A letter to the editor of The Baltimore Sun, dated Aug. 25, 2016 and entitled “Prisoners of Kent Island,” really struck a raw nerve for me. And I suspect for many others who live in Queen Anne’s and Talbot counties and must cope with the traffic-ridden lanes of Route 50, not just during the summer beach season but year-round.
Dorotheann S. Sandusky, a Chester resident on Kent Island, wrote about the onslaught of motorists:
“Its impact, which was once only during the beach season, is now a year-round issue resulting in what can only be compared to a mandated sentence of home-arrest for Kent Islanders. In effect, citizens of this wonderful island are relegated to their communities not only because of the amount of traffic on Route 50, but travelers’ ability to use their GPS systems to find back roads and alternate routes, all of this leading to gridlock. Going any direction for church, groceries, pharmacy and to Annapolis is more than a challenge and requires vacation-like planning.”
Ms. Sandusky is absolutely right. Kent Islanders face a miserable existence, particularly during the summer beach season. In many ways, Kent Island residents submit without recourse to the impatient, vacation-hungry motorists who care little about the beleaguered residents of this spit of land.
Why should they? They occupy the island for only as long as it takes to cross the Kent Narrows Bridge and visualize the sandy beaches of Ocean City, MD or Rehoboth Beach, DE.
I feel for the Kent Islanders. I really do. Though the traffic mess is not as bad on the Talbot County stretch of Route 50, I too feel imprisoned to some degree. With two daughters and families, including four grandchildren in Annapolis, the back-up caused by the constant caravan of cars crossing Bay Bridge from late May until early September is a gnawing irritant.
I spend a lot of time trying to “game” the Bay Bridge. The past two Saturdays, my wife and I crossed the bridge for family gatherings. There was no problem going west on a late Saturday morning. I can’t say the same for returning Saturday afternoon. On one of the Saturdays, the back-up was notable. My patience was limited.
Ms. Sandusky alludes to another reality that I’ve experienced during the past 10 years. Traffic has increased going eastward over the Bay Bridge throughout the year, as more and more people commute from the Shore to jobs in Annapolis, Bowie, Washington, DC and Baltimore, and folks with second homes on the Eastern Shore flock to their abodes throughout the year.
The problem with writing a column about this subject is suggesting a solution. That becomes even more complicated for me, because I am on record for recommending a third span across the Chesapeake Bay—to handle the increasing traffic!
Ms. Sandusky’s letter compels me to think about the impact of more and more motorists happily leaving the potentially expanded Bay Bridge and traveling across Kent Island, oblivious to the impact on residents of Stevensville, Chester and Grasonville.
What, if anything, can public officials in Annapolis do for Kent Islanders feeling under “home-arrest” as Route 50 and the roads in their communities are invaded by well-meaning people seeking to enjoy the Eastern Shore?
I was interested to read Ms. Sandusky’s complaint about the lowering of Bay Bridge tolls, an action she believes reduced funding for “long overdue road improvements for our community.”
Understanding little about traffic engineering, I wonder what improvements would be helpful. More overpasses? Better service roads on either side of Route 50? Maybe a locals-only use of Route 50 and the Bay Bridge for a few hours on each weekend during the summer rush to reach the beach?
Of course, I realize the last idea is completely ridiculous. Do Kent Islanders and those of us in Talbot County simply suck it up and suffer the angst of aggravating back-ups, or just stay in our homes and curse the vacationers?
Ms. Sandusky asked at the end of her letter: “When can we expect to be released from this captivity?”
Can anybody out there answer that question? I’m stumped.
Columnist Howard Freedlander retired in 2011 as Deputy State Treasurer of the State of Maryland. Previously, he was the executive officer of the Maryland National Guard. He also served as community editor for Chesapeake Publishing, lastly at the Queen Anne’s Record-Observer. In retirement, Howard serves on the boards of several non-profits on the Eastern Shore, Annapolis and Philadelphia.
Kathy Hostetter says
I can empathize with the Kent Island residents. I have often remarked
that I am a weekend prisoner of my Wye Mills home. It is often impossible to come into Easton with
Friday beach traffic and if going to town on any given Sunday, I must finish up before noon when the return beach traffic begins
If going Westbound, I need to endure the 8 minute or longer stoplight at Rt 213 at the college and Rt 50. I’m assuming someone rigged
the timing of the light to accommodate the beach goers and ignoring the residents. Additionally, visitors to the shore have discovered the back road of Rt 662 and it is backed up on weekends, tourists passing at 50mph over double lines on 30 mph narrow roads.
I’m tired of being stuck in all this. Rt 662 (Old Wye Mills Rd) should be open for local traffic only on the weekends.
Between all the big box stores invading the Shore, traffic imprisoning me and officials ignoring residents desires, I’m ready to move to get away from the same things that I tried to get away from when I moved here 30 years ago from the Western Shore.
Glory M Aiken says
Dear Howard,
A third Bay Bridge span across the Bay would only bring more traffic to Rte. 50 which cannot handle the traffic that it now has.
My solution is for a bridge modeled on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel built further south across the Bay that lands in Cambridge, thus diffusing the traffic that comes from the DC area. From Cambridge it is a straight shot east to Ocean City.
Lindsay Thompson says
Unfortunately this issue is not isolated to Kent Island. As a life-long resident of Queenstown living on a road where I must cross or get on Rt. 50 to go anywhere, I generally did not go anywhere Friday through Sunday during the summer. Now Thursday has been added to the list and Monday mornings are often an adventure getting to work on in Annapolis. A potential solution? A request from a local: be courteous! If you see traffic stopping 50 yards in front of you and a car trying to cross the highway, stop and let them cross instead of blocking the intersection. If you’re on your way to the beach and Rt. 50 is backed up, please stay on Rt. 50 instead of congesting our back roads used by locals to get around. Please pay attention; watch for those of use turning off of the highway to go HOME and slow down rather than tailgate and make gestures at as for “slowing you down” when you’re going to stop at a light in 100 yards anyway. A little courtesy could go a long way.
Case Marsh says
In our Shore travels, we all collide with the summertime resort hordes, most of whom consider the communities and roads along their routes as just obstacles on their way to their destination and back home again. Many of us like to think that we’re different from these transients, but I’m not so sure. My observation is that Shore drivers routinely speed, roll through stop signs and “turn on red after stop” red lights, fail to stop on yellow, block intersections, tailgate, and squeeze in at the last moment at exits and lane endings. We still use our cell phones and text. And what the hell is this epidemic of passing on the solid lines and the shoulders? My point is, it’s not just the transients. Willful disregard of the rules of the road and discourteous driving is the rule with us too. SO QUIT COMPLAINING ABOUT THE SUMMER HORDES. We on the Shore are every bit as guilty.
And I’m sorry, but you cannot expect the summer hordes to stay off the back roads. After all, their GPS’s are directing them along the fastest, not shortest, routes based on automatic reporting of traffic volumes. And who are we to tell them they can’t travel state routes…they’re taxpayers too!
And it’s useless to appeal to their better natures to observe the rules of the road and to be more courteous. Many of them fight horrendous traffic every weekday morning and evening. The Washington Beltway is congested 24/7/365. Warfare driving is the natural way of life for them. Besides they have observed how we drive too.
And to spend $1 billion to build a third Bay Bridge mainly for a few weekends, three or four month out of the year? Give me a break!
I think the only ones with a legitimate complaint about the summer traffic may be the old, old-timers who were here before the first Bay Bridge. There aren’t many of them left, and many of the ones that remain and are still driving are probably the biggest hazards on the roads. Should we do something about them?
The rest of us, whether we among the “younger” natives, long-time ago or newbie transplants, or whatever, I think we just need to accommodate reality. As long as the ocean resorts are thriving, we’re going to have to put up with the summer hordes on the roads a few weekends each summer. And if you just can’t chill, well there’s always the option to move. After all, it’s still a free country.