This house of cards may be about to collapse. The Washington Post’s 18th editorial touting Larry Hogan’s toll lanes (you have to see the list** to believe it) makes one thing clear. The Governor’s toxic plan will go nowhere unless Maryland elects a new governor who supports it. And the Post shows why that is far from a sure thing.
Per the editorial: “Among the 10 candidates running in the gubernatorial primary July 19, most either don’t mention [the toll-lane plan] or are opposed.”
We can explain that lack of support.
Voters don’t like sky-high tolls, induced congestion, and 50 years of taxpayer subsidies to a profit-driven toll giant.
Smart candidates understand what Governor Youngkin meant by: “Yes, we’re going to take jobs from Maryland into Virginia…And yes, Gov. Hogan, we need you to finish your side of this project.”
Smart candidates don’t want to own the bad deal while Larry Hogan moves on.
The Post finds only one “notable exception” to the lack of candidate commitment to the worthless project: “Peter Franchot, who voted for it on the state’s Board of Public Works.” Strikingly, neither here, nor in the editorial endorsing Tom Perez, does the Post have anything more to say about Mr. Franchot’s candidacy.
The power to stop this toll-lane plan quickly and efficiently, is clearly in the voters’ hands. With low turnout expected and a crowded gubernatorial field, every vote counts.
Read on for election Action Items and position tables. Then see a close up (literally) of what toll lane proponents really intend for us. You’ll also find a preview of MDOT’s next rushed move and what our coalition is doing about it.
** Thank you to the Maryland Transportation Opportunities Coalition for the list of 18 Washington Post editorials pushing Gov. Hogan’s plan.
Action Items
Gubernatorial Primary
Just a few thousand votes could determine the winner of the Democratic gubernatorial primary on July 19 (early voting July 7-14). The highest vote getter wins, even if he only receives 20% of the vote. With nine people currently in the race and limited independent polling, it’s difficult to know at this point which of the candidates on our side has the best chance.
Please note: This is NOT single-issue politics. Larry Hogan’s plan would impact every aspect of our public lives. A candidate who rejects the harmful project signals support for fiscal and environmental responsibility, transparency, economic fairness, healthy communities, and protection of the public interest.
According to a Baltimore Sun/University of Baltimore poll from early June (also reported on in Maryland Matters), only three candidates were polling in the double digits: Peter Franchot at 20%; Wes Moore at 15%; Tom Perez at 12%, with a margin of error of 4.7%; over a third of Democrats were undecided.
Because there will likely be a lot of movement in the race before voting begins, we need to stay informed:
Maryland Matters is the best source for quick turn-around election news.
Find scorecards for multiple state and Montgomery County races, as well as questionnaire responses from candidates about the toll lanes, at Action Committee for Transit.
See candidates’ positions on the toll lanes and other transit issues at Transit for Maryland and Maryland Advocates for Sustainable Transportation.
DontWiden270.org will send additional updates ahead of the election.
Below is our revised table for top Democratic gubernatorial candidates: Rushern Baker has stepped out of the race; we’ve added notes about Wes Moore. The input for our tables comes from the three organizations listed above and other trusted sources.
* In some settings, Mr. Moore has opposed the toll lane project. But the 8-page transportation platform on his campaign website does not refer to the project or his position.
Comptroller, County Executive, and At-Large County Council Primaries
What applies for gubernatorial candidates, applies here, too: Any candidate who supports the toll lane plan signals support for the harms that come with it.
The following tables are compiled from the sources listed above.
THIS is What Toll Lane Proponents Have Planned for Us
When Comptroller Peter Franchot cast the deciding vote in 2021 in favor of the toll lane agreement – without insisting on legal and financial analyses – he cast the deciding vote for a world of hurt.
Here is one example of what we’re in for if the plan is ever implemented. This pic was taken by MD resident Marsha Bond, heading north on I-495 in VA past the Dulles toll road exit, 6:55 pm on 5/17/22 (focus added). The highway design is the same chosen for MD’s toll lane project.
Note all the congestion in the free lanes. Big rigs and family vehicles jammed together – a known recipe for accidents (p. 83). No inside shoulder for the free lanes (that shoulder was appropriated for the toll lanes). The high-priced toll lanes? Nobody's using them.
Share this pic with anyone claiming the I-270/I-495 plan will provide, as MDOT says, “congestion relief for all.”
MDOT – on Self-Imposed, Breakneck Schedule – Will Release Project’s Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) on June 17
MDOT is scrambling to get the toll-lane project approved by the U.S. government and a construction contract OK’d by the Board of Public Works before Larry Hogan leaves office.
To that end, MDOT is about to release its ready-or-not FEIS.
The federally-mandated FEIS is supposed to be a complete assessment of the project’s impacts on the natural and human environment, including extensive analyses and mitigation plans.
The FEIS is supposed to respond to the 5,000 comments MDOT received during the two previous public comment periods. The comments came from government officials, public agencies, technical and legal experts, and many of you.
The previous drafts of the EIS were deficient and inaccurate in multiple dimensions.
Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich, the Rockville Mayor and Council, Prince George’s County mayors, more than 80 members of the General Assembly and a broad coalition of advocacy and grassroots organizations have called on the U.S. government to require MDOT to redo parts of the environmental review and provide an additional public comment period.
Read the letter from Rockville Mayor Newton and Councilmembers Ashton, Miles, Feinberg and Pierzchala to USDOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
DontWiden270.org will keep you updated on the FEIS and USDOT response.