Two-way or the Wrong Way?

The Preston Lane Memorial Bridge is a thing of beauty. Its gentle arch swoops over the Chesapeake Bay like the wing of a snow white gull. For many the bridge known more simply as "The Bay Bridge" is a utility, a means to an end, a necessary evil that sits between work or home and a long weekend or a family vacation at the beach. For many it's also a very scary thing to drive across because of its open architecture that provides a unparalleled view of the Bay. That same view created panic in some; so much so that the state used to provide a free escort across. When you add that basic and understandable fear of driving across the bridge because of the view down through the grates to having to watch for oncoming vehicles it can and has proved to be a recipe for disaster. The problem is that there aren't that many options to get to the Eastern Shore of Maryland and Delaware. There is also the issue of not having enough lanes to handle to volume of traffic that uses the bridge during peak hours. Yes, the state has tried to come up with various plans to try and get drivers to go at other times to reduce such demand.  For too long vacation goers have been going to their vacation spots at the same time. I have always been a late Friday evening beachgoer and rarely sit through those long lines but that's the way it's been for many, many years and it started because I hate sitting in traffic but also because I could rarely get home from work and get everything ready to go at a reasonable hour. Sometimes it pays to put things off and going to the beach has been one of them. I should note that the same thing applies to the Sunday return although that is not as easy to do if you are renting a place at the shore or checking out of a hotel.

Here's my point: several years ago the state started to funnel traffic during the peak travel times. Crews places cones beyond the toll plazas at the beginning of the bridge that forced all traffic on the right side to use the eastbound span and all traffic that used the toll booths on the left side to use the then two-way westbound span. They did this to end the mixing and the confusion that used to take place when people that started on the left side realized that they wanted to be on the eastbound span where the one-way traffic was more to their comfort level. These days if you start on the left side toll booths you have no choice but to use the westbound span with its two-way traffic. I firmly believe that there are a good number of people who end up on the westbound span who are scared to death but didn't know what they were getting in to.

The solution to the whole mess as a way to prevent the kind of tragedy that occurred on the bridge just a few weeks ago is not easy. The demand over the years has been far too great for the number of lanes available. It would be nice if a regular bus service or even a high-speed train could relieve some of the congestion. It would be nice if there was a way to make all three of those westbound span lanes available to traffic when it was most needed. If there was a way to make those three lanes open to eastbound traffic on Fridays and Saturdays and then to flip over so that they could be used completely and exclusively by westbound traffic on Sundays. Building a new bridge has been discussed for years but it gets more and more expensive every year and therefore even farther from reach. Maybe it would be possible to build fly-overs to get traffic from one side to the other but, there too, the cost and the engineering demands are probably too great.

I note that the state has suspended two-way operations when it rains during the construction/rebuilding phase of the bridge. That's a good idea as a way to prevent another tragedy but it's the kind of thinking that comes too late. Using the cones to force traffic to one side or the other was a compromise idea that, in hindsight, was not a good one. Eliminating the free escort service for those who were too nervous to drive across the bridge was a very bad idea especially since it was done as a way to save money and for no other reason. The amazing thing is that more people haven't ended up crashing into one another and worse yet ending up in the waters of the Bay. The solution will demand the best minds in the business and understanding that the failure to make this bridge safe and useable by everyone could be a fiscal disaster for the private businesses at the shore as well as for the state that collects taxes from vacationers and second-homers.

Photos
Preston Lane Memorial Bridge: MTA
Ocean City: www.ococean.com

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Steve Eldridge is a long-time reporter, observer and commentator on the Washington region's transportation issues. You can contact him directly by writing to: Steve@SprawlandCrawl.com. Unless otherwise requested, letters or portions of letters can be used within future columns. Letter writers will be identified by their first name and city/neighborhood.

Comments

[Steve]

It's a problem, Steve.
Given the confluence of stress, backups and affluence, I would think there would be an opportunity to start a high-priced ferry service. Some people would be willing to pay a good deal more than the toll to have the comfort of knowing they can get across on a set schedule.
Max 1-way capacity of the bridge is about 4000 cars per hour. Twice/hour ferry service could relieve about 5% of that.
It's a start, but could probably be put in place a lot sooner than another crossing.
If it works, you can always add more boats.