Corridor Cities Transitway worries residents of some neighborhoods

An overflow crowd of residents and officials from Gaithersburg and nearby communities turned out at the Bohrer Park Activity Center Wednesday night, mostly to support a proposed new transitway, but with some serious warnings about potential harm to neighborhoods.

The open house and hearing on the Corridor Cities Transitway were held by the Maryland Transit Administration, the agency responsible for planning and building the project. The transit line would stretch 14 miles and link the Clarksburg area, Germantown and Gaithersburg, terminating at the Shady Grove Metro Station.

The hearing was designed mainly to collect comments on recent changes in project plans, made to accommodate expected new developments at Kentlands Square Shopping Center, the Seneca Life Sciences Center and Crown Farm.

Rosalind Lacy, a resident of the Courtyards at Rio, near Crown Farm, said she supports public transportation because the many new people coming to the area "have to have a way in and out," but the project should not be allowed to destroy existing neighborhoods, such as hers.

The most intense criticism appears to come from residents of King Farm near Shady Grove Metro Station. Alan Kaplan of Ingleside at King Farm said he and other project critics have already gathered more than 1,000 signatures of people opposing the line's alignment through King Farm. Project maps show the transitway would run through the center of King Farm Boulevard.

Project planners "are more concerned about (protecting) wildlife than people," Kaplan said.

At the open house, several state officials fielded questions from visitors, who browsed project maps and posters or computer animations.

At the hearing which followed, the first order of business was a recess so that workers would move a folding wall and expand the meeting room.

Each public witness was given three minutes to speak. Testimony could also be given in private to a court reporter or can be submitted in writing or online until Feb. 1.

Rick Kiegel, project manager for the transit administration, said that the agency wants to hear all kinds of comments, not just those about the recent plan revisions.

He acknowledged that, even if "stars are aligning"—that is, no unexpected obstacle appears—ground would not be broken until 2016.

He also acknowledged that, by then, costs would be higher than current estimates of about $1 billion if the project is built for light rail or about $532 million if it is built for special buses using dedicated transit lanes.

Current plans indicate the maximum number of "boardings" per day would be 42,000. A commuter who would use it for going to and coming from work would count as two boardings.

Kiegel said such numbers mean the project would do little to reduce traffic on Interstate 270 but would nonetheless be beneficial in other ways.

He pointed out that local leaders are strongly in favor.

Indeed, in testimony prepared for the hearing, the Gaithersburg-Germantown Chamber of Commerce said, "The transitway is pivotal for the future of economic development in Montgomery County."