Maryland bill would loosen zoning and parking rules to spur transit‑oriented development

Maryland Department of Transportation officials told the House Environment and Transportation Committee on Jan. 30 that House Bill 80 would remove local parking minimums near rail stations, allow mixed‑use development by right within a half‑mile of rail stations and exempt certain state‑owned transit parcels from local zoning if the department prepares a master development plan.

The bill’s backers say the changes would make state transit investments easier to leverage for new housing and economic development while critics and county officials warned the measure, as written, could override local land‑use controls and public‑facility limits.

“The opportunity that transit oriented development presents the state and its residents is immense,” Joe McAndrew, assistant secretary for project development and delivery at the Maryland Department of Transportation, told the committee. McAndrew said development around MDOT‑owned land in the Baltimore core service area and along the Penn Line corridor could yield more than 6,000 housing units and about $1.6 billion in state and local tax revenue; WMATA development near Maryland Metrorail stations could yield nearly 18,000 housing units and roughly $2.8 billion in additional tax revenue, he said.

Why it matters: supporters say HB 80 leverages existing transit investments to create housing, increase ridership, reduce climate emissions from driving and…