Montgomery County, Maryland, is out with seven new ideas to make it safer to move around the area.
The initiatives are part of Vision Zero, which has the goal of eliminating all serious injuries and fatal accidents on county’s roadways.
Among the new plans: Converting hundreds more signalized intersections to ban right turns on red and provide pedestrians with a three to seven second head start at busy crossings in business districts and near schools.
Also on the agenda are new bike routes and five miles of new sidewalk across the county, as well as road improvements on Bel Pre Road, Montgomery Village Avenue and New Hampshire Avenue.
In a news release about the projects, Montgomery County Director of Transportation Chris Conklin said, “Since the County adopted Vision Zero, MCDOT has made significant improvements to our infrastructure, adding sidewalks and bikeways along priority areas in school zones and high injury corridors, and protecting pedestrians at busy intersections by adding crosswalks and banning right turns on red.”
Another part of this safety effort is to complete 15 school walkability audits along and at least 10 bike rodeos, which are on-bike safety courses.
The last piece of the plan is to step up police enforcement.
“Montgomery County Police officers are committed to enhancing roadway safety by holding dangerous drivers accountable, thereby improving community well-being,” Montgomery County Police Chief Marc Yamada wrote in the news release.
It’s possible all of the projects could be completed by the end of June 2026.
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