Route 170

This winter's ice storms and wet weather will tack a few extra months onto the construction timetable for the Route 100 connection with the Baltimore-Washington Expressway and Interstate 95."We're running a little behind," said Valerie Burnette, spokeswoman for the State Highway Administration. The link with I-95 is now expected to open in two years.Contractors on the 7-mile, $120 million four-lane highway extension have had to focus on sediment and erosion control during the wet weather.

Here's what to look for if you are traveling in the Baltimore metropolitan area this week. This list of highway projects includes only newly announced work, not continuing construction, which is extensive on several highways, including Interstate 95, U.S. 50/301 and the Baltimore-Washington Parkway.New highway projectsI-695 Inner Loop -- Expect two right lanes to be closed between York Road and Dulaney Valley Road today from 7 a.m. until noon for lighting and sign maintenance.I-695 Eastside Inner and Outer Loop -- Expect delays and single lane closures during bridge construction between Belair Road and Perring Parkway from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. tomorrow through Friday.

Four-lane Route 32 extension in Odenton opens tomorrowThe Route 32 extension in Odenton will open tomorrow morning, providing commuters with a better road between Columbia and Interstate 97.Motorists will be able to use the 4.3-mile stretch of road after the 9:30 opening ceremony, which will take place near the Burns Crossing Road interchange.The $22.8 million project upgrades the major east-west corridor to four lanes with controlled access. It is a major step toward linking Columbia to I-97, which connects Baltimore and Annapolis.

Severn man killed in single-car crashHANOVER -- A 20-year-old Severn man was thrown from his car and fatally injured early yesterday when the vehicle ran off Route 170 and crashed into a tree, state police said.It appeared that Paul John Burash may have fallen asleep at the wheel as he drove his 1990 Honda Accord on Route 170 south in northern Anne Arundel County, said Trooper Michael Pfisterer. About 1:50 a.m., the car crossed the center line, crossed both northbound lanes and continued along the roadside before hitting a tree.

A light-rail extension to BWI airport will carry commuters through Linthicum rather than along the Nursery Road business corridor, state transportation officials have decided.The Mass Transit Administration, which has been studying extension routes since June, announced its choice Friday of a path that combines parts of two earlier proposals, neither of which was enthusiastically received by many Linthicumresidents.The spur -- a little more than 2 miles long -- will cost about $31 million, said Beth Robinson, the MTA's community relations specialist.

Tickets to a preseason hockey opener Thursday between the WashingtonCapitals and the Philadelphia Flyers at the new Piney Orchard Ice Area in Odenton will be given away to the public tomorrow morning.The 200 tickets will be given away on a first-come, first-served basisand will be limited to either two or four per person.People interested in attending the 7 p.m. game, between rookie players from both squads, can get tickets at the arena starting 9 a.m.The arena seats about 400 people. Two hundred seats are reserved for the general public and 200 are reserved for the media and state and county officials.