Md. gets U.S. funds to ease road tie-ups

Maryland highway planners have been given $2.5 million in federal money to try to make life easier for the 70,000 commuters who daily brave rush-hour traffic between Baltimore and Washington.

A spokesman for Maryland Democratic Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski said the money, included in the current federal budget, will be used to help ease traffic congestion along Interstate 95, the Baltimore-Washington Parkway and U.S. 1, using what engineers call Intelligent Vehicle Highway Systems (IVHS).

These systems will include electronic monitoring loops embedded in roadways to monitor the volume and speed of traffic passing overhead, and surveillance cameras and automated signs to warn drivers of backups and redirect them.

The state will use $300,000 to study how best to use IVHS in the commuter corridor. The remaining $2.2 million, to be matched with state money and in-kind services, will buy and install IVHS equip- ment.