Steering motorists toward answers on the road

Marc Weinshenker, Gaithersburg

A: Officials with the county’s Department of Public Works and Transportation checked the timing of the signals at this intersection, and there are no plans to change the timing. That’s because officials say the intersection is among the most heavily traveled in the county. In fact, it topped the county’s list of most congested intersections as was outlined in the 2008 Highway Mobility Report.

The county’s Traffic Management Center has tried to make all approaches as equitable as possible without exacerbating overall delays, officials said.

I wanted to now take a moment to pull back the curtain and give some tips to help you get your questions answered.

So, I thought I would explain briefly how it all works so you will know where to turn (no pun intended) for answers.

I have received several e-mails from people through the years saying they have had difficulty getting a response from state or county officials about a particular road, intersection or signal. But when I read further, I learned the person contacted the wrong entity.

The county controls all operations of traffic signals, even those on state roads. But if you want a new traffic signal on a state road, call the state. Confusing, I know.

State roads have a route number and a name. For example: Route 28 (Darnestown Road), Route 187 (Old Georgetown Road), Route 118 (Germantown Road).

County roads just have a name. For example: Redland Road, Shady Grove Road, Middlebrook Road.

The county Web site is www.montgomerycountymd.gov⁄Content⁄DPWT⁄index.asp and the phone number is 240-777-7170. The state Web site is www.marylandroads.com and the phone number is 800-323-6742 (MSHA).

And sometimes, you need to direct your question to police. When? Well, say you don’t know who has the right of way when you are making a U-turn on a main thoroughfare and someone is making a right turn from the side street perpendicular to you, and also has a green light. Which is quite a conundrum and a source of much Bumper fodder through the years.

So here’s a rundown of the police districts.

*Rockville District , 1st District, serving the following communities: Rockville, Potomac, North Potomac, Darnestown and Derwood

240-773-6070

*Bethesda District , 2nd District, serving the following communities: Bethesda, Chevy Chase, Friendship Heights, Kensington, Garrett Park, portions of Silver Spring, North Bethesda, Glen Echo, Cabin John.

301-652-9200

*Silver Spring District, 3rd District, serving the following communities: Silver Spring, surrounding downtown area, White Oak, Hillandale, Fairland, Burtonsville, Takoma Park and sections of Colesville.

301-565-7740

*Wheaton District, 4th District, serving the following communities: Wheaton, Glenmont, Colesville, Spencerville, Cloverly, Norbeck, Norwood, Olney, Brookeville, Ashton, Sandy Spring, Ednor, Redland, Brinklow and Aspen Hill.

240-773-5500

*Germantown District, 5th District, serving the following communities: Germantown, Damascus, Poolesville, Laytonsville, Hyattstown, Barnesville, Beallsville, Dickerson, Dawsonville, Boyds, Clarksburg and portions of Gaithersburg with Laytonsville ZIP code.

301-840-2650

*Gaithersburg District, 6th District, serving the following communities: Gaithersburg, Montgomery Village, Washington Grove and Quince Orchard.

240-773-5700

I’d like to end this installment of Bumper to Bumper on a bit of a sad note. No worries though. Speed camera ticket fines have not been raised and the county has not decided to stop making road and intersection improvements.

Instead it is time for me to wish my faithful Bumper to Bumper readers a fond farewell. With this final column, I end my nearly five-year stint as the ‘‘the bumper gal,” as many have lovingly referred to me.

As a lifelong Montgomery County resident, I have always been fairly familiar with many of the roads, confusing intersections, maddening traffic cycles, seemingly pointless road signs and drivers who don’t understand rules of the road. Now, I am intimate with all of those things.

I hope I have helped you navigate your way through the county through these years. I have thoroughly enjoyed trying to find answers for as many questions as I could.

And while I never made any promises to ease rush-hour traffic, change traffic light cycles or improve the habits of some motorists, I did try to relieve some frustrations along the way.

Please continue to send your questions to bumper@gazette.net.

Bumper to Bumper, a biweekly column dedicated to answering your questions related to transportation issues, is compiled and written by Staff Writer JoAnn Grbach. For past columns, log on to www.gazette.net.