Complete State Roads: Montgomery County
WABA’s Complete State Roads initiative aims to remake state highways in Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties as complete streets, boosting safety and mobility for people who walk, bike, roll, or use transit as well as for drivers and their passengers.
The Complete State Roads–Montgomery County report is available at waba.org/stateroads and you can watch a presentation delivered about it at WABA’s 4th Great Montgomery County Bike Summit in 2023.
As part of the Complete State Roads initiative, WABA backed the development of legislation for introduction in the 2024 Maryland legislative session.
Events, Actions & Resources:
Meetup
5th Great Montgomery County Bike Summit
Sep 29, 2024
This event took place on Sep 29, 2024
Document
Letter: MD 198 Sidewalk Improvements
Aug 27, 2024
Comments on the MD 198/Sandy Spring Rd Sidewalk Improvements Project
Document
Letter: Carroll Avenue Improvements
Aug 2, 2023
The corridor needs slower speeds and protected space for bicyclists and pedestrians.
Document
Letter: Montrose Road Diet
Mar 1, 2023
Montrose Road needs traffic calming and safe spaces for pedestrians and bicyclists.
Document
Letter: RAISE Grant for the Capital Crescent Trail Tunnel
Feb 13, 2023
Support for a safe, grade-separated crossing where the Capital Crescent Trail intersects with Wisconsin Ave in Bethesda.
Action Alert
Join the fight for a safer Old Georgetown Road
Nov 5, 2024
Sign up to join our campaign group to support and improve these important protected bike lanes.
Related Campaigns:
Advocacy
WABA fights for a region where biking, walking and transit are the best ways to get around.
We educate policymakers and organize grassroots advocates for to speak up for safer places to bike and walk; and for laws and policies that protect people who are walking and biking, reduce dangerous driving, and facilitate changes to the built environment.
Complete Streets
Complete Streets are streets designed to accommodate all users, and that prioritize historically underinvested modes of transportation like transit, walking, and biking. An incomplete street might lack adequate sidewalks, low-stress bike infrastructure, or safe and comfortable access to transit.
Effective Complete Streets policies change the way a jurisdiction plans and builds transportation infrastructure—sidewalks, low stress bike infrastructure, and transit should be included in any new or rebuilt street by default, rather than as an add-on when there's space or demand.
While most regional jurisdictions have a Complete Streets policy of some sort, they lack teeth and permit transportation departments to continue to build streets that put cars first and squeeze other modes into the margins.
Old Georgetown Road
In response to a series of fatal crashes along the corridor, and sustained pressure from WABA, Montgomery County Families for Safe Streets, Action Committee for Transit, and other grassroots advocates, the Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration installed three miles of protected bike lanes on Old Georgetown Road (MD 187) in North Bethesda.
The lanes proved effective: in the 15 months after they were installed, there were no pedestrian or bicyclist injuries on the corridor. Despite this safety improvement, the project continues to face some opposition as a result of misconceptions about its impact on car traffic.