Commuters

Talk in Congress of letting the District of Columbia tax commuters is getting a cool reception in Maryland. Officials in Washington say such a measure could raise $1.2 billion in new revenue - enough to fund nearly an eighth of the district's $9.65 billion operating budget. But it would cost Maryland - with nearly 250,000 commuters, the district's largest source of workers - hundreds millions of dollars. "I'm vehemently against it," said Rep.Elijah E. Cummings, a Baltimore Democrat who represents thousands who work in Washington.

Matt Bloedorn was resigned Tuesday to a commute from Fells Point that would take twice as long as usual, maybe more, as the city dealt with continued flare-ups in its underground water system. Bloedorn, a civil engineer who lives in Catonsville, said he wasn't surprised, given the region's aging — and sometimes unreliable — infrastructure. "It's inevitable," Bloedorn said. "The water system is over 100 years old. " The latest water main breaks on Light Street near East Lombard Monday evening and on Fleet Street between South Caroline and South Bond streets early Tuesday hung up traffic, forced some businesses to close early as water was cut off and others to shut down as extensive repairs got under way. Niaz Mohammad, assistant manager at the 7-Eleven at 22 Light St., said the store would lose $4,000 to $5,000 in sales each day it stays closed.

Commuters to Baltimore are likely to face heavy traffic and major delays Tuesday, after a large water main break downtown buckled the surface of Light Street and sent water gushing through Lombard and Pratt streets. Jamie Kendrick, the city's deputy transportation director, advised commuters to “think ahead, plan ahead, [and] use alternate routes” Tuesday, including Metro and light rail. “We've got a lot to find out once we've got the water shut off,” Kendrick said.

Everyone should consider their commuting time door-to-door to figure out their hourly wage. Don't spend 20 percent more time on a long commute for 10 percent more money. I've been running five miles to work for 16 years, so gas prices and bus fares astonish me. When we run out of oil, everyone will have to get to work by biking or walking. Hopefully, then it'll start to cool off. I recently picked my son up at Dulles airport and brought him home to Lutherville. It was a five-hour adventure in horrible traffic.

Many federal workers in and around Washington make their home in the Baltimore area, so when two of them get together at a party, they immediately begin swapping commuting strategies. "Invariably, the first question that I get when I say I commute to D.C. is 'Oh, do you take the train?'" said Elaine Papp, a Federal Hill resident who works for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration in southeast Washington. "When I say, 'No,' then they say, 'How do you get there?'" How to get "there" is a question thousands of Marylanders must figure out. About 101,370 federal employees in Maryland commute to Washington, according to 2010 estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau.

BGE officials continued to scramble Sunday to restore power to nearly more than 257,000 customers as the area suffered with temperatures near 100 degrees for a third day and braced for a chaotic Monday-morning commute. After the state was rocked Friday night by a fast-moving series of storms, Gov. Martin O'Malley said he would closely monitor the restoration work of Baltimore Gas and Electric, as well as Pepco, and would urge them to beat their own projections. The power companies have said they could restore power to nearly all area homes by this weekend.

Nearly 200 cyclists and guests rallied together on Friday, May 18 from 7 to 9 a.m. to celebrate Bike to Work Day in downtown Bel Air. Held at the Harford County Administration Building and sponsored by Harford County Government and the Department of Community Services, Commuter Assistance Rideshare Program, the event is part of the Baltimore Metropolitan Council's Bike to Work Day held across the Baltimore metropolitan region as part of Clean...

Those who travel by MARC train to get to work are in for a treat as Harford Commuter Assistance, elected officials and special guests will be on hand from 5:30 to 9 a.m. at the Edgewood MARC Train Station May 2, and the Aberdeen MARC Train Station May 8 with giveaways and light refreshments as well as commuting information as part of May's designation as Clean Commute Month. These are commuters who, day after day, board the MARC train heading south to Baltimore and other destinations, includingWashington, D.C.to get to work.

A Monday morning accident near 28th Street on the southbound Jones Falls Expressway and a stalled vehicle near the Northern Parkway exit meant traffic was narrowed to a single lane for one lengthy stretch of the popular route to downtown. The two incidents worsened a commute city transportation officials had already warned would be difficult because of planned lane closures. Emergency crews cleared the accident within an hour and a tow truck quickly removed the car, city transportation spokeswoman Adrienne Barnes said.