CAROLINE COUNTY, Md. - Two lanes and high speeds are the ingredients for a dangerous road. Add shore traffic to the mix and you end up with State Route 404 in Caroline County.
The Maryland Department of Transportation, along with the State Highway Administration, plan to reduce the danger on Route 404 by widening the lanes. High speed cars and trucks separated by thin yellow lines can be a recipe for disaster. The state plans to improve Route 404 to make it safer for drivers.
"I think it's a great idea," said Jennifer Zinter of Greensboro. "I have lived here all my life and every summer there is traffic backed up and it's just a pain."
Faisal Farooq has worked along Route 404 for over a decade, and says he has seen it all.
"That would be perfect because I have seen a lot of accidents," Farooq said. "I see a lot of people killed on it and all the people living here are upset about it."
Just beyond the Tuckahoe Creek as you enter Caroline County on Route 404, MDOT has just finished a one mile project that gives drivers a little breathing room between lanes. The plan is to make the road wider and increase the lanes from two to four. Lorri Patton applauds their efforts but believes it may end up doing more harm then good.
"I think it's a good thing to make the road safer no matter where they are," Patton said. "The dual lanes are going to help that perhaps but it's also going to speed up traffic."
Next on MDOT's agenda is to increase the lanes from two to four on Route 404 between Route 309 and Tuckahoe Creek. In 2009, MDOT estimated it would cost around $15 million for one mile of road work on Route 404. It could be a while before the entire road gets re-done.
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