MONTGOMERY TRAFFIC
A Crown Made Sparkling By a Mass of Brake Lights
County Lists Top Intersections in Gridlock
MAP10 Most Congested Crossroads TOOLBOX
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Thursday, June 4, 2009
The annual competition for the dubious distinction as most congested Montgomery County intersection has a new winner: Shady Grove Road at Midcounty Highway.
The Rockville intersection shot ahead this year after a sixth-place finish in last year's top 10, according to the 2009 Highway Mobility Report by the Montgomery Department of Park and Planning.
Coming in a close second is the Bethesda intersection of Rockville Pike at West Cedar Lane, near the National Naval Medical Center. Randolph Road at New Hampshire Avenue in the Colesville area moved from 10th to third worst.
Those who drive in Montgomery know where they sit -- and sit and sit -- but such rankings validate their misery.
"In the Washington area, we're involved in the Olympics of gridlock," said Lon Anderson, a spokesman for AAA Mid-Atlantic, "and we're going for the gold."
Rising gas prices and the economic slump have led to less driving -- and fewer traffic jams -- across the country. But Montgomery's traffic has remained relatively robust, along with its economy, planners said.
Although the 10 worst intersections vary from year to year, "there's not much difference between number one and number 25," said Dan Hardy, the agency's transportation planning supervisor. "They're all congested."
Intersections joining the rankings this year are: Connecticut Avenue at Plyers Mill Road in Kensington (fourth); Rockville Pike at Edmonston Drive in Rockville (sixth); Connecticut Avenue at Randolph Road in Wheaton (seventh); and Wisconsin Avenue where East West Highway crosses and becomes Old Georgetown Road in downtown Bethesda (10th), according to counts taken at 130 intersections between January and May.
The good news: Eleven intersections showed significant improvement, thanks to added lanes and better-timed signals.
For the first time, the analysis included pedestrian tallies, which were highest near Metro stations and along major bus lines, particularly along Veirs Mill Road and University Boulevard.
The Montgomery County Council will use the analysis to help set budget priorities for transportation projects, planners said.
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