Baltimore-Washington Parkway Widening Feasibility Study

Baltimore-Washington Parkway Widening Feasibility StudyTraffic and Transportation Impacts5.3.42040Full-BuildScenarioThe Full-Build scenario assumes additionalwidening of the B-W Parkway, relative to the2040 No-Build scenario, to provide threegeneral-use travel lanes in each directionover the entire length of the Parkway fromMD 450 to MD 175. With the existing threelanesection south of MD 450 and thecompletion of widening north of MD 175 byMaryland SHA provided in the No-Buildscenario, the Full-Build scenario providesthree general-use travel lanes in eachdirection through the full length of the studyarea from John Hanson Highway (U.S. Route50) at the District of Columbia boundary tothe Baltimore Beltway.Figure 5.4. Full Build Scenario Lane Configuration5.4AnalysisResultsThis study identified the effect of the various future year widening options on traffic volumes and levelof-serviceon the mainline segments of the B-W Parkway.5.4.1TrafficVolumesThe MWCOG travel demand models incorporate anticipated regional growth in population,employment, and related activities across both the Baltimore, Maryland, and Washington, DC,metropolitan areas as shown in the table below.Projected Growth in the Baltimore-Washington, DC Metropolitan Region2005 2040 GrowthPopulation 6,262,508 8,613,982 38%Employment 3,700,075 5,457,004 47%Sources: Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments and the Baltimore Metropolitan CouncilReflective of these anticipated changes in population and employment across the Baltimore andWashington, DC, metropolitan areas, total travel demand is similarly expected to increase significantlyover the next several decades in the corridor between the Baltimore and Washington urban cores. The47 November 2012