Posted on 12/30/2017 1:05:09 AM PST by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
Maryland Transportation Secretary Pete K. Rahn dangled a $9 billion carrot Wednesday in front of more than 100 companies potentially interested in adding express toll lanes to the Capital Beltway, Interstate 270 and the Baltimore-Washington Parkway.
“It’s amazing,” Rahn quipped to more than 320 highway engineers, designers and builders in a ballroom at the BWI Airport Marriott in Linthicum. “You can get a lot of attention when you put a nine in front of a ‘B.’”
Officially, the Maryland Department of Transportation’s industry forum was intended to provide companies more details about the plan to add four toll lanes each to some of the Washington region’s most traffic-clogged highways. But as Maryland officials eyed the ballroom filled with business executives tapping on laptops and jotting notes, they also saw potential. It seems Maryland’s proposal to build $7.6 billion of the toll lanes via a public-private partnership has prompted a slew of firms to at least consider competing for the job.
State officials say it would be the biggest partnership of its kind in the United States, and several attendees said Maryland has one of the most massive projects up for grabs in the highway construction industry.
“I don’t want to just do something,” Rahn told the crowd. “I want to do something that delivers a ‘wow’” for traffic relief.
One big unknown: the cost of the tolls. After the meeting, Rahn said he was aware variable rates on toll lanes that opened last week on part of Interstate 66 in Northern Virginia had soared to as high as $40.
“Obviously, that caught my attention,” Rahn said.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
Maryland “Freak State” PING!
“Users Pay” sounds reasonable to me. As for me, I’ll take the traffic delays for myself & let others take the toll lanes.
I rather GTFO.
It’ll cost at least double, be delayed, and be completed at least a year and a half late.
Buy more stocks in orange traffic cones, too.
As long as they add lanes, I’ve got no problem with this idea. I would love them to add two lanes in each direction (including as HOT lanes) for the entire length of the B-W parkway.
But I’d still love them to do an “Outer Beltway”, extending the ICC in both directions. If they wanted to toll that the same way they toll the ICC, I’d say it’s well worth it.
I would also have them add a free lane in each direction to stretches of highway that are currently four lanes, since just crawling along in two lanes one-way while people speed past you in the two parallel “Lexus Lanes” will drive people mad.
One more reason for me to leave when I retire in a few years. What happened to my beautiful state.
So, Maryland has some of the highest fuel taxes in the country, but needs toll lanes to pay for roads.
Typical mismanagement by government.
These contractors know that their bids are irrelevant 1 hour after submission and the real money is made as the state makes changes to the plans while construction is underway......many of those changes are made for the sole purpose of kickbacks to the politicians making them.
This is all a major scam.
Yes, you will have extra lanes you can use at $40 per one way trip of 10 miles.
Is that worth it every day for your commute?
Too many private automobiles.
Private property runs up right to the edge of these roads. The cost of these properties alone would be astronomical.
I like the idea of moving a few agencies out of D.C. Traffic isn’t an issue on fed holidays.
Only about half of the fed employees who can telework do.
It’s all fun and games until the hot lanes end and their traffic merges back in to the existing lanes. Approaching the American Legion Bridge from VA can be a real CF. Same with I-95 where the lanes end.
I would telework, if I could. Too many advantages, including no boss looking over my shoulder.
“So, Maryland has some of the highest fuel taxes in the country, but needs toll lanes to pay for roads.”
They don’t NEED tolls, they’re collecting plenty from gas taxes and fed money. But they see people paying up to $4.00 per mile to drive on I-66 - you but they’ll want a piece of that action!
This coupled with a second Potomac River bridge from Gaithersburg would have taken a lot of traffic going to/from BWI or Dulles airport off the Washington Beltway. It is ridiculous that people going from Baltimore to Dulles have to go all the way to the DC beltway and then out to Dulles.
In both cases, powerful/wealthy people prevent things that would benefit ordinary people.
Yes, as long as each driver has options.
Typical mismanagement by government.
...
Yes. Here in Maryland, thanks largely to the Rats’ Voter Fraud Machine, our government is mostly Democrat. We had a 1-term Republican governor back in the early 2000s, and our current governor is a Republican, but both are in the RING column.
A seemingly simple 1 mile road widening project is in its fourth year in Aberdeen, MD
If we drain the swamp, the sewage, whatever, there will be no need for more lanes.
We DON’T need to grow the D.C. area. PERIOD.
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