Municipal leaders and county commissioners used an MDOT briefing in Mount Airy to press for faster action on congestion and safety along several Carroll County corridors.

Melinda Smith, mayor of Manchester, said traffic on Route 30 north of MD 27 routinely backs up and that tree roots and failing streetscape plantings have lifted sidewalks, creating hazards and costly maintenance.

'We have to do something with these trees,' Smith said, describing cracked sidewalks and estimates she said the town received to cut and manage trees.

Chris Miller, mayor of Taneytown, described persistent backups on the 140/194 corridor and the bypass approach, saying emergency vehicles have been blocked and that cut-through traffic is increasing in residential neighborhoods. He asked MDOT to pursue signal improvements and rapid flashing beacons and to consider an exclusive left-turn phase on westbound Route 140.

'The traffic is horrendous. I mean, you can be there for 20 minutes trying to get through 2 miles,' Miller said, and added that truck traffic and out-of-state travelers contribute to the congestion.

Andrew Radcliffe and Will Pines of SHA said they have advanced design concepts and recommended breakout projects for constrained corridors where a previously identified Fund 84 program no longer exists. Pines told local officials that SHA has used recent planning studies to scale proposals to smaller, safety-focused packages that may be delivered with less funding and that staff will follow up with county and town representatives to set field meetings.

Other requests at the meeting included pedestrian crossings near schools, expansion of crosswalks, rapid flashing beacons, and tree-management coordination between towns and SHA. Westminster and Sykesville officials asked MDOT to revisit pedestrian connections to parks and to continue work on MD 851 bridge safety and connectivity.

Ending: MDOT agreed to follow up with field meetings, pursue available federal funds for safe routes and rec trails, and to continue engineering refinements to identify cost-effective safety treatments for the most congested corridors.