FOSC is one of 50 community groups supporting an extensive technical and legal analysis of the state’s Draft EIS for the proposed Beltway (I-495 and I-270) expansion. Released to Governor Hogan on Nov. 9, the 200+ page document presents analyses by multiple experts and consultants that tested the assumptions, methods, and conclusions of the Draft EIS. They conclude that “the state’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement violates the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), as well as other federal laws, and is a disservice to the public because it presents incomplete and inadequate analyses.” Visit the FOSC Advocacy Current Issues page to view the complete document and the Sierra Club website for the excerpts of comments by coalition groups.
Next, the state will review all comments received during the comment period.
The Sierra Club notes that news organizations have already found that the project will result in high tolls, require involvement of 21 utilities, and is based to date on fundamentally flawed traffic modeling, and has earned rebukes by the bi-county parks and planning commission and Montgomery County Council and Executive.