High Tolls on ICC - Groups Demand More Information
COMMUNITY RESEARCH, AUDUBON NATURALIST SOCIETY, and COALITION FOR SMARTER GROWTH
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release Contact:
October 26, 2009 Greg Smith, Community Research, 240-605-9238
Suchitra Balachandran, Community Research, 240-423-0422
Stewart Schwartz, CSG, 202-244-4408, ext 121
Civic and Environmental Groups Ask Maryland Agencies to Release Up-to-Date Information on ICC Toll Forecasts and Transportation Impacts
Urge the Agencies to Schedule New Hearings and Extend Public Comment Period
As area residents and public officials express concerns about the impacts of high toll rates proposed for the controversial Intercounty Connector (ICC), nonprofit civic and environmental organizations are asking Maryland Secretary of Transportation Beverley Swaim-Staley to release critical information about the tolls and potential impact on the public. Hearings are scheduled next week.
The Coalition for Smarter Growth, Audubon Naturalist Society and Community Research have filed a detailed joint request under the Maryland Public Information Act and the U.S. Freedom of Information Act, asking Secretary Swaim-Staley to release information about how the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) and the Maryland Transportation Authority (MdTA) developed the proposed toll rates and about what impacts those rates might have on commuters and on congestion on the ICC and other roads.
The toll rates now proposed by MDOT and the MdTA are significantly higher than the main toll rates used by the agencies in their previous traffic projections, including the 2006 Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the ICC, and traffic and revenue forecasts developed by the MdTA as recently as February 2008.
The proposed 2010 peak-hour toll rates are 25 to 75 percent higher than the 2010 baseline peak-hour toll rates that the agencies presented in the FEIS. The proposed 2010 non-peak-hour toll rates are 33 to 100 percent higher than the 2010 baseline non-peak-hour toll rates that the State presented in the FEIS. A commuter driving the full length of the ICC daily during rush hour could pay more than $3000 annually, based on the proposed tolls, and the MdTA plans to increase the tolls in future years.
The groups asked Secretary Swaim-Staley to release the information as soon as possible, in formats that would facilitate analysis and public comment. They also asked her to postpone scheduled hearings or schedule new hearings, to extend the public comment period on the tolls, and to postpone the MdTA’s decision on the tolls, to allow the public and elected officials to review and comment on whatever information the agencies release.
The State has scheduled public hearings on the ICC tolls on October 28 and 29, and set a public comment deadline of November 23. The MdTA plans to vote on the toll rates on December 17. Secretary Swaim-Staley chairs the MdTA.
“The agencies appear to be setting higher toll rates than proposed in their previous studies and these higher rates are being applied much earlier in time than was originally proposed. These higher rates would have particular impact on lower income workers and could also increase traffic on local roads among other potential effects.” said Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth. “Information about the potential impacts should be provided to the public and elected officials.”
“Given Governor O’Malley’s declared intent to make Maryland government more transparent and accountable, we trust the Secretary will release all of this information soon and will give the public a fair opportunity to review and comment on it, “ said Greg Smith, a director of Community Research. “The agencies should want informed public comment, and after all, full and accurate information is fundamental to democracy.”
# # #
