March 28, 2024
Annapolis, US 49 F

County and City partner up to help out Forest Drive traffic

Mayor Michael Pantelides and County Executive Steve Schuh partnered again to come up with new solutions to a very old problem on Forest Drive.

The city and county entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that will formalize an arrangement to minimize gridlock on Forest Drive during an accident, monitor travel demand, and overall help to better control development along this corridor.

“This is not just a one-two punch when addressing these long standing issues on Forest Drive,” Mayor Pantelides said. “This is a full-court press to create new methods and implement new procedures.”

Some of the new procedures include Smart Boards, Portable Message Boards and Drone technology, which will be used during a comprehensive accident investigation, helping to substantially limit the time a traditional investigation takes, opening up the roadway faster and minimizing gridlock.

“This MOU is the first of its kind regarding Forest Drive because there are no longer any boundaries when determining the impact of an issue affecting our residents,” County Executive Schuh said.  “Through data sharing, the city and county can more accurately forecast travel demand in these corridors now and into the future.”

As part of this MOU, a Traffic/Land Use planning work group between the county and city has been formed. With this designated work group, Annapolis and Anne Arundel County staff will work together to use the real time data received to address all projects in the Forest Drive, Eastport, and Annapolis Neck Peninsula area.

Meanwhile, the city has started its Forest Drive/Eastport Sector Study to propose land use solutions that encourage the transformation and redevelopment of key sections of the corridor. Ultimately, it will help guide the future of the Forest Drive area. The city and county are working together to implement technical solutions to the traffic flow problems and improve vehicular movement along the corridor.

A public meeting on the Forest Drive/Eastport Sector Study has been set for September 27th at 6:30 p.m. at the Pip Moyer Recreation Center, located at 273 Hilltop Lane, and residents are encouraged to attend.

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