BALTIMORE COUNTY — How would you feel about a microtransit plan in your area?
That’s what Baltimore County is asking neighbors, who are putting a hard stop on the plan.
Baltimore County DPW is putting feelers out about a micro transit system in the northern parts of the area.
Baltimore County DPW asks neighbors to weigh in on possible microtransit plan
The department asked people to fill out a survey with how they feel about the idea.
DPW spokesperson Ron Snyder emphasized that no plans have been made yet.
“Our goal behind the survey is not to say what we’re doing or what we’re not doing, our goal behind the survey was to see what the residents in Northern Baltimore County, in these rural communities, want," Snyder said.
They're looking at Kingsville, Jacksonville, Monkton, Glencoe, Hereford, White Hall, and Parkton.
Neighbors have taken to social media about their distaste for the plan.
One woman posted, "People move to rural areas because they want to avoid interaction."
Another neighbor wrote that she worries it'll bring congestion, crime and noise.
However, Snyder told WMAR-2 News that it would be more like a rideshare.
“The goal behind microtransit is not to add congestion on the roads, it’s not to add bus lines, it’s not to add rail service. Think of it as a hybrid between a shuttle and a rideshare.”
Delegate Ryan Nawrocki said, still, it would be a fiscal nightmare.
“When you get into these kinds of microtransit systems, you often run very long routes to pick up maybe 1 or 2 people at most. So it is a very expensive service to deliver and it’s also very unreliable because you can have difficulty in terms of timing getting out to those places they’re so far.”
Snyder told us that there have been no funds committed to this.
“If there is determined to be an interest of such a program, we’ll work with the residents we’ll work with county leaders to ensure that whatever we would do would be done in a fiscally responsible manner but again at this point it’s just a survey.”
However some community members are pushing for the plan to go through.
One woman wrote on social media that it could be helpful for the elderly or those who don't have a second car in the family.
Snyder said they'll look at what people have to say through the survey and decide next steps from there.
