Md. plans to delay bridge expansion, electric buses in $1.3 billion cuts
The state’s plan cuts $1.3 billion over the next six years for a total transportation project budget of $19 billion.

By Rachel Weiner
September 3, 2024 at 2:14 p.m. EDT

For the second year in a row, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore’s administration is proposing to delay expansion of the heavily congested American Legion Bridge and other infrastructure projects because of a transportation budget shortfall of over a billion dollars, according to a new spending plan released Tuesday.

The Democratic governor came into office in 2023 with ambitious infrastructure plans, including the use of only clean energy by 2035 and a Red Line rail project in Baltimore that was abandoned by his predecessor, former governor Larry Hogan (R). Residents in the state are eager to see money spent on transportation, according to a Gonzales Research poll, also released Tuesday, that shows 95 percent of respondents called it “important.”

But a weak economy, exacerbated by inflation and high construction costs, has limited Moore’s ability to act on his vision or even to fully maintain the current network of state highways.

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By Rachel Weiner
Rachel Weiner covers federal courts in Washington, D.C. and Richmond, Va. Twitter