State of Maryland to Cancel Three ICC Bus Routes?

The Intercounty Connector could lose three of its existing five commuter bus routes by Aug. 1, 2013, according to The Washington Post.

Based on low ridership numbers, the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) is considering axing three commuter bus routes, including:

• 202, between Gaithersburg and Ft. Meade
• 203, between Columbia and Bethesda
• 205, between College Park and Germantown

The article notes that initial supporters of the toll highway, which stretches for 18 miles between I-270/I-370 and I-95/US 1, hyped the highway's ability to provide bus transportation. Now, 60 percent of those bus routes, which provided peak-hour weekday service, could end in the coming months.

The MTA has scheduled a number of public hearings in the first week of June:

• June 4, from 6-8 p.m. - College Park City Hall, 4500 Knox Road, College Park
• June 5, from 6-8 p.m. - Owen Brown Interfaith Center, 7246 Cradlerock Way, Columbia
• June 6, from 6-8 p.m. - Bohrer Park at Summit Hill, 506 South Frederick Avenue, Gaithersburg

If you are unable to attend one of the meetings in person, the MTA will accept comments with a name and postal address via email at MTAHearingRecord@mat.maryland.gov.

Even if the three proposed routes are cut, the ICC will reportedly still see two bus routes traversing its lanes - 201, which goes between Gaithersburg and BWI Marshall Airport, and 204, which connects Frederick and College Park.