FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Stakeholder Input Sought on Alternatives Under New Feasibility Study

BALTIMORE, MD (September 8, 2022) – The Maryland Department of Transportation Maryland Transit Administration (MDOT MTA), along with regional partners Baltimore City and Baltimore County, have completed the first phase of a feasibility study for development of a Regional Transit Plan (RTP) North-South Transit Corridor, and are seeking public comment on preliminary alternatives. The direct involvement of Baltimore County and Baltimore City has been essential in developing preliminary alternatives that prioritize equity while improving regional access and connections between Towson and Baltimore City.

“MDOT MTA is excited to be working with our local partners to improve critical transit connections from Towson to Downtown Baltimore and improve access to jobs, education and recreation,” said MDOT MTA Administrator Holly Arnold. “This is another significant step in the continued effort to build an equitable rapid transit network, and the public’s input is invaluable to the process.”

The North-South Transit Corridor study began in May 2021 and is the second corridor study being conducted as part of the RTP, a 25-year plan released in October 2020 to improve public transportation in Central Maryland. MDOT MTA recently completed the public comment period for the RTP’s East-West Transit Corridor study.

The North-South study area includes Lutherville, Towson, Govans, Waverly, Charles Village, Penn Station, Mount Vernon, Oldtown, Downtown Baltimore, Harbor East, South Baltimore and Port Covington.

As with the East-West study, the preliminary alternatives for the North-South Transit Corridor were developed utilizing stakeholder feedback, a market analysis of travel patterns, transit ridership, land use and market conditions, and considered Heavy Rail Transit, Light Rail Transit and Bus Rapid Transit as travel options. The proposed preliminary alternatives overlap significantly with portions of the CityLink Red, Green and Silver routes – the most utilized routes in the MDOT MTA local bus network.

The proposed preliminary alternatives include:

1. Light Rail Transit (LRT) from Lutherville to the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) via Ridgely Road, York Road, Greenmount Avenue, Orleans Street, St. Paul Street and Baltimore/Fayette streets;

2. Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) from Lutherville to UMMC via Ridgely Road, York Road, Greenmount Avenue, Hillen Avenue/Gay Street and Baltimore/Fayette streets;

3. BRT from Towson to Harbor East via York Road/Greenmount Avenue, North Avenue, Penn Station, Charles/St. Paul streets, and President Street;

4. Heavy Rail (Metro SubwayLink) from Towson to Port Covington via York Road/Greenmount Avenue, 33rd Street, Charles/St. Paul streets, Penn Station and Hanover Street;

5. BRT from Towson to Port Covington via York Road/Greenmount Avenue, 33rd Street, Charles/St. Paul streets, Penn Station and Hanover Street;

6. Light Rail Transit from Lutherville to Otterbein via Ridgley Road, York Road, Fairmount Avenue, Goucher Boulevard, Loch Raven Boulevard, 25th Street, Charles/St.       Paul streets, Penn Station and Conway Street; and

7. BRT from Towson to Harbor East via Joppa Road, Loch Raven Boulevard, The Alameda, 33rd Street, Charles/St. Paul streets, Penn Station, Pratt/Lombard streets            and President Street.

The study compares each of the preliminary alternatives using numerous measures of effectiveness including reliability, travel time, type of guideway, ridership, access to households, students’ needs, future jobs potential, equity, cost, complexity, and implementation time. The wide variety of measures allows stakeholders an easy and effective way to compare various strengths and weaknesses of each alternative.

MDOT MTA, Baltimore County and Baltimore City are seeking stakeholder feedback on the results of the analysis during a 60-day comment period that ends November 7, 2022. Comments will be gathered at two virtual public meetings on September 22 and October 3, as well as through the project website and at pop-up events at transit stops and other locations. MDOT MTA and partner jurisdictions will utilize the feedback to determine which alternative components should be included for further study during the Alternatives Analysis Phase, which will begin this winter. Ultimately, one alternative will be developed and selected to apply for federal funding.

Corridor studies are just one of several elements being implemented under the RTP. The North-South and East-West corridor studies, along with additional studies planned for future years, will lay the groundwork for a rapid transit network that would expand and enhance the regional transit system.

For more information, please visit the project website at www.rtpcorridors.com/northsouth or contact the project team at rtp@mta.maryland.gov or 443-475-0687.

 

MDOT MTA is one of the largest multi-modal transit systems in the United States. MDOT MTA operates systems that include Local Bus, Commuter Bus, Light RailLink, Metro SubwayLink, MARC Train Service and a comprehensive Mobility paratransit network. MDOT MTA’s goal is to provide safe, efficient and reliable transit across Maryland with world-class customer service. As a participating agency in APTA’s Health and Safety Commitment Program, MDOT MTA is dedicated to keeping our employees and passengers safe throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. To learn more, visit mta.maryland.gov, check us out on Facebook at facebook.com/mtamaryland and follow us on Twitter @mtamaryland.

 

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Jerimiah Moerke                               
Office: 410-767-8367                         
Cell: 667-392-3625
jmoerke@mdot.maryland.gov 

Paul Shepard
Office: 410-767-3935
Cell: 443-622-4181
pshepard@mdot.maryland.gov    

 

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