All Cheryl and Richard Holloway want for Christmas is a turn signal.
That might seem like a modest wish, but the Hampstead couple is tired of waiting several eternities to make a left turn from southbound Hanover Pike (Route 30) to Fairmount Road.
There's a signal at the intersection, but it doesn't include a left-turn arrow to accommodate southbound travelers. That means left-turners have to wait for a break in traffic.
Consider these impediments:
* Northbound Route 30 travelers queuing up to turn left at the same intersection obscure a driver's view.
* Fairmount Road is narrow, with a utility pole at the edge of the road. You don't want to make that turn too fast.
* There's a slight curve to Hanover Pike so you can't get a 'D long-distance view of traffic.
We presented these observations to the State Highway Administration. In the spirit of the season the administration has decided to add the left-turn signal.
"We are confident it will be approved and installed in six to eight months," said Chuck Brown, an SHA spokesman.
Fact is, the SHA was well aware of the problem months ago. The agency has received numerous complaints from drivers just like the Holloways. In June, state officials began studying traffic movement and accident reports.
The findings: Between 1991 and 1993, eight accidents were reported at the intersection. A 12-hour traffic count found 316 vehicles making the left turn from southbound Route 30. That's a lot more traffic than in the past, SHA officials report. But most compelling of all was the fact that drivers can't get a good view of oncoming traffic.
The new signal is expected to cost between $6,000 and $10,000. The Holloways can consider it a Christmas gift, although the SHA timetable will make it seem more like a Fourth of July
celebration.
Baltimore learns subway suffrage
The memory of suffragist Susan Brownell Anthony is alive and well in a tunnel in Baltimore.
Faithful reader Leonard Frankford is not too happy about this.
You may remember Ms. Anthony for her works on behalf of women's rights in the 19th century. But most of us think of the $1 coin that Washington tried to foist on us in 1979.
Susan B. holds special meaning in Baltimore. The only way you can ride the Metro is to change your paper money into Susan B's. You then insert the dollar coins into the ticket vending machine.
Mr. Frankford, a Pimlico resident, is curious why the Metro requires this exchange when Washington's Metrorail allows you to insert a bill directly into a ticket machine and he's noticed that the Milford Mill station's coin changers are mounted too high for someone in a wheelchair to reach them.
"I also can't understand why there is practically no place to sit in any of the stations," he writes. "Lastly, and most important, will we ever have a true 'system' like Washington's that goes to all parts of the city?"
We sought out Ronald L. Freeland, the Mass Transit Administration's director of transit operations, to answer Mr. Frankford.
He tells us that using dollar coins was seen as a way to make Metro more reliable. When the first section -- from Charles Center to Reisterstown Plaza -- was built 10 years ago, Washington's FTC Metrorail was struggling with balky, expensive ticket machines. Dollar changers are simpler and cheaper.
As a result of Mr. Frankford's letter, the MTA has decided to in stall a low-level change machine at Milford Mill as well as Owings Mills. Putting in the two machines is expected to cost $8,000.
As for seating, it's never been seen as a problem with Metro because the trains run frequently -- 6 to 13 minutes apart. Mr. Freeland promises to look into the issue, although a recent survey of riders found few who wanted more benches.
The comparison with Metrorail is problematic. The federal government has spent much more money on Washington's subway than on Baltimore's, for various reasons.
Consider, for instance, that the 1.5-mile extension from Charles Center to Johns Hopkins Hospital is costing $353 million. That makes the $364.4 million Central Light Rail Line from Glen Burnie to Timonium look like a real bargain.
Making Amends
Last week's column incorrectly stated the volume of sales of )) commuter passbooks for use at tunnels and toll highways. The Maryland Transportation Authority sells 17,000 ticket books per month. The Sun regrets the error.