Transurban Withdraws
from I-495/I-270 Project

 

Transurban announced on March 10 that it is withdrawing from the I-495/I-270 toll lanes project. The retreat by Transurban is a testament to the power of grassroots opposition to a plan that put our environment, communities and wallets at risk. It shows that the collective roar of ordinary people can even defeat the determination of a global corporation. Now, we must double down on our effort to defeat Transurban's plan to build toll lanes over the Woodrow Wilson Bridge into Prince George's County.

 

See: Transurban announces it will exit proposed toll lane expansion.

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Toll Lanes Would Cause Great Harm

But They Won’t Work

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Governor Hogan’s plan to add private toll lanes to I-495 and I-270 would cause substantial harm to our communities, our environment and our wallets. An environmental study conducted by the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) shows why this project would be a disaster.

 

Toll Lanes Won’t Improve Daily Commutes: MDOT’s study shows that if the toll lanes are built, the daily roundtrip commute in the general (non-tolled) lanes between Gaithersburg and the American Legion Bridge would actually be 7.5 minutes longer than if the toll lanes are not built. This makes sense. There must be congestion in general lanes to motivate drivers to pay pricey tolls.

 

Taxpayer Subsidies: MDOT failed to include an estimate of taxpayer subsidies to Transurban over the term of the contract. MDOT also failed to address who will pay to move water, sewer, gas, electric, cable and other utility lines. Why is MDOT hiding the financial risk to taxpayers?

 

Inadequate Stormwater Treatment: MDOT plans to treat only 45% of the stormwater runoff. This will pollute local streams, creeks, the Potomac River and ultimately the Chesapeake Bay.

 

Impact on Global Warming: MDOT did not include an analysis of increased vehicle emissions and the impact they would have on global warming. What is MDOT hiding?

 

Harm to Parks and Greenspaces: Construction would harm 15 parks. There would be a loss of 500 acres of forest canopy from parkland and other greenspaces.

 

No Environmental Justice Analysis: MDOT ignored federal requirements to study whether the negative impacts of the toll lanes, such as increased air pollution, would fall more heavily on low-income communities or communities of color.

 

Failure to Study Alternatives to Toll Lanes: Federal law requires MDOT to study reasonable alternatives to toll lanes. Both the Maryland Transportation Institute and the regional Transportation Planning Board have determined that telework would effectively reduce traffic congestion, but MDOT did not study policies to encourage telework.

 

Read more about the findings from the Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement.