On Friday, a lot of people will be hoping to hear three little words, but they probably won’t be “plus 2 HOV.”
The process is beginning to allow for the construction of HOV lanes on the beltway from the American Legion Bridge to the I-270 spur. Before this can occur, several master plans, including Potomac’s, must be amended. A public hearing will be held on Feb. 20 to discuss options.
“The idea has been around for a long time,” said Alex Hekimian, project leader for the Park and Planning commission.
WMCCA has not yet had an opportunity to study the plan and could not comment on it.
“We’re going to stay on top of this,” said Ken Hartman, spokesman for Councilman Howard Denis (R-1). “I think what the planning board recommends is going to be crucial,” he continued.
The amendment to the Potomac Master Plan would be relatively small in terms of length. In a section describing the major roadways through the plan area, the line describing the beltway would be changed from “8 lanes” to “8 plus 2 HOV lanes.”
“The idea that they’re going to go through the proper process of amending things is encouraging,” said Diana Conway, a Potomac resident who worked on the master plan.
The proposal calls for widening the highway and putting the HOV lanes to the left, along the median. They would link with the HOV lanes on 270 and any potential lanes built in Virginia.
However, the county may have to acquire some land near the Legion bridge in order to implement the proposal.
According to the Potomac Master plan, a 300-foot right-of-way is required along the beltway. “Early indications are that there is sufficient right-of-way,” Hekimian said. However, the northern and southern ends of the section, “seem to be where it’s tightest.” He could not give an estimate about whether any land would have to be acquired in order to meet the minimums, or an accurate estimate of how much might be needed. “It’s not clear, only because we’re at such an early stage,” Hekimian said.
If the county decides to put in the HOV lanes on the cheap, land acquisition would be swapped for other problems. “One of the dangers I see is the possibility of reconfiguration,” said Byron Block, an auto safety expert who moved here from Los Angeles. “In LA, in order to gain more lanes, they reconfigured the lanes to make them narrower, and that was a disaster,” Block said.
Although Hekimian said reconfiguring the lanes is an option, specific design will come later in the process. “At this early stage it’s simply conceptual,” he said.
Block’s fear is that, for a dramatic cost savings, the county could simply repaint the lines, making the lanes narrower, and substantially shrinking the shoulders. “With the amount of trucks there are on the beltway, it would create a very dangerous situation,” Block said.
Block also questioned the logic of the lanes in light of the county’s financial situation. Expanding mass transit options would be a better use of the funds, he said. “Instead of an HOV lane that would take one or two cars off the road, why not a bus, which would hold 60 people, or a railway, which would hold 300,” he said. Currently, buses use the HOV lanes and would be allowed to use the new lanes. “If this thing was really planned right, they could put in a bus lane in addition to an HOV lane,” Block said.
Others agreed. “I’m always dismayed to see more roads being built instead of focusing on mass-transit alternatives,” Conway said.
Block doesn’t think an HOV lane would necessarily be a bad thing, but “only if those HOV lanes do not compromise the width of lanes or breakdown lanes, or take funding from mass transit projects.”
At this point, Montgomery County must amend the Master Plan of Highways, the Potomac Master Plan, and the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Master Plan before it can entertain the idea of putting in the lanes.
After the public hearing, the Planning Board must consider the public comments, then forward the plan to the council. After that the Council must approve all the changes. Then, of course, the project would have to be funded.
“It may never be built,” Hekimian said.