ROCKVILLE, Md. — Commuters could be cruising past clogged Route 29 traffic while connected to Wi-Fi within four years under new plans announced Wednesday in Montgomery County.
The plans also include some additional express buses along existing routes in other parts of the county.
County Executive Ike Leggett says that after working with Howard County, he says he believes an effective Route 29 bus rapid transit system could be built by the end of the decade using only existing shoulders and medians for new bus-only lanes.
Leggett made the announcement of the Route 29 plan, and smaller bus improvements in some other parts of the county, flanked by county council members Roger Berliner, Marc Elrich and Nancy Navarro.
The county had proposed a of bus rapid transit lines, but that overall system and idea to create it as an were shot down, the current plan.
鈥淭his will be done in stages, it will not have the larger plan whereby we had laid out for every year for the next 10 or 15 years 鈥� [but] it鈥檚 a plan that is financially feasible, it鈥檚 something that we can do in a reasonable period of time, and it has a tremendous impact on the quality of life, [and] the development that has occurred thus far and will occur in the foreseeable future.鈥�
The route to be built along Columbia Pike/Colesville Road would remain within existing traffic lanes in the Four Corners area, where residents had expressed concerns.
While the precise costs of the route have not been determined, Leggett is including $6.5 million in his capital budget proposal to fund the design.
鈥淲e have a fair amount of confidence that [Route 29] is manageable 鈥� that鈥檚 not to say it鈥檚 free, but it is something that we can do, and that we need to do,鈥� Berliner says.
Elrich calls bus rapid transit the only option to get people moving in any affordable way.
鈥淸Route 29] is immediate because it鈥檚 easy 鈥� you鈥檝e got these huge median strips or the curbs, and so you can do a lot of work without disrupting anything 鈥� and it鈥檚 a solution that deals with the neighborhood concerns and gets us from Howard County to Silver Spring,鈥� Elrich says.
Howard County projections show lots of riders switching to a bus that zooms by Route 29 traffic.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 a big deal because it takes a lot of the pressure off of聽[Route 29], and it鈥檒l be good for residents farther down [Route 29] who鈥檝e been experiencing all this pass-through traffic,鈥� Elrich says.
Navarro sees a reliable way to get around the eastern part of the county that also connects to the Columbia and Ellicott City areas in Howard County as an opportunity put off for far too long for those in the White Oak and surrounding area.
鈥淭his is a big deal. In some areas it鈥檚 about congestion, for this area of the county it鈥檚 about the possibility for jobs, the possibility for positive opportunities for young people, the possibility for finally having destination spots,鈥� she says.
Leggett鈥檚 new plan puts off any immediate bus rapid transit plans in other parts of the county.
He says he remains committed to eventually adding bus-only lanes and other improvements along MD 355, Viers Mill Road and for the Corridor Cities Transitway.
In the near term, Leggett is recommending new limited-stop rush-hour Ride On service between Lakeforest Transit Center and the Medical Center Metro Station and new express rush-hour service from Clarksburg to Shady Grove, and he is asking the state to fund new limited-stop Metrobus rush-hour service along Viers Mill Road. Those changes could be in place in a year or two.
鈥淸Route 355] is so terribly important, but much more complicated,鈥� Berliner says. 鈥淪o that鈥檚 going to take longer 鈥� so you want to move forward with what you can faster, and at the same time do everything you can to catch up on the others.鈥�
The cities of Gaithersburg and Rockville are on proposed changes for Route 355.
Leggett also wants to spend $1.25 million over three years to help brand the new bus rapid transit system, market it, and to further reach out to the community about the projects.
Berliner says that outreach is key.
鈥淭he public really still doesn鈥檛 understand the benefits of bus rapid transit, they go 鈥楤us? Really? You expect me to get on the bus?鈥� and the future is choice riders: we want people to choose to get on the bus, and you do that when you have a high quality service.鈥�
Berliner talks of riders who can sit with laptops open, connected to Wi-Fi 鈥� getting things done during time that鈥檚 right now wasted by people sitting behind the wheel.
鈥淒evelop a first-class system, [and] people take it, thank you very much, instead of sitting in their cars in traffic and cursing, etc.,鈥� Berliner says.
