A new day is dawning. The Obama Administration is just getting started, but
the President is committed to redoubling our efforts to protect and preserve
our environment, as well as improving public transportation and
transportation planning, with an eye toward green jobs. In a
White House statement, Mr. Obama vowed to invest heavily in public
transportation, saying, “Public transit not only reduces the amount of time
individuals spend commuting, but also has significant benefits to air
quality, public health and reducing
greenhouse gas emissions.”
The administration will be working with
state and local governments
to create new and effective
public transport systems and modernize the aging urban public transit
system.
That’s where Councilman Marc Elrich comes in. He’s working to convince
County Executive Ike Leggett and the rest of the County Council to
re-evaluate our approach toward solving
Montgomery County traffic
congestion and lowering our emissions. Right now, if we do nothing, our
carbon emission
numbers will increase by 48 percent by 2030, and if we adopt
California’s standard,
our emission levels will increase by 22 percent by 2030. Neither scenario
is acceptable.
Mr. Elrich has a transit network plan that focuses on moving people between
the region’s residential areas and job centers concentrated along I-270,
Route 355, and parts of
Silver Spring. His plan involves rapid buses that are more like
aerodynamic cars than
today’s buses, as well as more comfortable and fuel-efficient, giving people
a reason to switch out of their cars into buses. Mr. Elrich sees a modern
bus network as more
advantageous than light rail for the recently approved Purple Line and
proposed
Corridor Cities Transitway. He is in discussions with the
Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, and more scoping
meetings will take place between Mr. Elrich’s office and the Maryland
Highway Administration, the Maryland Transit Authority, and the
Maryland Department of Transportation, and as well as with
Montgomery County agencies.
We can all participate in this process by asking questions and attending
meetings – and we can leave our cars behind and rideshare, bicycle, walk,
and bus to work, to errands, and to recreation.
Planning and Zoning Report – by George Barnes
West Montgomery has joined C. O. North in an appeal of a Department of Permitting Services ruling that Nextel is not required to file for and obtain a Special Exception to construct a telecommunication facility at the privately owned Cabin John Fire Department station on Falls Road. WMCCA worked hard to have just such a requirement placed in the telecommunication legislation that the County Council adopted into law several years ago. We believe that this requirement still exists and is necessary if we are to maintain some degree of control, or at least input, into what kind of equipment is placed in our neighborhoods and the equipment’s setback, appearance and screening from adjoining properties.
Environmental Report – by Ginny Barnes
Greenbriar Local Park: Last week, Governor O'Malley issued
a press release announcing the use of Program Open Space funds for the
construction costs on the Greenbriar Local Park on Glen Road. WMCCA worked
closely with Park and Planning on the Facility Plan for this park since it
includes much needed recreational facilities not available in the Potomac
area including a soccer field, but the site is also environmentally
sensitive. Protecting the nearby Greenbriar Branch stream was also a
priority. However, the press release claims the park will serve a projected
annual attendance of 50,000 visits! During the design phase, Park and
Planning did not even conduct a traffic study, reasoning that since Glen
Road is designated a Rustic Road and only 70 parking spaces were planned,
the site would serve no more than 40 visits per weekday at peak traffic
times. Where did 50,00 visits a year come from?
Pepco Tree Cutting: WMCCA has received a number of calls about roadside
trees being cut or marked in red for cutting – with no explanation –
observed on Seneca Road, Route 118, and even along Persimmon Tree Road.
Initial research has shown that Pepco is working with State Forestry on a
project to eliminate what they call "nuisance trees" from roadsides with
power lines. Ever since Pepco invoked “homeland security” to cut everything
that grows beneath the right-of-way for
high voltage transmission
lines, they have become bolder and more aggressive in the destruction of our
roadside trees. What do they consider constitutes a “nuisance tree?”
West Montgomery County Citizens Association Newsletter
Check the web site for information on issues we are working on.