport and $86,000 in highway safety grants for local agencies, including the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office, Ocean City and Berlin police departments and the Worcester County Health Department. Following the tour through the state’s counties, the Draft FY 2024-2029 Consolidated Transportation Program will be finalized and submitted in January for consideration during the 2024 General Assembly session.
