At the Oct. 18 TPB meeting, state DOT’s will brief you on their draft Carbon Reduction Strategies. The states are required to consult with TPB on these plans before they submit them to the federal government next month. The Coalition for Smarter Growth encourages TPB members to closely review and provide feedback on these strategies. 

As a member of the statewide Transform Maryland Transportation Coalition (TMTC), we ask MDOT to flex 50% of the federal funds, as allowed by federal law, from the Surface Transportation Block Grant and National Highway Performance Program formulas towards needed investments in eligible transit, safer streets, bicycle, and pedestrian projects, and transit vehicle electrification.

We support the exciting vision you have laid out for a vibrant, walkable Downtown Largo and Blue Line corridor. In order to achieve this vision, the Maryland State Highway Administration (SHA) should wholly rethink their current proposals for a greatly expanded I-495/Medical Center Drive interchange.

"VDOT's study is inherently biased because they determine their own conclusion even before doing detailed study. By defining the Purpose to be "extend the express toll lanes," they are intentionally foreclosing other options," said Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth.

The Coalition for Smarter Growth submits the following comments on the Preliminary Alternatives and Screening Evaluation presented by VDOT in September 2023 for its 495 Southside Express Lanes study.