Maryland, through the State Highway Administration, is currently conducting the following four planning studies along the Capital Beltway.
1. Full Beltway Study. The Full Beltway Study limits include Maryland's entire portion of the Beltway, 42 miles, which extend from the American Legion Bridge to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge through Montgomery and Prince George's counties. The right-of-way along the highway varies between 200 feet and 300 feet. Currently, the schedule for this study is pending as SHA focuses on the Joint Mobility Studies with Virginia.
2. West Side Joint Mobility Study. The West Side Joint Mobility Study is a joint effort of Maryland's SHA and VDOT with the goal of reviewing and connecting Virginia's HOT Study, Maryland's Capital Beltway Study, Maryland's I-270 Multi-Modal Study, and Maryland's Intercounty Connector. The study began in the middle of 2006 and includes an evaluation of the following factors: a) demand for a managed lane along this section of the highway, b) how existing and future traffic will operate with a managed lane, and c) how many lanes are needed for a managed lane system to operate effectively. The study team has completed the engineering efforts and developed the proposed traffic volumes for the alternatives. They are currently working on the potential impacts and cost estimates for the alternatives and analyzing the operational dimension of the proposed traffic volumes.
3. South Side Joint Mobility Study. The South Side Joint Mobility Study is a compilation of any available existing literature, analyses, studies, designs and reports concerning mobility in Southern Capital Beltway Study Area previously prepared by stakeholder agencies. The study area is defined by the Beltway from and including the Springfield Interchange on the west to Maryland Route 5 on the east. MDOT, VDOT, the Federal Highway Administration, and the District DOT commissioned the study. The study also includes reviews of planned and existing projects that may also include heavy and light rail, bus rapid transit, HOT lanes, and managed lanes. 4. Existing Beltway Maintenance. SHA is currently evaluating the condition of the Beltway pavement and bridges to determine the extent of replacement and rehabilitation requirements for the next 10 to 20 years. Due to the age and condition of the Beltway, it is likely that most of the pavement and many of the bridges will need improvements. The improvements could be implemented as part of the overall Capital Beltway Study or independent of the study.
At the heart of the studies are six recurring issues:
1) Population and employment projections indicate substantial regional growth in suburban areas served by the Beltway;
2) Congestion on major routes inside the Beltway is pushing residential and commercial development to areas outside the Beltway;
3) Lack of alternative routes to serve circumferential travel;
4) High rate of congestion-related accidents on the Beltway;
5) Inadequate capacity to accommodate existing and projected traffic;
6) Federal air quality conformity requirements.