Maryland transportation officials Monday morning got an up-close-and-personal view of the traffic problems in St. Mary’s County. As a groundbreaking ceremony was going on for improvements to the Route 235/4 intersection, an accident occurred right in the middle of that intersection. Several of the attendees, including Commissioner Todd Morgan, rushed out to provide assistance. Three people from the two cars involved were transported to St. Mary’s Hospital after the accident.
The visit by Maryland Transportation Secretary James Smith, Jr., Deputy Secretary Wilson Parran and a number of the agency’s staffers included the groundbreaking for a project to extend the merge lane on Route 4 north of Route 235, activation of the new traffic light at the Wildewood Parkway/Route 4 intersection and a look at the road congestion problems in Great Mills.
Funding for the $3.4 million intersection improvement project was made possible by the Transportation Infrastructure Investment Act, which raised more than $4 billion through increased gas taxes. Throughout the tour Smith praised Del. John Bohanan (D), who supported the funding measure, and gave only brief mention to Del. Anthony O’Donnell (R), who did not. The intersection marks the dividing line between the two delegate’s districts.
O’Donnell said the taxpayers deserved applause for paying for the projects. He said, “The citizens we represent really benefit from this.” He noted that the area’s number one transportation priority, the Gov. Thomas Johnson Bridge replacement, of which the intersection improvement is a part, was unanimously supported by the entire Southern Maryland Delegation.
Smith said, “Projects like this are really important in supporting the economic vitality of this area.” He said the headline on the project could read: “Bohanan breaks the bottleneck.”
It was at the second stop at which the Wildewood Parkway light was activated that Bohanan’s wife Mary was given credit. Del. Bohanan said he wife would not allow their two sons to use the intersection because it was so dangerous.
Smith noted that the $147,000 cost for the traffic light was borne equally by the county and the state. The county and Wildewood community have been pressing for the light for years. Smith credited the funding partnership for moving the project along.
After the speeches the dignitaries then posed with a mock traffic light as Bohanan officially threw the switch activating the light.
A contingent of local and state officials then climbed into a state van for a road tour. Along the way State Highway Administration District Engineer Lee Stark
