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ICC Intercounty Connector

Started by Alex, August 27, 2009, 12:06:04 AM

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1995hoo

Quote from: Beltway on October 25, 2012, 10:17:55 PM
....

That doesn't even take into account what will happen if it is extended to VA-286 or VA-28 in Virginia, and/or to MD US-301.

I think the chances of that happening are about as good as the chances of a $100 bill falling out of my rear end the next time I take a dump.
"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
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commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

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cpzilliacus

Washington Post:  Maryland says ICC traffic growing

QuoteThe Maryland Transportation Authority reported Thursday that traffic on the Intercounty Connector is growing at an average rate of 3 percent a month.

QuoteLast November, the connector's second segment opened between Georgia Avenue and Interstate 95. Since then, I've gotten many letters from drivers using the ICC saying that nobody is using the ICC. They should introduce themselves to each other.

QuoteMany drivers who routinely get stuck in the D.C. region's congestion are upset when they stumble onto a highway that doesn't have a lot of traffic. They don't say to themselves, "This is the way travel should be."  They think something has gone horribly wrong.

QuoteThe transportation authority, the agency that operates Maryland's toll roads, said that between July 2011 and June 2012, drivers took more than 11.56 million trips on the ICC. The toll revenue from that was $19.73 million. The MDTA said it had projected revenue of $18.71 million.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

cpzilliacus

Quote from: 1995hoo on October 26, 2012, 09:46:31 AM
I think the chances of that happening are about as good as the chances of a $100 bill falling out of my rear end the next time I take a dump.

There would need to be significant changes on the Montgomery County Council and the Prince George's County Council for there to be movement (pun not intended) in favor of extending the ICC either way.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

cpzilliacus

Out of Control: E-Z Pass System on InterCounty Connector is a Curious Target for Smart Growth Group

QuoteMy friends at Greater Greater Washington (GGW) write about Urbanism and Smart Growth. I do not often agree with them but I believe they bring a valuable viewpoint to the table. But occasionally they write an article that is so lacking in facts and logic that I do not know whether to laugh or cry. Such is the case with the article MD Toll Agency Pushes More Driving to Fill Little Used Road.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

NE2

pre-1945 Florida route log

I accept and respect your identity as long as it's not dumb shit like "identifying as a vaccinated attack helicopter".

cpzilliacus

#330
Forwarded from the Washington Post for InterCounty Connector users.

QuoteDo you use the ICC? We'd love to speak with regular Intercounty Connector drivers. Please email shaverk@washpost.com with your contact info.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

cpzilliacus

Washington Post: ICC users rack up unpaid tolls

QuoteNearly one in three motorists who use the Intercounty Connector without an E-ZPass transponder don't pay the toll later, making Maryland's newest and most expensive highway home to a toll violation rate four times higher than the state average.

QuoteIndividual motorists racked up as much as $1,418 each in unpaid tolls after driving on the ICC, or Route 200, as many as 430 times during the first six months of this year. A rental car company owed $4,263 in ICC toll debt, while a construction company accrued $2,241 for 65 unpaid trips during that time.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

cpzilliacus

ExploreHoward.com: West Laurel residents oppose placement of new ICC lanes

QuoteAs construction on the State Highway Administration's Intercounty Connector inches closer toward completion, some residents of West Laurel are voicing opposition to a portion of the development on Interstate 95 South, citing that the development is infringing on their neighborhood.

QuoteAccording to West Laurel Civic Association President Melissa Daston, the construction of collector distributor lanes, or C/D lanes, along I-95 South north of the Route 198 Interchange will cause elevated noise levels for nearly 60 families living in the nearby neighborhood.

Quote"The 60 families living by this will now have to live with the latest encroachment of I-95 on their backyards," Daston said.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

deathtopumpkins

Disclaimer: All posts represent my personal opinions and not those of my employer.

Clinched Highways | Counties Visited

cpzilliacus

#334
Quote from: deathtopumpkins on November 25, 2012, 05:59:51 PM
Quote from: cpzilliacus on November 25, 2012, 02:35:24 PM
ExploreHoward.com: West Laurel residents oppose placement of new ICC lanes

Well, what did they expect when they moved next to an interstate...

Yeah, that's true.  This segment of I-95 is one of the newer ones in Maryland (Steve Anderson calls it the "Between the Beltways" segment), opened about 1973 or 1974, and it had been on the planning maps for many years before construction started.  Even though this discussion is about improvements to I-95, the project being discussed is part of (and closely related to) the Md. 200 (InterCounty Connector) Contract D/E construction project.

One of the individuals quoted in the article was very active in the long-time effort to delay and stop the InterCounty Connector project.  She didn't like it when I asked her why she drove her single-occupant vehicle to a public meeting instead of taking transit.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

cpzilliacus

WTOP Radio: Andrews calls for Md. to cut ICC tolls in half

QuoteCalling the tolls "outrageously high," Montgomery County Councilmember Phil Andrews wants to see the cost of using the the Inter-County Connector slashed in half to encourage more drivers to use it.

QuoteHe wrote the Maryland Transportation Authority to ask for the reduction.

QuoteAndrews, who opposed the construction of the highway, says "the state highly miscalculated the willingness of the public to pay high tolls to use the ICC."
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

cpzilliacus

TOLLROADSnews: Maryland's ICC MD200 at 1st anniversary - a tad low vs forecast but growing monthly, tolls about right, speed to rise

QuotePhil Andrews' Montgomery County district of Rockville and Gaitherburg lies squarely athwart the western end of the MD200 tollroad also known as the Inter County Connector (ICC.) The year old tollroad (it began tolling Dec 5 2011) is a boon for Andrews constituents but he caught some headlines this week echoing pretty well many of their sentiments: there isn't much traffic on the new tollroad and the state should reduce tolls to attract more.

Quote"Traffic levels on the ICC more resemble an airport runway than a major highway," he wrote in a  letter to acting chairman of the Maryland toll authority (MdTA) Darrell Mobley, and he described the toll rates as "very high."

QuoteIt was time to reduce them to "a reasonable level." And to try them out for a year.

QuoteThat's wild hyperbole of course about airport runway traffic levels.

QuoteTraffic levels in the latest month for which we were able to obtain the data (September) are in the mid-30 thousands weekdays, and showing pretty consistent growth through the year.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

hbelkins

I drove the ICC on Sunday. It's way underposted at 55 mph.

Fairly heavily patrolled by cops, but I could not tell what jurisdiction.

I have an E-ZPass, but I wonder what they would do with a Kentucky vehicle without one?


Government would be tolerable if not for politicians and bureaucrats.

oscar

Quote from: hbelkins on December 10, 2012, 10:26:17 PM
I have an E-ZPass, but I wonder what they would do with a Kentucky vehicle without one?

In theory, they would chase the owner down from their photo of the vehicle's Kentucky plate, and charge the owner a "pay-by-plate" fee on top of the regular toll.  I don't know how aggressively they pursue out-of-staters, especially from non-adjacent states.
my Hot Springs and Highways pages, with links to my roads sites:
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hbelkins

I know I'm still waiting for a bill for having driven the Bush Turnpike in Dallas a few years ago.


Government would be tolerable if not for politicians and bureaucrats.

cpzilliacus

#340
Quote from: hbelkins on December 10, 2012, 10:26:17 PM
I drove the ICC on Sunday. It's way underposted at 55 mph.

Fairly heavily patrolled by cops, but I could not tell what jurisdiction.

Mostly you will see the Maryland Transportation Authority Police (MdTAP), same agency that patrols I-95 in Baltimore City, all of I-895, the Bay Bridge, the F.S. Key Bridge (and fairly long segments of the 695 approaches on both sides), the Port of Baltimore and BWI Airport.  Maryland State Police have concurrent jurisdiction, as do Montgomery County Police (except the extreme eastern end at I-95, which is in Prince George's County), though I have not seen either of them on a traffic stop on Md. 200.

Because the MdTAP on Md. 200 have little else to do (since there is no cash toll collection for them to worry about securing, unlike the other toll roads and toll crossings in the state), traffic enforcement, responding to disabled vehicles and investigating the (rare) crash is all they do.

There have been some discussions in the General Assembly about merging the MdTAP into the Maryland State Police, but the MSP training academy is (from what I have been told) a lot tougher than the MdTAP academy, and there may be some resistance from the MSP for that reason.

Quote from: hbelkins on December 10, 2012, 10:26:17 PM
I have an E-ZPass, but I wonder what they would do with a Kentucky vehicle without one?

Supposedly they will look up your tag and mail you a bill.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

cpzilliacus

WTOP Radio: ICC tolls spark local debate

QuoteSince the ICC opened from I-270/I-370 in Shady Grove to I- 95 in Laurel in November 2011, it has been a lightly traveled toll road. Most times of the day, commuters can zip across the 18.8 mile roadway without any traffic.

QuoteEarlier this month, Montgomery County Councilmember Phil Andrews wrote a letter to the Maryland Transit Authority, saying that it was being underused and calling for a trial period with tolls cut in half.

Quote"The high tolls to use the ICC are the major barrier to achieving greater use of the ICC, not a lack of awareness that the road exists," Andrews wrote in the Dec. 5 letter.

QuoteDuring rush hour, drivers pay a maximum of $8 round trip, while trucks pay $36.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

cpzilliacus

Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

oscar

my Hot Springs and Highways pages, with links to my roads sites:
http://www.alaskaroads.com/home.html

cpzilliacus

Quote from: oscar on December 21, 2012, 02:14:28 PM
Quote from: cpzilliacus on December 21, 2012, 12:33:37 PM
Baltimore Sun: Engineering study gives green light to ICC speed increase - Highway officials analyzing crash data before decision on raising limit to 60 mph

Only 60 mph?  Not 65?

Reminds me of a college classmate's critique of my betting style in our poker games, "balls of a lizard".

How about 70 - with NJ Turnpike-style variable speed limit signs?

Though the maximum anywhere in Maryland by state statute is still only 65 MPH.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

agentsteel53

Quote from: cpzilliacus on December 21, 2012, 03:24:23 PM
Though the maximum anywhere in Maryland by state statute is still only 65 MPH.

again, politicans and speed limits don't mix.
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cpzilliacus

Quote from: agentsteel53 on December 21, 2012, 03:27:37 PM
Quote from: cpzilliacus on December 21, 2012, 03:24:23 PM
Though the maximum anywhere in Maryland by state statute is still only 65 MPH.

again, politicans and speed limits don't mix.

Agreed. 

Maryland has segments of freeway that should have a posted speed limit of 75 MPH.  Maybe even 80 MPH.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

Alps

Quote from: oscar on December 21, 2012, 02:14:28 PM
Quote from: cpzilliacus on December 21, 2012, 12:33:37 PM
Baltimore Sun: Engineering study gives green light to ICC speed increase - Highway officials analyzing crash data before decision on raising limit to 60 mph

Only 60 mph?  Not 65?

Reminds me of a college classmate's critique of my betting style in our poker games, "balls of a lizard".
I wonder if the design speed of the roadway is 65 mph. On a new road, you usually sign 10 below the design speed, but on existing roads it's often 5 below. So maybe they are constrained by that limit.

cpzilliacus

#348
Quote from: Steve on December 21, 2012, 04:54:11 PM
Quote from: oscar on December 21, 2012, 02:14:28 PM
Quote from: cpzilliacus on December 21, 2012, 12:33:37 PM
Baltimore Sun: Engineering study gives green light to ICC speed increase - Highway officials analyzing crash data before decision on raising limit to 60 mph

Only 60 mph?  Not 65?

Reminds me of a college classmate's critique of my betting style in our poker games, "balls of a lizard".
I wonder if the design speed of the roadway is 65 mph. On a new road, you usually sign 10 below the design speed, but on existing roads it's often 5 below. So maybe they are constrained by that limit.

There are a few somewhat sharp curves (by freeway standards) between I-370 and the Winters Run tunnel (here), but most vehicles are going to handle them with ease at 65 or even 70.  The road was re-routed off of its master-planned route there at the insistence of federal environmental regulators to reduce the impact on tributaries of Rock Creek. The road also deviates from the master-planned route between Md. 182 (Layhill Road) and Md. 650 (New Hampshire Avenue)  (here)  to reduce impact on the Northwest Branch of the Anacostia River.

I believe that those changes made some of the curves sharper than they would otherwise have been.

I believe the for-public-consumption design speed is 60 MPH.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

froggie

QuoteI believe the for-public-consumption design speed is 60 MPH.

Correct.  Hence why they're proposing 60 MPH vice 65.



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