Free Republic

According to a report issued by the attorney general of the state of New York last week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo was busy issuing sweeping new protections against the sexual harassment of women around the time that Harvey Weinstein ceased to be a Hollywood mega-figure and became a widely known sexual predator. Today, Harvey is serving a 23-year sentence for various felonies, and he faces still more felonies in California. Now Cuomo is undergoing a similar transformation. A year ago, he was spoken of as a rising presidential contender. Now he is spoken of as a sexual predator. What happened? Well,...

Maryland transportation officials announced Thursday that they have selected Australian toll road operator Transurban to develop high-occupancy toll lanes for the Capital Beltway and Interstate 270, potentially cementing the company’s dominance in the Washington region. If Transurban and its partner, Australian investment bank Macquarie Capital, ultimately reach a 50-year deal with the state to build and operate the lanes, Transurban eventually would control 102 miles of express toll lanes around the nation’s capital — 37 in Maryland and 65 in Northern Virginia. Connecting high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes in the two states would mark the beginnings of a regional network of...

Maryland is moving forward on its plan to add four toll lanes to both Interstate 270 and the Capital Beltway. On Thursday, the state’s transportation department announced it received 27 responses to its request for initial information from companies interested in financing, building and operating the estimated $7.6 billion project. “This is a significant and very positive step in the process,” State Highway Administrator Greg Slater said in a statement. “This level of interest indicates that industry is meeting our demand … for transformative and innovative ideas to address the congestion issue in Maryland ….” The state received responses from...

The Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration (MDOT SHA) completed its annual Consolidated Transportation Plan (CTP) tour of the state's 23 counties and Baltimore City to discuss transportation priorities. The Hogan Administration's investment of $14.7 billion in Maryland's transportation network was briefed to citizens, county leaders and local officials over the course of six weeks to ensure transparency and dialogue with the customers who are affected by MDOT SHA projects in their region. Maryland's transportation network consists of more than 31,000 mi. of roadway, more than 5,000 bridges and two tunnels providing safe, reliable and efficient movement of people...

ROCKVILLE, Md. — With a new governor viewed as road-friendly in Annapolis, one Montgomery County lawmaker hopes toll lanes on Interstate 270 are a possibility. County Councilmember Roger Berliner supports converting the two High Occupancy Vehicle lanes on I-270 into reversible toll lanes. “We backed a plan six years ago with two reversible lanes. People in carpools or transit vehicles ride free; everyone else would have to pay a toll,” says Berliner. The concept would be similar to the new 95 Express Lanes in Virginia between Stafford County and Alexandria. Similar to Virginia, any project in Maryland would likely require...

Driven on the Intercounty Connector lately? No? You’re not alone. Many haven’t. The 18.8-mile highway—the first stretch of which opened two and a half years ago after great hype and amid great controversy—is the road less traveled. Traffic counts are well below early projections, and revenue from tolls—needed to pay off the bonds that were sold to build the road—is far less than originally anticipated. The initial estimated cost of $1 billion has ballooned to $2.4 billion—or as much as $4 billion if you include interest payments. Consequently, all tolls on Maryland highways, bridges and tunnels have been raised in...

ANNAPOLIS -- Republican Sen. Richard Colburn of Dorchester voted against Maryland’s recently passed gas tax increase, but now hopes some of the new money will go to replacing the Dover Bridge in his district. The new taxes, initially expected to raise prices at the pump by 4 cents a gallon this July, might help to expand funding for the rehabilitation and replacement of Maryland’s deteriorating bridges. As of April, 87 of the 2,572 Maryland State Highway Administration maintained bridges were structurally deficient, which doesn’t mean they are unsafe, but that they have areas that need to be repaired or replaced,...