The residents of southern St. Mary’s County have received some good news from Delegate John Bohanan (D: 29B). Bohanan on Wednesday received a letter from Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) Secretary James Smith, Jr. saying that the long dormant Route 5 project from Camp Brown Road to Point Lookout State Park is now back on the funding radar.
Brown in his letter praises Bohanan for “your ongoing leadership on transportation in St. Mary’s County.” He said that based on Bohanan’s concerns his department revisited the project that has been pushed by residents along the road for more than 20 years. The road lacks shoulders and residents say their cars often confront wide campers headed for Point Lookout State Park.
According to Smith, a project planning study in 1997 estimated the cost at $20 million. With no funding for it in the Consolidated Transportation Program, the project was put on hold in 2000, and that’s where it has been ever since.
Smith, in his letter to Bohanan, said the department reevaluated the plan and strategies for it. He wrote: “SHA completed this analysis and identified a strategy to advance the project in four phases including mitigation. This approach makes advancing a project to construction more manageable from a budgeting perspective. The typical section could include eleven-foot lanes and eight-foot shoulders from Camp Brown Road to the Ranger Station. This would address the safety concerns you raised and be consistent with (State Highway Administration) SHA’s policy encouraging the development of bicycle compatible shoulders.”
Smith’s letter goes on to say: “The first phase identified is approximately 1.1 miles long from Camp Brown Road to Scotland Beach Road. Construction costs are estimated to be approximately $5 million, while the total 2.2 miles corridor is estimated at approximately $10 million. This does not include right-of-way or engineering costs, Based on our discussions, SHA would undertake preliminary engineering for the entire 2.2 mile corridor, so that project phases can be constructed as funds become available. With the conclusion of this analysis, the next step would be to identify funding for and initiate preliminary engineering.”
Smith says MDOT is providing $1.8 million for SHA to undertake corridor improvement designs.
The state will hold a community meeting on October 27th from 6-8 p.m. at the Ridge Volunteer Fire Department to explain the state’s approach and discuss in more detail potential phasing of the project.
Smith concludes his letter by saying to Del. Bohanan, “Thank you, again, for your advocacy on behalf of St. Mary’s County.”