October 13, 2008
Coalition releases anti-ICC report
Highway is worst option, environmentalists say
Gearing up for a fight over Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s top transportation
priority, a coalition of environmental groups said a new highway is the worst
of six alternatives for relieving traffic congestion in the Washington
suburbs, according to a report it released yesterday.
The report on the proposed Intercounty Connector, an east-west highway that
would link Interstate 95 with I-270, is the first installment in the
environmental advocates' formal response to the Ehrlich administration's draft
environmental impact statement, which was released in November.
The coalition contends the administration's study was biased in favor of
road-building and failed to consider all reasonable alternatives, as required
by federal law. The joint state-federal study eliminated mass transit-oriented
options earlier in the process and focused on three alternatives: building
nothing and two possible ICC routes.
The environmentalists' study looks at four options the state didn't have in
its final ICC study, including such components as high-occupancy toll lanes on
the Capital Beltway, express bus routes, rail transit and encouraging denser
development around Metro stations.
"We've done what the state has refused to do," said Lee Epstein, director
of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation's lands program, at an Annapolis news
conference.
Transportation Secretary Robert L. Flanagan said the decision to eliminate
alternatives to highways was a consensus of state and federal agencies.
Flanagan said many of the solutions the coalition studied - particularly a
widening of the Capital Beltway with the addition of high-speed toll lanes -
are initiatives the Ehrlich administration favors, but not a substitute for
the ICC.
"Our analyses indicate that these strategies should be pursued - and the
Intercounty Connector should be built," he said.
The state's study of the project predicted the highway would reduce travel
time across Prince George's County. State officials have insisted that the
project could be built in an "environmentally friendly" way for about $2.1
billion.
The coalition study challenges the state study on several key points. It
concludes the ICC would have the worst effect on air quality of the six
solutions studied. The coalition's highest-ranked solution is a combination of
high-occupancy toll lanes, land-use changes, bus improvements and construction
of an east-west transit line from Bethesda to College Park.
The groups are expecting to release a second study in several weeks
focusing on the ICC's potential effects on water quality and wildlife.
The studies could help lay the groundwork for a widely expected legal
challenge to the sufficiency of the state's environmental impact statement. It
could also give talking points to ICC opponents in the General Assembly, who
plan to challenge the financing of the highway.
Get home delivery of The Sun and save over 50% off the newsstand price
Copyright © 2008, The Baltimore Sun
 Fatal medevac crashFour people died and another was seriously injured when a medevac helicopter crashed in a Prince George's County park. Photos Archived coverage: Ex-councilman Harris killed | Md. police spying City Hall, Dixon investigated | CEG sold for $4.7B  A roundup of crimes reported in Baltimore City and Baltimore County |
Popular stories: Maryland News
- Police identify two city men fatally shot in Upton
- Motorcycle crash kills one; police seek second rider
- 18-year-old fatally shot in Southwest Baltimore
- Fire leaves man dead, guts home near Annapolis
- Three juveniles surrender after Balto. Co. stabbing
Watchdog archive
Is there something in your neighborhood that's not getting fixed? Tell us where the problem is and how long its been there.
 Area farmers' marketsAn interactive map featuring locations, times, photos and other coverage of farmers' markets across the area. |
 | |
My MarylandSubmit photos from around the state and view those from other readers Also see: Charm Cityscapes | |