Intercounty Connector Limited Functional Master Plan Amendment

Public Hearing Draft

County Bike Path (SP-40) Before and After

This master plan amendment can best be summarized by describing what happens to the CBP (SP-40) as a result of
the various recommendations. All prior master plans, including the CBFMP, envisioned a pathway or trail within
the highway ROW for the highway’s length, from Shady Grove Road to the Prince George’s County Line. This
plan amendment recommends retaining the previously master planned alignment in two areas, and routing it along
major roads in others, generally consistent with the SHA’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan. The table below describes
how SP-40 would function end to end under this amendment, west to east. Refer to Figure 8.

Segment ICCLFMPA recommendation

Midcounty Highway terminus at Shady Grove Road to SP-40

CBP trail terminus at Needwood Road - Existing shared use path along south side of Muncaster
Mill Road from Shady Grove Road to Applewood Lane.

- New shared use path along south side of Muncaster Mill

Road between Applewood Lane and Needwood Road

- New shared use path along east side of Needwood Road

to ICC

SP-40 A
- Shared roadway connection along Applewood Lane
from Muncaster Mill Road (SP-40) to future Midcounty
Highway shared use path (SP-70)

Plan amendment needed to add shared use path to Muncaster

Mill Road, and bike route along Applewood Lane.

Emory Lane to Georgia Avenue Retain existing master plan alignment along ICC ROW

Layhill Road to Notley Road SP-40

- New shared use path through Northwest Branch Park,
connecting Layhill Local Park with National Capital Trolley
Museum Site

- New shared use paths along south side of Bonifant Road

east of Trolley Museum and west side of Notley Road

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 Intercounty Connector Limited Functional Master Plan Amendment
Public Hearing Draft

Segment ICCLFMPA recommendation

Layhill Road to Notley Road SP-40 B

- New shared use paths along east side of Alderton Road
between MHT and Bonifant Road and along Bonifant Road
between Alderton Road and the Trolley Museum driveway.

Plan amendment needed to add shared use path to Bonifant

Road and Notley Road, as well as along Alderton Road to
provide side-connection to MHT (SP-40B) as well as SP-40
through Northwest Branch Park north of Bonifant Road.

New Hampshire Avenue to US 29 HARD SURFACE

- Existing bike lanes and a new shared use path along west
side of New Hampshire Avenue, from ICC to East Randolph
Road
- Existing shared use path along north side of East Randolph
Road, from New Hampshire Avenue to Fairland Road.
- Existing bike lanes and a new shared use path along south
side of Fairland Road from E. Randolph Road to US 29.

NATURAL SURFACE

- New sanctioned east-west park trail between park

boundaries, along the highway ROW

Plan amendments needed to add shared use paths to New

Hampshire Avenue and Fairland Road.

US 29 to Briggs Chaney Road Retain current master plan recommendation for CBP within or
along the ICC ROW; if along ICC ROW, possible through
Tanglewood community and Tanglewood Park.

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 Intercounty Connector Limited Functional Master Plan Amendment
Public Hearing Draft

Park Trails Before and After

This plan amendment affects a number of park trail alignments, and thus also the CPTP, which has specific
connections with the trail along the highway.

Matthew Henson Trail. Refer to Figure 5. The County Bike Path was intended to intersect with the MHT within
Northwest Branch Stream Valley Park south of Bonifant Road, where the MHT-reserved land intersects with the
ICC ROW. When the State decided not to include the trail through the park along the highway, the location of the
trail-intersection changed significantly. With SP-40 no longer passing through the park south of Bonifant Road
(blue line), the connection between MHT and Alderton Road now must be implemented as a park trail, not a
transportation bikeway. Therefore the connection between Alderton Road (Circle “C”) and Notley Road (Circle
“B”) becomes a park trail connector, an extension of the Matthew Henson Trail, to be evaluated by the Department
of Parks as a future facility planning study (looking at options for both natural surface and hard surface trail users).
This connection will be the subject of a future facility planning study led by the Department of Parks, with SHA
funding assistance requested.

Upper Paint Branch Stream Valley Park. Refer to Figure 7. SP-40 is proposed to be removed from where it passes
through the park due to environmental impacts, with hard surface trail users expected to follow the SHA
Bike/Pedestrian Plan (Fairland Road, E. Randolph Road, and New Hampshire Avenue). Natural surface trail users
will be accommodated by an east-west trail parallel to the highway, but within parkland. This trail should be
located on the north side of the ICC and provide access to Charles Drew Elementary School, the Spring Oak Estates
community via the park maintenance access point on Cavendish Drive, and the Stonecrest community via the
western end of Countryside Drive. The trail can utilize the Lower Oak Springs stormwater management pond
access road, portions of which will be relocated as part of ICC construction. Access to the trail to and from the east
will likely need to be via the Stonecrest community as the ICC roadway alignment utilizes the entire master
planned right-of-way, including retaining wall construction, between the Stonecrest and Fairland communities, and
no park property exists in this segment for a park trail.

Planning Process and Public Participation

The outreach strategy engaged key stakeholders in this master plan amendment, which included bicycle
transportation advocates, pedestrian/walking advocates, park and trail (recreation) advocates, and environmental
advocates. Due to the limited scope of the issues to be studied, we established an informal stakeholders working
group consisting primarily of the interest groups with the most interests in the outcomes of this planning process:
Bicycle transportation advocates
Pedestrian advocates
Park and recreation advocates
Environmental advocates

In addition, we developed an interagency technical working group of representatives from the County Executive
branch, including the Department of Public Works and Transportation, and the Maryland Department of
Transportation, including the State Highway Administration. To engage residents of the corridor and the general
public we held two public information meetings to obtain comments and reactions to preliminary recommendations.
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 Intercounty Connector Limited Functional Master Plan Amendment
Public Hearing Draft

These meetings were held on March 19th and April 2nd, 2008. This general planning process approach was
consistent with how we conducted the master plan process for the CBFMP in 2004-2005.

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 Intercounty Connector Limited Functional Master Plan Amendment
Public Hearing Draft

Appendix A – Acronyms and Definitions

CBFMP Countywide Bikeways Functional Master Plan
CBP County Bike Path
CPTP Countywide Park Trails Plan
CIP Capital Improvement Program
CTP Consolidated Transportation Program
County Bike Path Master planned route for the County Bike Path (SP-40 in CBFMP)
DEIS Draft Environmental Impact Statement
DPWT Department of Public Works and Transportation
FEIS Final Environmental Impact Statement
FY Fiscal Year per M-NCPPC calendar
HOA Home Owners Association
ICC Intercounty Connector
ICCLFMPA Intercounty Connector Limited Functional Master Plan Amendment
M-83 Midcounty Highway (M-83 is the Master Plan identification)
M-NCPPC Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission
MHT Matthew Henson Trail
MOU Memorandum of Understanding
RCG Rachel Carson Greenway
ROD Federal Record of Decision
ROW Right of Way
SHA Plan SHA’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan approved as part of the ICC Record of Decision, which
functions as the State’s alternative to the master planned County Bike Path (SP-40)
SHA State Highway Administration
SP Shared-use Path
SWM Storm Water Management
WSSC Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission

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 Intercounty Connector Limited Functional Master Plan Amendment
Public Hearing Draft

Appendix B – Master Plan Amendment Schedule

October 2007 – Planning Board reviews and approves the Purpose and Outreach Strategy Report

November-January 2007 – An intergovernmental technical committee is established and members for an

informal advisory committee are identified. Staff conducted research, collected and analyzed data, and
developed initial recommendations in conjunction with the technical committee. The technical committee
obtains feedback on the initial recommendations from the advisory committee.
March 2008 – Preliminary recommendations are drafted for comment at two public meetings

March-April 2008 – Two public meetings, March 19th in Spencerville and April 2nd in Derwood

May 2008 – Present Staff Draft Plan Amendment to Planning Board

June 2008 – Hold Planning Board public hearing

July 2008 – Transmit Planning Board Draft Master Plan Amendment to the County Council

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 Intercounty Connector Limited Functional Master Plan Amendment
Public Hearing Draft

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Rollin Stanley, Director

Montgomery County Planning Department
Mary Bradford, Director
Montgomery County Department of Parks
Gwen Wright, Chief
Countywide Planning Division
Daniel K. Hardy, Acting Chief
Transportation Planning
Jorge Valladares, Chief
Environmental Planning

Project staff
Charles S. Kines, Project Planner, Transportation Planning
Katherine Holt, Transportation Planning
Ronald Vaughn, Transportation Planning
Tina Schneider, Environmental Planning
Khalid Afzal, Community-Based Planning
Bill Barron, Community-Based Planning
Lyn Coleman, Department of Parks
Tanya Schmieler, Department of Parks
Carole Bergmann, Department of Parks
Rob Gibbs, Department of Parks
Doug Redmond, Department of Parks
Norma Kawecki, Department of Parks

Contributing Staff
Larry Cole, Transportation Planning
Candy Bunnag, Environmental Planning
Andrea Stone, Environmental Planning
Interagency Coordination
Bob Simpson, Department of Public Works and Transportation
Gail Tait-Nouri, Department of Public Works and Transportation
Stephanie Yanovitz, Maryland State Highway Administration

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 Photographs by Dan Burden and Chuck Kines
Intercounty Connector Limited Functional Master Plan Amendment
BIKEWAYS AND INTERCHANGES
PUBLIC HEARING DRAFT

Montgomery County Planning Department

8787 Georgia Avenue
Silver Spring, Maryland 20910

www.MontgomeryPlanning.org