Anne Arundel County outlines Safe Routes to Transit study for Annapolis; public meetings set and prioritization underway

Anne Arundel County staff on July 9 briefed the Annapolis Transportation Committee on a county-led Safe Routes to Transit feasibility study that includes the City of Annapolis.

Adam Greenstein, project manager with the Anne Arundel County Department of Public Works, said the study is a feasibility/planning effort within the county’s capital improvement program. It maps existing conditions, inventories roughly 550 bus stops countywide (about 180 in the Annapolis study area), and is developing a prioritization matrix to score stops for safety, equity, ridership and community support.

Greenstein said the study’s goals are to improve safety, mobility and accessibility for people walking, rolling and biking to bus and rail stops; to recommend landing- and stop-level improvements such as benches, landing pads, lighting and, where feasible, relocating stops closer to signalized crossings; and to produce a prioritized list of short-, mid- and long-term improvements that could be placed into capital programs or funded by grants. He said the project seeks community majority support and is coordinating across many partners, including county traffic engineering, the county office of transportation (project sponsor), the State Highway Administration and the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA). The study also considers connections to regional services such as MARC and nearby park-and-ride lots.

Funding and timeline: Greenstein said the study cost is roughly $225,000–$250,000, with a federal Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) grant providing $105,000 and the county providing a 20% match. The team has submitted an 80% reimbursement request and expects additional federal reimbursements to be processed. The county plans to finish the study and produce a final action plan in just over a year, pending federal approvals.

Public outreach: Greenstein described an extended public input process including stakeholder meetings, an interactive online map, surveys in English and Spanish, and in-person open houses. The team scheduled another in-person meeting for the Annapolis area at the Bush Library (about a week after July 9) and a virtual follow-up meeting on July 24; the county said it will work with community groups to offer group access points for residents with limited internet or transportation options.

Local concerns: Committee members asked whether the study covers city bus stops as well as county stops; Greenstein said each study area includes every active bus stop irrespective of provider, and recommended that implementation will be coordinated across agencies when multiple providers use the same stop. Aldermen raised the Bay Ridge Gardens/Forest Drive corridor as a safety concern after a recent shooting; Greenstein said the study has identified sidewalk gaps and stop layouts there and will try to pair study recommendations with other county capital efforts along Forest Drive. Committee members pressed for more outreach to residents who lacked transportation to the Bush Library meeting; county staff said they would explore group virtual viewing and other outreach options.

Greenstein said the study will not itself change design standards but could prompt agencies to consider updates to bus stop design guides and local policies in follow-up efforts. The final deliverable will prioritize improvements and identify funding pathways (local CIP dollars, state funds, grant applications) for implementation.

Ending: The county urged continued public input and said the prioritization and the draft matrix of improvements will be refined after the public comment period concludes over the next several weeks.