ACTION ALERT! Tell the Council: support new homes on corridors and say no to more barriers
Category: Maryland
Release: CSG welcomes Governor Moore’s executive order to boost housing production in Maryland
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 3, 2025
CONTACT:
Carrie Kisicki, Montgomery Advocacy Director
carrie@smartergrowth.net
The Coalition for Smarter Growth commends the Moore-Miller administration for enacting the Housing Starts Here executive order, demonstrating Maryland’s commitment to building the homes we need in a strategic, sustainable, and inclusive way.
“The Moore-Miller administration recognizes that housing means opportunity,” said Carrie Kisicki, Maryland Advocacy Director for the Coalition for Smarter Growth. “This executive order will not just reduce barriers to building the homes we need—it promotes building these homes near transit, jobs, and schools, which is absolutely critical. Promoting sustainability, housing affordability, and access to opportunity go hand in hand.”
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The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington, DC region advocating for walkable, bikeable, inclusive, transit-oriented communities as the most sustainable and equitable way for the region to grow and provide opportunities for all.
Coalition for Smarter Growth — smartergrowth.net
Maryland: Comments on Frederick draft Climate and Energy Action Plan
August 22, 2025
Rayla Bellis
Climate and Energy Manager
Department of Climate and Energy
Frederick County, MD
Jenny Willoughby
Sustainability Manager
City of Frederick
Re: Comments on Frederick draft Climate and Energy Action Plan
Frederick County and City of Frederick officials and staff:
On behalf of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, I am submitting the following comments on the draft Frederick Climate and Energy Action Plan. Our organization advocates for walkable, bikeable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities as the most sustainable and equitable way for the Washington, DC region to grow and provide opportunities for all. We have been working in the region for over 28 years.
We commend Frederick County and the City of Frederick for preparing this plan and setting targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030 (from 2010 baseline) and 100% by 2050.
1. Set necessary VMT reduction and EV adoption performance benchmarks to achieve transportation and overall emissions reductions
- Reduce per capita light duty VMT by 20% by the 2030’s and further by 2050
- Set both ambitious and feasible goals for EV adoption by 2030 and 2035 consistent with State of Maryland and regional targets
Transportation is the county’s biggest source of emissions, almost half (49% total; 45% on-road), so it is critical to set sufficiently strong benchmarks that reflect what is needed to achieve the plan’s overall GHG reduction targets.
We are glad to see that the plan sets strategies to both speed up adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) and reduce vehicle miles traveled (VMT) – strategies T1 and T2, and the list of action categories under T2.
The plan should set performance benchmarks for these two metrics so decisionmakers and stakeholders can track progress.
- The National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board’s (TPB) 2021 Climate Change Mitigation Study found that the region must more urgently move to walkable, transit-oriented communities and implement more robust travel demand management programs in addition to transitioning to electric vehicles.
- The study (similar to national studies) found that the region must reduce per capita VMT of passenger cars by about 20% by 2030, with further reductions of around 25-30% in later decades, for the region to achieve the COG GHG targets, which are similar to Frederick County and City’s targets. (This level of VMT reduction is accompanied by a relatively aggressive shift to EVs, 50% of light duty sales by 2030).
- The draft Frederick plan assumes a “reduction in vehicle miles traveled of 7% by 2035 and 9% by 2050, which would result from land use changes, travel demand management strategies, transit enhancement, and bike, pedestrian, and micro-mobility improvements” (p. 58) Note that the plan is unclear if this is per capita VMT, total VMT, and/or specifically light duty VMT; and if the percentage reductions are aspirational goals or assumed based on currently programmed projects. In any case, the plan’s future VMT levels appear to be inadequate to achieve its overall GHG targets.
- The need to reduce per capita VMT by 20% and further, are why numerous states, including the State of Maryland, have set goals to reduce per capita VMT by 20% or more.
- Fostering a more walkable, bikeable, transit-friendly Frederick County and City – enabling residents and workers to drive less for daily needs – also increases affordability for families and workers, provides health and safety benefits, and results in cleaner air and water that EVs alone cannot provide. We appreciate that the plan reflects this in the descriptions of strategy T2 and the action categories.
2. Redirect transportation investment away from highway and arterial expansion to safe, convenient walking, biking and transit, and also to making existing transportation resilient to the impacts of climate change
The Climate and Energy Action Plan should acknowledge the role of induced demand, by which highway and arterial widening causes net increases in driving and emissions, while not solving congestion.
Achieving the plan’s strategy to “Harden Transportation infrastructure to withstand future climate impacts” will require significant financial investment. The high cost of planned highway and arterial widening and new interchanges in Frederick County would take resources away from hardening existing infrastructure, while also worsening the County’s transportation emissions.
3. Focusing new housing and affordable housing near jobs, transit and services is an important climate and equity action and needs follow-on implementation in planning and zoning
CSG applauds the plan’s action category T2.4 “Support population growth with new housing developed in communities that are walkable, bikeable, transit-supportive, and mixed-use.”
To accommodate a growing population while promoting sustainability, this measure will encourage the development of new housing in communities that are walkable, bikeable, transit-supportive, and mixed-use. Prioritizing these types of communities helps reduce car dependency, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and enhance quality of life for Frederick’s community members. It is imperative that transit-friendly design is incorporated into the planning processes in Frederick as development patterns will be instrumental in influencing the number of community-wide VMT. (p. 66)
It is critical that the County and City establish concrete actions and policies in planning, zoning, and housing that implement this.
4. Add an action category to strategy T2 for Transportation Demand Management (TDM) and operations programs that both reduce emissions and improve mobility
Transportation demand management programs should be added to complement the plan’s transit, bike and pedestrian action categories. The TPB’s Long-Range Plan Study showed that more robust travel demand management programs would be one of the top mobility strategies for the region – much more effective than highway expansion. The TPB’s Climate Change Mitigation Study and follow-on Implementation Considerations study also showed that travel demand management and pricing programs will be critical to reducing GHG emissions.
Operational strategies can complement TDM. The I-270 Innovative Congestion Management program is an example of how even modest operations improvements have travel benefits without highway capacity expansion.
Thank you for your consideration and work on this plan.
Sincerely,
Bill Pugh, AICP CTP
Senior Policy Fellow
CC: Mobilize Frederick
MD Comments: Draft Go Prince George’s
August 13, 2025
Ms. Lakisha Hull
Director, Prince George’s County Planning Department
Maryland National Capital Park and Planning Commission
Wayne K. Curry Administration Building
1301 McCormick Drive, Largo MD via: gopgc@mncppc.org
Dear Director Hull:
Thank you for your active engagement with the public on the preparation of Go Prince George’s. We wish to provide some initial comments on the draft Go Prince George’s in advance of its formal consideration. First, we wish to express our overall enthusiastic support for the greatly revised Master Plan for Transportation, a welcome move towards a multimodal, complete streets approach to transportation. Here are some highlights of exciting elements of the draft plan:
- Urban Street Design Standards are integrated into Functional Classification of roadways — this is a crucial guide for how road engineers decide how to design a road. This is an important advance to achieving full implementation.
- Urban Street Design Standards are applied to both designated regional and local centers streets, and beyond. We strongly support this approach.
- Road diets – roads downsized from 6-8 lanes to 2-4 lanes, per Urban Street Design Standards. This is a major advance for fostering safer streets, connected communities, and economic development. Right-sizing these roads are essential to attracting transit-oriented development, such as along the Central Ave./Blue Line corridor.
- Bicycle facilities are fully integrated into each road designation – this is a significant improvement. Example: Facility Recommendations (section 3).
- Bus priority (Transit policy – Policy TR) policy and cross-sections are included, along with 5 high capacity routes identified. Bus priority, however, is not consistently mentioned in section 3. Bus lanes are identified for MD 458 for example which we support, but not for MD 410.
Recommendations for improvements:
- Eliminate Vehicle LOS (level of service) for Local and Regional Centers, and other appropriate areas. We recommend the following language:
Policy RH 4: Eliminate vehicular LOS requirements within all Local and Regional Centers. This strategy amends Table 21 of Plan 2035, applicable recommendations of the 2009 Countywide Master Plan of Transportation, and the Transportation Review Guidelines.
The above proposed language will replace the draft’s vague policy – “Policy RH 4: Establish realistic and appropriate traffic level-of-service (LOS) standards for the determination of adequacy of roads and highways within a first-tier suburb.”
Our Policy RH 4 recommendation is taken from the West Hyattsville-Queen Chapel Sector Plan, which states: “TM 1.17. Eliminate vehicular LOS requirements within the West Hyattsville Local Transit Center. This strategy amends Table 21 of Plan 2035, applicable recommendations of the 2009 Countywide Master Plan of Transportation, and the Transportation Review Guidelines.”
This recommendation was also suggested in a draft of the West Hyattsville plan to be considered for application within all Regional Transit Districts and Local Centers. We agree.
- Add intersection design guidance as a separate strategy. We appreciate the many mentions of intersection features as important to complete streets, and in notes for specific facilities. However, a policy or strategy devoted to the complexity of intersection design would help advance many of the plan’s goals. Intersections are the most challenging aspect of street design in an urban environment, thus warrant specific attention.
Regarding “Policy CG 7 Regularly refine and update the County’s adopted Urban Street Design Standards to reflect best street design practices.” We recommend the following additional strategy:
Strategy CG 7.4 Work with DPW&T and MDOT to identify and establish best practices for intersection design guidance.
- Design speed of 20-25 mph for Urban Streets should be cited as a specific goal and receive explicit attention. We ask the plan state 20-25 mph design speed be used as a key metric to guide roadway design decisions. Design speed is not mentioned in the draft, even though it states “Intended Functional Operating Speed: (20-25 mph)” and maximum speed limit of 20 or 25 mph. Solving for a 20-25 mph street as an overarching goal provides a framework that is more comprehensive than listing individual tools and practices that help reduce vehicle speeds to intended speeds.
- Use vehicle miles traveled (VMT) per household as a key measure for development review. The draft cites the Plan 2035 identification of VMT as an important measure, but the draft makes no mention of using vehicle miles travel as a part of the development review process to assess the traffic and pollution impacts of each project. Using VMT per household helps create understanding of traffic network impacts, location efficiency, and mitigation needs. CSG has done this kind of analysis here and here. Scoring each new development for its VMT per household performance will help identify developments most beneficial to the county, the transportation network, and the environment. It will also call attention to mitigation needs for less location-efficient projects.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Cheryl Cort
Policy Director
CSG primer: Visualize 2050, our region’s 25-year transportation plan
The draft Visualize 2050 plan, our region’s long-range transportation plan, has too many highway and arterial road expansions that will increase driving and climate emissions. We will miss our region’s goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030 – even if there’s a rapid switch to electric vehicles.
Get informed so you can take action on key decisions this fall:
- Upcoming key vote on flawed 495 Southside Express Lanes project
- Comment period on failing status quo Visualize plan
Source: TPB, with annotations by the Coalition for Smarter Growth
Background on Visualize 2050
- Visualize 2050 is our region’s long-range transportation plan, prepared by the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB), a regional body overseen by our local and state officials and transportation agencies.
- CSG background article
- From March 2024, on draft project list that is now being presented for final approval this fall along with its performance results.
- 48 organizations criticized the previous plan, Visualize 2045 with very similar projects Letter by 48 regional organizations on Visualize 2045 (May 2022)
495 Southside Express Lanes Project
- The TPB board will vote in October on whether or not to include the Virginia Department of Transportation’s flawed highway expansion project in the final plan.
- Background on the project’s flaws, questions that VDOT has not answered, and better alternatives that need to be studied and advanced.
Stay tuned for actions you can take this fall!
- Be on the lookout for CSG action alerts in September and October ahead of the TPB vote on the 495 Southside Express Lanes project.
- Formal public comment on the entire draft Visualize 2050 plan will take place in late October through mid-November. CSG will provide a more in-depth overview of the draft plan – stay tuned.
VICTORY! M-83 Highway is Removed from Montgomery County Plans
On Tuesday, the County Council voted 10-1 to remove the unbuilt portion of Mid-County Highway Extended (M-83) from county plans. This was a victory decades in the making!
Left on the books since the 1960s but largely unbuilt, M-83 offered false hope that extra road capacity could solve upcounty traffic problems. If built, it would have bulldozed farms, forests, streams, and wildlife in its path.
With this vote, our county leaves behind an outdated and harmful highway plan, and can focus on real, meaningful transportation investments upcounty.
Thank you for your advocacy!
This win took a village. I am the fourth CSG Montgomery Advocacy Manager to have worked on this campaign (shout out to Kelly Blynn, Pete Tomao, and Jane Lyons-Raeder!) and am proud to have worked alongside dedicated advocates at TAME, ACT, and other partners who have advocated to remove M-83 for decades, as well as a new generation of advocates like Eco MoCo, led by high school and middle school students.
Over the years, CSG joined leading advocates at TAME in forums, walking tours, and research, reports, and testimony that demonstrated the ineffectiveness of the proposed highway, its environmental and community harms, and the benefits of more sustainable alternatives.
And we couldn’t have done it without you, our network of CSG supporters and advocates. In the past year alone, over 200 CSG supporters contacted the Planning Board and the County Council to support the removal of M-83 from county plans. That’s over 1,350 total emails!
What happens next?
Better street connections, safe bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, and investments in frequent, reliable public transit all can help provide much needed transportation improvements upcounty—and upcounty residents need these changes sooner rather than later.
When combined with mixed-use walkable neighborhood designs, these solutions will reduce the amount people have to drive, shortening car trips and increasing walking, biking, and transit use.
As part of their vote on the Master Plan of Highways and Transitways, the Council approved an amendment to fund a comprehensive upcounty transportation study. CSG plans to support the special appropriation for this study at its September 30 hearing (sign-up opens August 1).
Once more, with feeling—THANK YOU, and let’s celebrate this win!
I am so grateful for your support as we celebrate this victory, and I look forward to continuing to work with you all to win the sustainable transportation solutions upcounty residents need!
CSG in the News: County Council votes to abandon M-83 highway plan
July 29, 2025 | Ginny Bixby | Bethesda Magazine
An advocacy group that lobbied against the highway plan praised the council’s decision Tuesday in a press release.
“Plans for M-83 were based on obsolete planning assumptions that are out of sync with what we know today about effectively meeting transportation demand and protecting community and environmental health,” said Carrie Kisicki, Montgomery advocacy manager for the Washington, D.C.-based Coalition for Smarter Growth. “With their vote to remove M-83, the County Council showed we are ready to offer upcounty residents transportation solutions that will offer real relief—not a costly and environmentally harmful false promise.”
Read the full story here.
RELEASE: Montgomery County Council votes to remove the unbuilt northern portion of the M-83 highway from Master Plan
The Montgomery County Council voted today to remove the unbuilt northern portion of M-83 from the Master Plan of Highways and Transitways, a move strongly supported by the Coalition for Smarter Growth and local leaders in the TAME Coalition.
Big win in Montgomery County! Council allows more multi-family homes on county corridors
Yesterday, the Montgomery County Council voted 8-3 to pass Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 25-02. The legislation will allow more housing types, like townhouses or small apartment buildings, along major corridors, creating more homes near jobs and amenities.
RELEASE: We know we have traffic congestion. The real news is that we have more solutions to congestion than most regions of the country – and can do better.
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 23, 2025
CONTACT:
Stewart Schwartz, 703-599-6437
Consumer Affairs released its ranking of the cities with the worst congestion and DC ranked #1. “These rankings routinely show DC in the top four, so it’s not news that our region has congestion. For one thing, it’s a sign of a healthy economy, and in our case, the return to office requirement,” said Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth.
“More importantly, this new report doesn’t appear to account for the 40% of workers[i] (almost a million) who take transit, carpool, walk and bike to work in our region, and who have been given great options for avoiding traffic,” said Schwartz.
CSG reached out to Consumer Affairsabout their methodology, to determine if they counted transit, bike and pedestrian commuters in their analysis and ranking but the designated contact was listed as out of the office. It does not appear however that non-auto trips were included.
Bill Pugh, Senior Policy Fellow for CSG added, “Metrorail, Metrobus, local bus, VRE, MARC, and Amtrak, and our increasing number of homes in walkable, bike-friendly neighborhoods all provide options that are less stressful and healthier. We need our local governments to allow even more housing options in walkable, convenient, transit-accessible locations.”
“This report also helps make clear why our region should be investing in expanding transit options and making it even more frequent,” said Schwartz, who serves on the region’s DMV Moves Community Advisory Committee which is supporting elected officials looking at both transit improvements and dedicated funding options.
“Increased frequency on Metrorail has attracted more riders, and the WMATA 2025 Better Bus Network is also designed to increase bus frequency and speeds. Meanwhile, both MARC and VRE commuter rail have plans to increase service – including all-day bi-directional and weekend service,” said Pugh.
“So, let’s take this latest traffic ranking and use it to spur action on the increased and dedicated funding our transit systems need, and to provide more housing options in walkable communities linked to great transit options,” concluded Schwartz.
The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington, DC region advocating for walkable, bikeable, inclusive, transit-oriented communities as the most sustainable and equitable way for the region to grow and provide opportunities for all.
[i] Sources: National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board, Visualize 2050 plan, and MWCOG employment data.