Baltimore-DC Traffic Frustration Blog

O'Malley and Ehrlich Televised Debate 10/11/10

On one hand, you have O’Malley’s plans for light rail.  On the other hand, you have Ehrlich’s bus rapid transit system.  Which one do you think is better for Washington, D.C. metro area commuters? 

As per usual, there are plenty of pros and cons on each side.  Bus rapid transit would involve setting aside bus-only lanes (not sure if this means stealing existing lanes from automobile traffic or not) along portions of existing routes.  The light rail would be built along an existing route and would not create additional traffic. 

Baltimore Sun’s Michael Dresser says Ehrlich’s bus rapid transit system would be a little cheaper to build — estimates are $1.2 billion — as opposed to $1.68 billion for O’Malley’s light rail project.  However, at an estimated $5.9 billion, the annual operating costs for buses quickly turn that positive on its head — light rail would only cost about half of that — an estimated $3.2 million annually.  

Ehrlich — who is not opposed to not building anything at all — says the money is simply not there to build.  Light rail proponents at Maryland Transit Authority disagree, saying that money could be made available soon through President Obama’s long-term transportation bill.  

Developers, proponents of transit-oriented development, the Prince George’s County council, the Montgomery County council, and a host of area businesses like the idea of light rail because it has a permanency that rapid bus transit does not that would make it ideal for becoming hubs of future business activity, creating much-needed jobs in the area.     

There are more pros and cons of both, but I’ll stop right here.  Personally, I’m for O’Malley’s decision to go with light rail.  It would be a shame to waste almost a decade of planning and the $40 million that MTA has already invested into deciding which way to go, only to implement the more expensive of the two — or even worse — nothing at all. 

Do you have an opinion about this one way or another?  Don’t be shy – I’m very interested in learning your thoughts.

Does this driving behavior make you feel like this?

Today, as I was returning back to the office from my lunch break, I encountered a very common problem — a female driver who didn’t know how to properly merge onto the highway.  I got so angry at her apparent lack of driving skills, I didn’t know what to do!  

Here’s what she did — and this is soooo classic — instead of yielding to the driver getting off the highway (me), she decides to speed up, pass me on the right (on a short exit ramp!) and merge onto the highway ahead of me, despite the fact that I was going a little too fast for that, both of us are running out of exit ramp (!), and there was a large slowish moving vehicle in front of me.  What she should have done was to yield and then merge in behind me when it was safe to do so. 

This is really a problem that I’m noticing more and more.  And, quite frankly, it’s got me worried for my safety.  For some reason, many people do not seem to realize that: 

• exiting vehicles have the right of way by law
• entering vehicles are supposed to YIELD to exiting vehicles
• entering vehicles are not to attempt to pass vehicles on the right as exiting vehicles are trying to complete their exit

Roileen Miller of Miller Driving School gave some useful merging pointers on the Road Warrior blog, including that drivers should use their signals and that entering vehicles should check their blindspots for exiting vehicles and merge accordingly.

Here is what I’ve noticed: when I wait an extra second before signaling my intent to exit, most drivers will assume I am continuing on the highway, yield, and just merge into traffic behind me.  However, if I signal before that, there is confusion because other drivers may not yield to me otherwise.  To mitigate this problem, I try to signal at a precise time that safely alerts others I am about to exit, just before I am about to pass the merging vehicle while they are still on the exit ramp.  

Okay, I know what you’re thinking.  She probably passed you like that because you drive like a grandma!  Au contraire!  Those who have ridden with me will tell you I most certainly do not drive like a grandma. 

Unfortunately, many drivers these days tend to do exactly what that lady did to me today — although most of them do not go to such great lengths as to actually attempt to pass me on the right before merging!      

What do you think about this behavior?  Do you drive just like that lady?  Or does this kind of unsafe, illegal driving tick you off, too?  Tell me, and please feel free to share this blog post/site with others!

Tell me...do you think this would work?

What if we could help ease traffic congestion by merely installing traffic signs?  Nothing fancy here.  These signs would simply suggest a desired driver behavior to achieve a desired outcome: moving traffic along in a more expeditious manner. 

Highways all over the country already have these.  Imagine my awe as I rode past, staring at them with my mouth wide open as I had an “ah-ha moment.”  There was a sign that blatantly said: “Steep Upgrade, Maintain Speed.”  Wow, what an idea!  A sign that strongly suggests that drivers hit the gas pedal to maintain speed because — pay attention now, this is deep — we are now driving on a steep incline on a highway, and in order to not slow the people down behind us, we need to STEP ON IT.  What a novel idea!  Why haven’t the transportation authorities in MD, VA, and D.C. metro area caught onto this??  

We could use this one, too!

Study explained traffic jams

Years ago, I remember watching a news story about a traffic study that explained why traffic jams and slowdowns occur on our highways.  Among their conclusions were: (1) rubbernecking to see the source of a police stop; (2) rubbernecking due to a disabled car or accident; (3) sheer volume; (4) curvy highways; (5) hilly highways (the steeper the grade, the slower traffic gets); (6) construction and or repair.

We have many highways that are curved and are downright hilly in this area.  I understand slowing down a little for curves in bad weather, but not to the degree that most people do.  I’m quite sure they were built to accommodate highway speeds (at least during fair weather).  But, for some reason, people don’t compensate for hills by simply accelerating.  Guess they just feel that they don’t need to or are not paying enough attention to notice that their car is slowing down.  I wouldn’t want to be a passenger in that car! 

Wake up, people!

I believe that this problem could be helped just by strategically installing the right signage.  Traffic merging onto I-95 North is always slow because there are two steep upgrades before you even get to Exit 33 Rt. 193.  After this exit, traffic usually speeds up exponentially (with some exceptions, of course).  I am convinced that merely suggesting that people accelerate to maintain their speed would go a long way to relieve congestion caused by hills.  It’s worth a try!  

Tell me…what do you think of this solution?  Don’t be shy — leave a comment.

Wash Post reader's commute during this morning's storm

When I started doing this blog, I promised myself that I was not just going to vent about my frustrations commuting in the Baltimore-D.C. area.  But today, I really need to vent.  My commute to work this morning took at least twice as long as it normally does — even on the bad days (queue the violin). 

What happened?

It rained this morning — real hard.  The Washington Post reported that a 60-mile storm dumped one and a half inches of rain in about an hour on the Baltimore-D.C. region.  As I looked outside after just getting up this morning, I thought, “Uh-oh, this may not end well.”  And I was so right.  Every major road I traveled on (which is all of them) was back up to East Jiblip (this is not a real place, it’s just a saying).  

Wash Post reader's pic of downed tree

Power was knocked out to about 10,000 residents, and as a result, many traffic lights were dark.  Trees were also knocked down, one of which came down on Metro’s tracks, forcing Metro to use only one track on the Red line.  When I heard that some residents faced more power outages, my heart went out to them.  This is the second time in only a month that D.C. area residents have had to endure power outages due to severe rains.

I was so upset this morning, wondering if there was anything that could have been done to make it go even just a little better.  The only thing that came to mind was if the still working traffic lights were timed better to accommodate traffic flows.  I wrote briefly about this in a previous post.  If this solution were implemented — especially during times like this — I think that a whole lot of congestion could have been avoided this morning.  (trying to hold back a low growl).

Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) is what Governor Martin O’Malley is embracing by moving the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) into Prince George’s County.   Transit oriented development is defined as an area with residential and/or commercial mixed-use buildings that are strategically anchored to a source of public transit, thereby maximizing its access and use. 

In an unprecedented move by O’Malley, hundreds of jobs could potentially now be held by those who live in P.G. County — something that has been long overdue.  This move is the result of O’Malley’s Smart, Green, and Growing initiative, a key component from his 2007 Executive Order to focus development around Maryland’s transit facilities.  O’Malley has invested millions in infrastructure and mass transportation, and this newest development would be the culmination of all these initiatives.

P.G. County is the most wealthy county in the U.S. that has a mostly black population.  Many residents are highly-educated and are skilled at working white collar jobs.  Yet, for decades, this county has been underserved by businesses (small and large) that could supply the kind of high-paying white collar jobs these residents are accustomed to.  P.G. County provides amenities that other surrounding counties can’t: cheaper land and commercial space, proximity to D.C., and acres of underutilized available commercial space.  This ongoing lack of business development has not been because of a lack of demand from P.G. residents.  Many P.G. County residents would absolutely jump at the chance to finally be gainfully employed in the county they live in – a luxury that Northern Virginia and Montgomery County residents have enjoyed for decades. 

This is just the start of what is to come.  Smart growth is the wave of the future, and it is the antidote to urban sprawl.  The benefits for P.G. County residents will be accumulative.  As more agencies and businesses relocate near other transportation hubs in the county, residents will reap shorter commutes, housing closer to their jobs, less pollution from traffic, less wear/tear on their cars, better health, and a better quality of life that comes with more sustainable living.