Road to recovery

Our view : State puts funds to work on transportation upgrades

Maryland Transportation Secretary John D. Porcari says need, not politics, has determined where the road and transit dollars will be spent. If so, that's exactly how it should be. There's nothing glamorous about refurbishing the Maryland Rail Commuter (MARC) station at BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport, but such maintenance is not merely job-creating, it's generally a worthwhile investment.

So while revitalizing roads such as Baltimore's Northern Parkway (from Falls Road to Park Heights Avenue) is expected to create 629 jobs in the near-term, it's also going to spare drivers from pot holes or bad street lighting and pedestrians from ruined sidewalks, and make surrounding neighborhoods more attractive and stable.

Same with upgraded Metro cars, a fleet of hybrid transit buses, refurbished bridges and resurfaced roads. Taxpayers will eventually pay for it all, but in a time of economic crisis and when the effects are this beneficial - and long-lasting - that seems reasonable.

KEEPING MARYLAND MOVING

Here's a sample of state transit and highway projects funded by the federal economic stimulus:

Jurisdiction ........... Description ....................... Cost ................... Estimated jobs

Baltimore region .. Purchase of 100 hybrid buses and equipment

........................................ ....................................................$65.6 million .................... 1,561

A. Arundel,

Howard, Mont.,

P.G. counties ..... Replacement of local bus systems ,

........................................ ................................................ $5 million ........................ 119

Statewide ................. Highway resurfacing ... $146.2 million ............. 4,196