Icc

All speed limits need periodic review ("State studies raising ICC speed limit," March 23). A rise from 55 to 60 mph on the uncontested, largely merge-free Inter-County Connector is certainly sensible. On the other hand, for the sake of safety and preservation of human life, the limit on I-97 between Annapolis and Baltimore should be reduced to 60 mph. That highway is the site of frequent serious crashes due to its congestion and various merges - and the too-high (65 mph) speed limit.

Lightly traveled and pothole-free, the newly opened Inter-County Connector is an invitation to speed, and that has become a sore spot with commuters. A review of the toll road's speed limit is under way and preliminary results and recommendations are expected in a month, said Doug Hutchinson, the Maryland Transportation Authority's chief engineer. The study will take into account the sharpness and bank of curves, sight distances and accident history on the road, formally known as Route 200. "There are a lot of facets that need to be checked out," Hutchinson said.

Construction of the final segment of the Intercounty Connector, the state's first all-electronic toll road, is scheduled to begin this spring. The one-mile stretch of highway will connect Interstate 95 to U.S. 1 inPrince George's County. It will cost $89 million and be completed by late 2013 or early 2014. Officials with the Maryland Transportation Authority said the ICC is being used by about 20,000 motorists on weekdays, in line with projections. The western terminus at Interstate 270 near Gaithersburg is seeing slightly greater traffic than the more recently opened eastern end. "People are using parts of the ICC to make their own alternate routes to work," said Harold Bartlett, the authority's executive secretary.

Free test drives will end this weekend on the newly opened Intercounty Connector, which links Interstate 370 in Gaithersburg to Interstate 95 in Laurel. Beginning at 12:01 a.m. Monday, motorists will pay tolls based on peak and non-peak use. Drivers without an E-ZPass transponder will receive a bill in the mail for 150 percent of the rate. The Beltsville Motor Vehicle Administration office will be open Saturday and Dec. 10, from 8:30 a.m. to noon, for E-Zpass registration. Preliminary figures released by the Maryland Transportation Authority show that in the first 10 days, the older section of ICC, from I-370 to Georgia Avenue, averaged 48,340 vehicles each day while the newer section between U.S. 29 and I-95 averaged 37,867 vehicles.

The Sun's article lauding the opening of the Intercounty Connector ("Drivers rejoice as ICC debuts," Nov. 23) quotes failed governor wannabe Douglas Duncan, "I think people will find it is worth it. " If anyone really believed it was worth it, they would have charged a toll that would pay for it. The Sun neglected to mention whether its readers felt the ICC was worth paying doubled tolls on the Baltimore harbor tunnels, the Bay Bridge, and the Susquehanna...

They gathered before dawn in a hotel parking lot, determined to prove themselves right. A former state senator. The one-time leader of Maryland's most populous county. Several local business owners. Would the Intercounty Connector, Maryland's most expensive highway, be everything they had promised the public over decades of debate and planning? To answer the question Tuesday morning, just hours after the road opened, these pillars of the community staged a road rally of sorts, pitting two time-honored Gaithersburg-to-Laurel routes against the new highway.

Melinda Peters, who has overseen construction of the $2.6 billion Intercounty Connector in suburban Washington, was named Thursday to head the State Highway Administration — an agency under scrutiny after a highly critical legislative audit. The appointment by Gov. Martin O'Malley makes Peters, 38, the first woman to head the agency, which has an annual budget of about $1 billion. The announcement was made as the SHA is completing the ICC, which links Interstates 270 and 95. The new highway is scheduled to open for traffic Tuesday morning.

Next month's opening of the main section of the Intercounty Connector linking Interstate 95 with Interstate 270 in Montgomery County is expected to have significant effects on Baltimore's economy as it brings the state's richest job and commercial market a half-hour closer to its largest city. The debut of the new section Nov. 22 will close the gap between the already opened western section of the ICC and I-95 in Prince George's County. Unlike the first section, which has been mostly used for local traffic, the opening of the new stretch is expected to bring immediate benefits to many Baltimore-area drivers for whom the trip to Rockville or Gaithersburg has long been a traffic nightmare.

The final section of the Intercounty Connector will be open by 6 a.m. Nov. 22, according to Jack Cahalan, a spokesman for the Maryland Department of Transportation. Previously, the state had not said exactly when the section would open. "The weather has played in our favor," Cahalan said. Construction on the toll road, which cost $2.6 billion, started in 2007. The ICC is currently open from Route 97 (Georgia Avenue) through Interstate 370, which feeds into Interstate 270, the main artery between Frederick and Washington.

Construction crews began repairs Tuesday after state inspectors found hairline cracks in the supports of three bridges over the Intercounty Connector. The work requires lane closings on the section of the toll road that is already open. Melinda Peters, the State Highway Administration's project director for the $2.6 billion ICC, said the contractor was directed to fix the concrete supports, or piers, after engineers and an independent expert determined that repairs were needed to ensure the long-term safety and durability of the bridges.