Evening star., 1952-01-04
Maryland Seeks
$50 Million in
Fringe Road Aid
Federal Funds Urged
For l0-Yeor Highway
Needs in Suburbs

commission believes.
And, during the next Is years,
Maryland needs to spend between
$3.50 and $3.50 million on new road
work with about one-third of this
State money used in a Smile
radius of Washington in Mont
gomery and Prince Georges Coun-
ties, according to the Governors
Advisory Commission on High
ways.
These projects were listed at a
luncheon in Baltimore yesterday
attended by most of the Free
States delegation to Congress, the
roads commission and the advisory
commission, the Associated Press
reported.
Federal Mushroom Cited.
The confereeS agreed that the
Federal Government should share
the roads problem brought about
on the edge of Washington by the
great mushroom of Federal activ-
tiles.
William F. Childs, jr., chief
engineer for the Roads Commits
sion, gave this statistical figure:
The 80 square miles of Mary
land which lie within miles of
the District of Columbia line
represents less than l per cent
Of the States land area.
Yet it has 10 per cent of the
population, 13 per cent of the
automobile registrations, only 81
per cent of the States total road
mileage but lis per cent of the
travel mileage.
OF the 80 square miles, IS
square miles Is owned by the
Federal Government and between
$4,000 and $4,000 Government
employees work in Government
facilities located in the area.
Heavy Traffic to Capital.
OF the cars travelling in the
area, an average Al per cent are
not Maryland cars and in some
sections this climbs to 80 per
cent. About 70 per cent of the
people who go to Washington
from all over the country have
to go through Maryland to get
there.
The advisory commission said
there is money available to keep
the States road building program
going at a reasonable pace for
only two years. But early in 1858,
it said, the General Assembly is
going to have to make some de-
cisions on how much of the $780,
$3.50 million requirement it should
meet, how fast and how to
finance it.
The advisory group, headed by
DR.. Abel Wolman, Baltimore's
public works engineer, listed these
five major projects which it said
would be illogical to abondon:
l. Extension of the dual ex-
pressway for Route 40 from Balti-
more west toward Frederick. I'll
now is under contract as far as
the Ridgeville vicinity, IA miles
east of Frederick.
Expressway Nears Finish.
2. The Annapolis Washington
expressway. It is nearing COM
pletion from the west edge of
Annapolis to Route 301, about
half way to Washington.
3. The new Washington Ma
tional Pike, an expressway from
Washington to Frederick. 1t now
is under contract from Clarks-
burg, in Montgomery County, to
a point just below Frederick.
4. An expressway from the east
end of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge
to the Delaware line near War
wick, to tie in with a Delaware
approach to the new Delaware
River Bridge and the recently
opened New Jersey Turnpike into
the New York metropolitan area.
This is now well along toward
completion from the bridge to
Queenstown.
S. An expressway from Balti-
more, north to the Pennsylvania
line, to tie in with Pennsylvania
expressway to York and Harris
burg. About half of this already
has been built.
Some Plans Face Changes.
The conversation among the ad-
visers. the Roads Commission and
the legislators indicated the pos
Sibility there may be some changes
in the original plans for these
roads.
Up to now, they have been built
as limited-access roadways. They
may be reached only through
cloverleafs at widely separated in
tersections. There are no crossings
to impede through traffic.
The advisers indicated their
studies include an attempt to
determine if the remaining Sec
tions should be built in this style.
DR.. Wolman pointed out there is
a widespread belief among high
way experts that the limited-access
highway is necessary to handle the
amount Of traffic that has devel-
oped and will develop in the future
on main roads. It would be folly,
he said, to change the character of
the expressways now and find in a
few years the State must build
limited-access roads in the same
areas.
DR.. Wolmna reported the ad-
visory group tends toward the con-
clusion that the work still needed
can be spread over Is years at q
rate Of about $35 million year.
$3.50 Million Revenue Seen.
The anticipated revenue over
that span is about $3.50 million
leaving gap of 500 to 5000 mil
lion.
Unless that money is made
available" he said, "the State road
system is not going to be accept.
able to the people of the State
It is now acceptable"
Chairman Russell H. Mccain OF
the Roads Commission suggested
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