Baltimore-Washington Parkway Widening Feasibility Study

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Baltimore-Washington Parkway Widening Feasibility StudyStudy Purpose2.2FacilityManagementandOwnershipWithin the study area, the B-W Parkway is divided intotwo distinct sections. The NPS owns and operates a 19-mile section to the south between MD 175 and NewYork Avenue/U.S. Route 50 and the boundary with theDistrict of Columbia. This section is located withinPrince George’s and Anne Arundel Counties and isdesignated as the B-W Parkway. The NPS is responsiblefor maintaining this portion of the Parkway, includingroadway and bridge maintenance, landscaping, trashremoval, and snow/ice removal. The United States ParkPolice patrol the B-W Parkway and enforce traffic laws.Along this section of the parkway, commercial vehiclessuch as trucks are prohibited; however, buses andlimousines are allowed. This section of the Parkway wasnamed in honor of Gladys Noon Spellman, acongresswoman who represented Maryland's 5thcongressional district from 1975 to 1981.The Maryland SHA owns and operates a 10-mile section of the Parkway between I-695 and MD 175.This section is located within Anne Arundel County and is designated as Maryland 295. Outside thestudy area, the B-W Parkway continues north of I-695 approximately four miles, through sections ofAnne Arundel and Baltimore Counties and the city of Baltimore until reaching its termination at the I-95Interchange approaching downtown Baltimore. The Maryland SHA is responsible for maintaining thisportion of the Parkway, including roadway and bridge maintenance, landscaping, trash removal, andsnow/ice removal. Commercial vehicles are allowed in this section of the B-W Parkway.2.3FeasibilityCriteriaTo help determine the feasibility of widening the B-W Parkway, the word feasibility needed to bedefined for the context of the study. In addition, specific factors related to the feasibility of wideningthe Parkway needed to be determined and assessed. The following presents these items as relating tothis study.2.3.1DefinitionofFeasibilityAccording to FHWA’s procedural guidelines for highway feasibility studies, the definition of “feasibility”as given by Webster’s Third International Dictionary (1966) provides the basis for determining the24 November 2012
Baltimore-Washington Parkway Widening Feasibility StudyStudy Purposedefinition of “feasibility” for a highway study. Within the context of FHWA’s guidelines, the meaning of“feasibility” has the following parts 5 :The degree to which a given alternative mode, management strategy, design, or location iseconomically justified.The degree to which such an alternative is considered preferable from an environmental orsocial perspective.The degree to which eventual construction and operation of such an alternative can be financedand managed.For the purposes of the Baltimore-Washington Parkway Widening Feasibility Study, the feasibility ofwidening the Parkway would involve an assessment of costs, environmental impacts, socialresponsibilities, and overall operations and management. Several aspects would need to be evaluatedin order to determine the true feasibility of widening the Parkway beyond its current capacity.2.3.2CriteriaOverviewThe study focused on five aspects of feasibility: traffic and transportation, physical constraints,environmental analysis and effects, preliminary capital cost estimates, public and politicalconsiderations and facility ownership and management. A description of each of these aspects isdiscussed below.2.3.2.1TrafficandTransportationThis aspect evaluates the influence of additional lane capacity on mainline traffic operations. Thepotential benefits to the traffic flow and mobility that might potentially be derived from the additionalcapacity provided by widening the B-W Parkway to three lanes in each direction for the full length of thecorridor were assessed. This was done by a review of the historical traffic volumes, an evaluation of thefuture traffic forecasts, and an analysis of future traffic operations.2.3.2.2PhysicalConstraintsThis aspect evaluates the physical limitations for widening the B-W Parkway by a third lane in eitherdirection. This includes the availability of land for the widening, the impacts to NPS-designated land,impacts to privately held land, and impacts to existing infrastructure, particularly the bridges andinterchanges along the Parkway. This was performed by assigning design standards of both theMaryland SHA and the NPS to the parkway widening and determining the results.5 http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/corbor/feastudy.html#top25 November 2012
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Baltimore-Washington Parkway Widening Feasibility Study

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